EGI Conference 2024

Lecce, Italy

The annual EGI conference brings together international scientific communities, computing and service providers, European projects, security experts, community managers and policymakers to advance research and innovation in data-intensive processing and analytics. The event provides an open environment for in-depth discussions, new insights and networking opportunities. EGI is organising this event with the Euro-Mediterranean Centre on Climate Change (CMCC). CMCC is an Italian research centre focusing on climate and climate-related research, including climate variability, its causes and consequences. This research uses numerical models ranging from the global Earth system to regional models in the Euro-Mediterranean area.

A detailed agenda will be published soon on the EGI’s website: https://www.egi.eu/event/egi2024/

BES Annual Meeting 2024

Liverpool, UK

In December 2024, ecologists worldwide will gather in Liverpool for Europe’s largest and most welcoming conference dedicated to ecology.

The British Ecological Society Annual Meeting attracts over 1200 delegates each year and provides opportunities to meet new colleagues, develop your career, learn new skills, and share your science with the global ecological community.

The programme will be available soon. For more information, please visit the official website: https://www.britishecologicalsociety.org/events/bes-annual-meeting-2024

Tropical Summit 2024

tropical summit 2024

Lisbon, Portugal

The Tropical Summit 2024 aims to bring people together to address the ongoing challenges and opportunities in the tropics: a multi-stakeholder forum committed to achieving the goals of the 2030 Agenda. The lessons from the past, including unmet global agendas, highlight the importance of not treating the 2030 deadline as a distant future event but as an urgent reality that requires immediate attention.

The main objectives of the Tropical Summit are to promote the transfer of knowledge, stimulate multidisciplinary collaboration, involve stakeholders, and contribute to the co-creation of innovative projects.

The focus will be on South-South-North triangular cooperation and four thematic areas:

  1. Planetary Health: Nurturing life within the global boundaries
  2. Agricultural Development: Sustainability as a path to socioeconomic progress
  3. Territorial and Social Transitions: Building resilient spaces and societies in every dimension
  4. Human Growth: Empowerment and technology for the times ahead

LifeWatch ERIC will be present in the “Biodiversity and digitalisation” section of the Exhibition Hall. Two members of our Service Centre in Lecce will be there. Laura Caciagli and Ant Türkmen will provide presentations about our services and present the MarineSABRES project.

They will be also joined by members of PORBIOTA, representing LifeWatch Portugal.

To learn more on the Tropical Summit 2024, please visit the official website: https://www.tropicalsummit2024.com/

14th European Conference on Ecological Restoration

Tartu, Estonia

SERE2024 is an international conference organised by the European Chapter of the Society for Ecological Restoration, taking place in the last week of August 2024 in Tartu, Estonia. The event will bring together professionals working in ecological restoration to share knowledge and discuss the future of Europe’s nature. The conference will address the decline of biodiversity and the need to effectively restore degraded ecosystems, in line with the EU’s efforts to adopt the Nature Directive in 2024.

The conference will focus on developing approaches for long-term nature restoration. It will facilitate the exchange of ideas, knowledge and experience between researchers, practitioners and policymakers across Europe. Sessions will cover topics such as the restoration of different ecosystems and the socio-economic and political contexts of ecological restoration. A particular focus will be discussions on developing national restoration plans under new EU legislation.

For more information, please visit this website: https://sere2024.org/

Strengthening Europe – Latin America Cooperation in the Energy Transition

Online

In the EULAC EnergyTRAN Horizon Europe Project framework, the virtual thematic event on technology and energy transition, scheduled for the 26th and 27th of June 2024, aims to bolster cooperation between Europe and Latin America by exploring innovative technologies policies and practices. Organised by the Organization of Ibero-American States (OEI), the event will open with introductory presentations from the EU-Solaris ERIC, the OEI, and the European Research Executive Agency (REA). It will feature panels addressing key topics such as the exchange of scientific knowledge, challenges and opportunities in the energy sector, and the environmental and social impacts of energy transition.

Experts from both regions will discuss alternative energy sources, regulatory challenges, and innovative technological solutions like green hydrogen production and solar thermal energy applications. The event will also highlight the importance of international collaboration in advancing sustainable energy research and infrastructure, culminating in a session synthesising the discussions and outlining future steps for enhanced cooperation.

For more information please visit the OEI website: https://oei.int/oficinas/secretaria-general/eventos/fortaleciendo-la-cooperacion-europa-america-latina-en-la-transicion-energetica

To register, please fill out this form:

https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=RCDnxlDvVUG4M1R-c13Lgjw00Q45XEtImjIDUep7g79UMUpBQzVUWlI4VEowNVBOSUNZN0RJSE43Ri4u

Agenda

OBIS-GBIF Joint Strategy & Action Plan

Online

The Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) and the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) will update the action plan annually through a joint implementation committee of staff from both networks’ nodes and the Secretariats. This committee will address technical and community components of the annual plans and make recommendations on the activities they outline.

During the meeting, partners will also explore the potential for organising combined conferences and meetings to foster closer collaboration and hosting symposia and training workshops.

OBIS and GBIF have a history of using common data-sharing tools and standards. They have recently collaborated to incorporate eDNA-based data and have published co-authored guidance on how to publish DNA-derived data on marine life.

To learn more and register for the workshop, please visit this page: https://lifewatch.be/en/news?p=show&id=9317.

ZEEKERWETEN – Science Festival at the coast

15-16 June, Oostende, Belgium

The Zeekerweter is a science festival located on the Belgian coast. At the festival, attendees can experience rising sea levels through an immersive Virtual Reality experience. Additionally, participants can explore the rich biodiversity of the sea at the beach of Oosteroever in the “sea workshop”. The festival also offers sustainable seafood and comedy centred around the sea theme.

On June 15, LifeWatch Belgium will host two sessions. One will focus on Virtual Reality, climate, and plankton, while the second will take place at Oosteroever Beach, where participants can discover what lives in the sea and on the sand.

On June 16, the Ostend Marine Station will be a fusion of science, art, and creativity.

To learn more about this event, please visit this website: https://lifewatch.be/en/events/zeekerweten-science-festival-coast.

Research Infrastructures in a Changing Global, Environmental and Socio-economical Context

Brussels, Belgium

The “Research Infrastructures in a Changing Global, Environmental, and Socio-economic Context” conference, organised as part of the Belgian Presidency of the European Council, is scheduled to take place on June 4th and June 5th, 2024, in Brussels at the Royal Library of Belgium (KBR).

The conference will focus on the role of Research Infrastructures (RIs) in achieving strategic autonomy in a changing global context, their socio-economic and environmental impacts and their wider ecosystems.

Research infrastructures are increasingly affected by various challenges. The conference will explore the value of RIs in achieving open strategic autonomy, their contribution to key policy objectives such as the Green Deal, and their relationship with national/regional RIs and other initiatives and instruments.

To learn more, please visit this website: https://www.belspo.be/Belspo/EUBelgium24/2024060405_ResearchInfrastructures_en.stm#subscriptionform

7th European Congress of Conservation Biology

Bologna, Italy.

The European Congress of Conservation Biology (ECCB), organised by the Europe Section of the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB), aims to facilitate the exchange of conservation science and nature conservation practice and policy to promote the conservation of biological diversity in Europe.

The 7th ECCB will focus on achieving a biodiversity-positive status by 2030. This theme presents a positive message and a call to action towards conserving biodiversity. Despite the challenges, new protected areas were established, carbon emissions were reduced, and there is a growing awareness of biodiversity’s importance for survival.

This congress provides a platform for researchers, policymakers, and practitioners to share knowledge, exchange ideas, and collaborate toward achieving a sustainable future. By working together and taking action, we can make significant progress in conserving Earth’s biodiversity and achieving a positive biodiversity world by 2030.

To learn more, please visit the official website: https://eccb2024.eu/

Come and visit us!

If you want to discover or learn more about LifeWatch ERIC’s services to biodiversity researchers, you can find us at the 7th European Congress of Conservation Biology with our booth with gadgets and information material.

Can you spare a minute for us?
If you would like to help us improve our services, please complete our survey on research needs in conservation biology: https://forms.lifewatch.eu/virtualoffice433/form/Surveyonconversationbiologyresearchneeds/formperma/sMXw6ARj7G9LfvSyT2jxuGy0S45fTWkYgQmLb6dbU84

IX International Sandy Beaches Symposium

Lecce, Italy

The International Sandy Beaches Symposium invites sandy beach researchers, students, and managers to share their research, interact, and establish links. The IX ISBS is returning after a 6-year break to align research with emerging needs of multi-disciplinarity and representativeness. During the Symposium, two workshops will aim to harmonise research and address gaps in the context of sandy beaches. The workshop will have two topics: Research Integrity and Validating a standard vocabulary for beach ecosystem studies.

To learn more about the International Sandy Beaches Symposium, please visit the dedicated website: https://isbsymposium.org/ 

Research Integrity

Integrity is essential for research, impacting data reliability and societal scientific trust. With heightened attention to research integrity due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s crucial to ground theories, principles, and guidelines into our research practice. During the workshop, guidelines from Hazel Newton, Dr Ed Gerstner, Dr Jo Appleford-Cook, Christina Emery, and Laura Graham-Clare at Springer Nature Ltd. will be used to delve deeper into this topic.

Validating a standard vocabulary for beach ecosystem studies

Data sharing is increasingly important, but creating machine-interoperable data is still challenging. Standard terminologies are crucial for achieving FAIR principles. This workshop will create a common vocabulary for data harmonisation in sandy beach ecosystem research. It will focus on understanding standard terminologies, presenting a vocabulary for beach-related research, and validating it for improved data consistency and sharing within the research community.