No.
55, May/June 2004Fire Ecology II
No.
55, May/June 2004
Fire Ecology II
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Nominations sought for 2005 Stockholm water prizeNominations for the 2005 Stockholm Water Prize -- the leading international award for excellence in water aid, awareness building and education, engineering, management or science -- will be accepted by the Stockholm Water Foundation until September 30, 2004. The Prize is presented annually to an individual, institution, organization or company and recognizes outstanding research, action or education that contributes to the availability, conservation and protection of the world's water resources; it includes a US$150,000 award and an Orrefors crystal sculpture. Full details on how to make nominations are available from the SIWI web site (see below). For more information, contact: * * * Swiss Re: Nominations sought for ReSource AwardThe ReSource Award was launched in 2002 by Swiss Re, one of the world's major reinsurers. Awarded annually, the ReSource Award is an internationally recognized prize for leadership in implementing the principles of sustainability in watershed management. The ReSource Award is worth US$100,000 in total, is granted to one or several projects selected by an international jury, and is to be used exclusively for project implementation. This year's application deadline is 31 August 2004. NGOs, private, scientific or public institutions and similar bodies are invited to participate. Projects submitted by more than one institution (eg public-private partnerships) are also eligible for the award. Bodies with strong links to local communities in regions where water sources are located are particularly encouraged to take part. For more information, visit the Swiss Re web site at * * * The Seed Initiative: Seed Award submissions soughtThe Seed Initiative is a new initiative launched in January 2004 to reward people and organizations working in partnership and innovators who are forging new strategies for sustainable natural resources use. Founding members of the Seed Initiative are the Stakeholder Forum, the UN Environment Programme, and the World Conservation Union (IUCN). The Seed Awards, to be granted every two years, will support innovative partnership proposals. Depending on funding, five to 10 partnerships will receive individually targeted support to help ensure their success and thus inspire further such partnerships and innovation. The first round of submissions for the awards will be accepted between May and December 2004; the awards will be presented at the UN Commission for Sustainable Development meeting in April 2005. For more information, contact: Peter Ritchie * * * Water web portal launched for southwest AsiaThe International Water Management Institute has launched a large-scale regional assessment intended to bring together the scientific and civil service communities of Pakistan, India and Afghanistan in order to jointly seek ways to mitigate the effects of the recurrent droughts that plague the region. A new web site will serve as a portal for drought-related information for the entire region. The assessment has two major aims: to review the current regional state of drought research and management, and to identify gaps so as to develop interim recommendations for improving drought management. Subsequently, IWMI will develop a more extensive research proposal to create an effective program for long-term regional drought management. For more information contact: Vladimir Smakhtin * * * * * Upcoming conferences of interest/calls for papersDesert biome management, development and improvement This two-day international conference is being organized by the Department of Natural Resources, Institute of African Research and Studies, Cairo University. The conference will consider all basic and applied branches of biological research related to desert biomes and biome management. Abstracts for papers and poster sessions are currently being solicited and are due no later than 1 October 2004. For more information, contact: * * * Drylands: Linking landscape processes to sedimentary environments The aim of this international conference is to bring together researchers
working in modern and ancient dryland environments, in order to improve
our understanding of arid zone processes and landforms and the preservation
potential of dryland sediment successions in the geological record. In
addition the conference, jointly sponsored by the British Geomorphological
Research Group and the British Sedimentological Research Group, will enhance
our current knowledge of contemporary dryland environments and the factors
influencing subsurface sedimentary architecture. Abstracts are currently
being solicited and are due by Friday, 17 September 2004. * * * Environment friendly agricultural products and their export from
Egypt to Africa The objective of this conference is to promote the development of environment-friendly agricultural products and to enhance their export from Egypt and Africa to Europe. Main topics of the conference include best methods, practices and habitats for production and shipping of desert agricultural products, as well as international and socioeconomic aspects of export production, its impact on local and rural populations, and the role of educational, private and governmental agencies in promoting these activities; international aspects. Abstracts are currently being solicited and are due no later than 30 November 2004. Persons and institutions interested should respond to this announcement as soon as possible, as the second circular with further details will be sent only to those who express specific interest. For more information, contact: * * * International Symposium on land degradation and desertification The International Symposium on Land Degradation will provide a Brazilian venue to investigate themes of land degradation and desertification, as well as to present results from research and applied studies covering a wide range of global environmental degradation problems. Emphasis will be given to techniques of diagnosis and prevention of environmental instability resulting from land degradation. Organizers of the symposium include the International Geographical Union (UGI), Commission on Land Degradation and Desertification (COMLAND), Universidade Federal de Uberlândia (UFU), Instituto de Geografia (IG), Laboratório de Geomorfologia e Erosão de Solos (LAGES), and the União da Geomorfologia Brasileira (UGB. Abstracts are currently being solicited and should be submitted by 15 December 2004. For more information, contact: |
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