Internship at WWF in Brussels
Ana Rodriguez
Heriot-Watt University
During the last three months I had the exciting opportunity to do an internship at the policy department of World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) in Brussels, working on oceans and fisheries policy. This opportunity was made possible thanks to the Challenger Society travel award. Having just finished writing a first draft of my PhD thesis a week before starting the internship, I was keen for a new challenge, and excited to get immersed into the daily work of a large and influential nature conservation organisation.
Upon arrival, I was impressed by the amount of plants in each office, with portraits of majestic animals gazing from the walls and rooms filled with natural sun light. I also noticed that all products in the building were fair-trade and responsibly sourced. During lunch, I learned more about the work done in each department, from policy (my own), to youth programs, communication, fundraising and international programmes.
My daily work at WWF was very varied, with activities related to the three major ongoing ocean projects of my department: (1) marine protected areas and marine spatial planning in the North Sea, (2) sustainable fisheries in Belgium, and (3) deep sea mining in the Pacific Ocean. I participated in several meetings and workshops, but also spent much time reading about European policy. For instance, I participated in stakeholder engagement events on marine spatial planning, an NGO-organised workshop on deep-sea mining, a symposium on sea-level rise in the Flemish-Dutch delta and a training course on legal tools for environmental advocacy. Moreover, I worked on developing a framework to improve the sustainability on Belgian fisheries, based on successful strategies of other countries and on collaboration with fishermen to achieve win-win situations. This framework will serve as a draft guide to the policy’s department future work on sustainable fisheries in Belgium.
I also worked on a topic that this is close to my heart, because it is what I have been working on during my PhD: European oyster restoration. Several countries are currently engaged in restoring the European oyster, and Belgium is probably going to start soon too. I therefore participated in several meetings with industry representatives and scientists interested in restoring oyster, and wrote a document summarising the most relevant information for engaging in oyster bed restoration.
Overall, I have learned much during my internship, particularly on policy aspects of marine conservation, and on how to inform the decision-making process to reach policy targets. I have also increased my professional network, as I have met many new people from NGOs, industry and the scientific community. I am very grateful to the Challenger Society for enabling this experience.
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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