4th International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC4): Canada
Laura A. Friedrich
Plymouth University
Image caption: Diving into local culture at the George Street Festival
Thanks to the Challenger Travel Award I was able to attend the 4th International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC4) which was held from the 30th July to the 3rd August in St. John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The IMCC series are organised by the marine section of the Society for Conservation Biology and are one of the key international meetings for marine conservation scientists and professionals. Coming to the end of my PhD journey this year, IMCC4 provided a perfect opportunity for me to present the outcomes of my research. My talk on ‘The ecosystem services approach as a tool to improve stakeholder engagement in marine management’ was part of a session entitled Communicating Science.
Communicating science, building links and enabling collaboration between scientists, marine conservation professionals, as well as the wider marine user community and general public were key themes at this conference which ran under the motto Making Science Matter. This was reflected in the wide range of attendants, sessions and topics covered by the talks. IMCC4 brought together an interdisciplinary range of marine conservation scientists – from deep sea ecologists to social scientists – and marine conservation practitioners from governmental and non-governmental institutions. There were sessions on marine planning and policy, fisheries management and citizen science. The talks covered all the hot topics of marine conservation, from invasive species and marine protected areas to plastic pollution, climate change, deep sea mapping and management of the high seas.
My personal highlight was a session on sharks which summed up nicely the interdisciplinary and intersectoral approach of the conference. I tweeted the following about this session: ‘Great session on sharks at #IMCC4 from a science, conservation and policy perspective #flatsharksneedlove2’.
Last, but by no means least, IMCC4 offered plenty of opportunities for socialising and networking, be it at the opening reception where the delegates were welcomed by two bear like friendly Newfoundland dogs, over lunch at the local Rocket Café with its friendly staff, out at sea watching whales and puffins, or at the George Street Music Festival.
I started my career as a scientist with a combined graduate/postgraduate degree in Environmental Sciences at the University of Lüneburg, Germany, (2004 to 2010) which spanned from the natural sciences to the social sciences with the aim of integrating and communicating between the different disciplines. I then moved towards a marine focus with an MSc in Marine Policy and Planning at Plymouth University (2010-2011) and am now coming to the end of my Marine Sciences PhD looking at the potential of the ecosystem services approach to support stakeholder and public engagement in marine governance. From the beginning of my scientific career, I saw my role at the interface between the natural and social sciences and between the worlds of scientific research and marine governance practice. IMCC4, with its interdisciplinary approach and aim to make science matter, fitted in perfectly with my interests and aspirations.
Therefore, to conclude, I want to thank the Challenger Society one more time for enabling me to travel to St. John’s and attend IMCC4.
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Marine Data Management, Governance and the MEDIN toolset
The Marine Environmental Data and Information Network (MEDIN) and OceanWise are delighted to invite you to attend our popular free online training workshop: ‘Marine Data Management, Governance and the MEDIN toolset’ on the 19th – 23rd of May 2025.
Workshop on the contribution of UK Arctic Ocean science to the International Polar Year 32/33
12:00 11th June – 16:00 12th June 2025: NOC Southampton (In-person with online option): Registration deadline 16th May
REGISTER HERE
Pre-meeting questionnaire (open to all)
The purpose of this workshop is for the UK Ocean Science community to discuss and then draft a prospectus document outlining the priority Arctic research questions the community would like to address during the run up to, throughout and beyond the International Polar Year 32/33. Additionally, to identify what unique strengths and technologies the UK has to help fill these knowledge gaps.
The second day of the workshop will be dedicated to writing groups, one for each of the priority research questions identified - from both the pre-meeting questionnaire (HERE) and day one discussion. By the end of the meeting, each group will have produced draft text and sourced supporting figures for the prospectus.
Post meeting, the draft will be opened for comments and suggestions from everyone, regardless of whether they were able to attend the workshop or not. It will then be shared with UK funders (UKRI, FCDO, DSIT, ARIA) and potential international programmes with whom we would like to collaborate (e.g. Arctic 2050, Norway). It will form a basis from which wider integration with terrestrial, atmospheric and cryosphere communities can be built, e.g. at the UK Arctic Science Meeting in September in Northumbria.
To ensure balanced community and ECR representation, and to ensure that the size of the writing groups is efficient and effective, if the number of registrations from individual institutes becomes overwhelming, we may contact individuals or teams and ask that each institute selects a smaller number of individuals to attend in-person. Please wait for confirmation of in-person attendance before finalising travel arrangements.
The workshop will be open to hybrid attendance and contributions on both days.
Challenger Society Council Position Vacancy
The Challenger Society for Marine Science (CSMS) are pleased to announce an exciting opportunity to support the next generation of ocean scientists and innovators. CSMS are looking for a new Council member to fill the Student Travel Awards and Stepping Stones Portfolio. The successful applicant will administer the travel and research grants available for Early Career Researchers.
The role involves:
- Receiving applications for the two schemes and responding to applicant inquiries
- Soliciting and compiling input from the rest of the Council for assessing the applications
- Communicating with successful and unsuccessful applicants for the two schemes
- Working with the Honorary Treasurer on allocating funds to successful applicants
- Following up with award winners on their reporting requirements
- Attending Council meetings four times a year (in person or online) and contributing to discussions and decision making for CSMS
The usual term for Council members is three years.
For more information about the CSMS Council, please follow this link: https://www.challenger-society.org.uk/The_Council
For more information about our Early Career Researcher grants and awards, please follow this link:
https://www.challenger-society.org.uk/Stepping_Stones
and
https://www.challenger-society.org.uk/Travel_awards
If you are interested in applying or have any questions regarding the role, please contact kathen@bas.ac.uk