Upcoming conferences of interest/Calls for papers

II International Conference on Water in Arid and Semiarid Lands
9-12 September 2007
Gravità, Pernambuco, BRAZIL

The meeting will gather approximately 300 experts in drylands and will be a continuation of the first event organized by ICASALS in Lubbock, Texas in 2006. Conference themes will focus on public policies and water resource management in drylands; agricultural practices in areas with limited water availability; methodologies for the use of non-conventional water resources; soil salinization; remote sensing and geospatial analysis; hydrological processes; hydrological prediction in ungauged basins (PUB); and global climate changes and their impacts on arid and semiarid lands.

For more information, contact:
II International Conference on Water in Arid and Semiarid Lands
Rua Dr Candido Espinheira, 560 cj 32
05004 000 - São Paulo - SP
Brazil
E-mail: waslic2007@acquacon.com.br
Web Site: www.acquacon.com.br/waslic2007

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International Workshop on Environmental Changes and Sustainable Development in Arid and Semi-arid Regions
10-17 September 2007
Alashan Left Banner, Inner Mongolia, CHINA

The themes of this workshop include:

• Case studies and theories relating to land degradation and sustainable development in arid and semi-arid as well as sub-humid regions of various continents;
• Comparisons of regional-scale reconstruction of Late Quaternary changes in the deserts of various climate zones (monsoon regions, subtropics and westerlies);
• Natural and human impacts on the landscape in various climate zones;
• Interactions amongst aeolian, fluvial and lacustrine processes in desert margins.

For more information contact:
Xiaoping YANG (E-mail: xpyang@263.net.cn; xpyang@mail.igcas.ac.cn)
Arthur Conacher (Arthur.Conacher@uwa.edu.au)
Guðrún Gísladóttir (ggisla@hi.is)
Paul F. Hudson (pfhudson@mail.utexas.edu)
W eb site: http://www.iggcas.ac.cn/iw07/index.htm

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Novel and Sustainable Weed Management in Arid and Semi-Arid Agro-Ecosystems
7-12 October 2007
Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Rehovot, ISRAEL

The aim of this conference is to establish a forum of weed scientists involved in research in weed management in arid and semi-arid agriculture. Topics include weed management in arid and semi arid farming systems; bio-control and allelopathy in weed management; integrated weed management and precision agriculture; parasitic weeds; invasive weeds; weed biology, ecology and modeling. Abstracts may be submitted until 1 September, 2007.

For more information, contact the Conference organizing committee at:
Email: wgarid@agri.huji.ac.il
W eb site: http://www.agri.huji.ac.il/aridconference

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Conference on Small Ruminants Production and Health in Arid and Semi-Arid Regions
26-28 January 2008
S ultanate of OMAN

This conference will cover numerous topics pertinent to small ruminants, including nutrition, health and welfare, production and products, reproduction, and breeding. An exhibition of pertinent products and technologies will also be included. Abstracts for papers may be submitted until 30 August 2007.

for more information, contact:
Conference Secretary
Sultan Qaboos University
College of Agricultural and Marine Sciences
Department of Animal & Veterinary Sciences
P.O Box 34, Al Khod 123, Sultanate of Oman
Email: nawal@squ.edu.om
Web site: http://www.iga-goatworld.org/Conferences/2008-01_Oman/2008-01_Oman.htm

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Sustainable Irrigation 2008: Second International Conference on Sustainable Irrigation Management, Technologies and Practice
11-13 June 2008
Alicante, SPAIN

This Conference seeks to address the different aspects of irrigation, including not only the management of water resources and scientific and technical aspects, but also matters related to policy and economics. It aims to attract researchers in academia and industry as well as professional practitioners and policy makers to review the state of the art from the scientific, technological, political and economic points of view. Its objective is also to discuss how to reach the sustainable management of irrigation resources in the future by applying modern computer simulation methods, advanced technologies and new technologies as well as analysing different policies and economic forecasting techniques. Abstracts are still being accepted and should be submitted as soon as possible.

For more information contact:
Kimberley Robberts
Conference Secretariat
Sustainable Irrigation 2008
Wessex Institute of Technology
Ashurst Lodge, Ashurst
Southampton, SO40 7AA
Email: krobberts@wessex.ac.uk
Web site: http://www.wessex.ac.uk/conferences/2008/irrigation08/index.html

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Groundwater and Climate in Africa
25-28 June 2008
Kampala, UGANDA

Current monitoring and assessments of the impacts of climate variability and change on water resources commonly exclude groundwater. This omission is of particular concern in Africa where current usage and future adaptations in response to climate change and rapid population growth, place considerable reliance upon groundwater to meet domestic, agricultural, and industrial water demands.

The conference seeks to bring together water and climate scientists from research/academic institutions, government departments, and private sector as well as representatives from international agencies, donors and consortia in order to share knowledge and expertise, and thereby improve current understanding of the impact of climate and development on groundwater resources in Africa.

For more details, please contact the conference co-chairs:
Richard Taylor, University College London, UK (r.taylor@geog.ucl.ac.uk)
Callist Tindimugaya, Directorate of Water Development, Uganda (ctindi.wrmd@dwd.co.ug)

or the conference secretariat:
Email: info@gwclim.org

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International Grassland Congress/ International Rangeland Congress
29 June - 5 July 2008
Hohhot, CHINA

This congress marks the first time the IGC and IRC have met together to allow an international exchange and discussion on the multi-function of grasslands and rangelands in a changing world. During the congress, this main theme will be split into three simultaneous sub-themes: Grasslands/Rangelands Resources and Ecology; Grasslands/ Rangelands Production Systems; Grasslands/Rangelands People and Policies.

for more information, contact:
2008 IGC/IRC Secretariat
Institute of Grassland Science
China Agricultural University
2 Yuan MingYuan Xilu,
Haidian, Beijing, 100094
P R CHINA
Email: secretariat2008@hotmail.com , secretariat2008@yahoo.com.cn
Web site: http://www.igc-irc2008.org/invitation.htm