As part of the activities planned for the Seventh WIOMSA Scientific Symposium to be held in Mombasa, Kenya from 24-28 October 2011, WIOMSA and the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI), are delighted to launch a Photo Contest based on the theme of the Symposium: “Dealing with Global Change”.

Photo contest entries should demonstrate impacts of global change at different levels and how actions are contributing towards coping with global change at a local or national level. The photos should depict scenes from the marine and coastal environment in the region, both above and below the ocean surface, and can illustrate relevant human activities, research, environmental impacts, and wildlife.

Download the full announcement from http://www.wiomsa.net/images/stories/Seventh%20Symposium/Photo%20competition.pdf

By Richard Black Environment correspondent, BBC News

Findings from a “natural laboratory” in seas off Papua New Guinea suggest that acidifying oceans will severely hit coral reefs by the end of the century.

Carbon dioxide bubbles into the water from the slopes of a dormant volcano here, making it slightly more acidic.

Coral is badly affected, not growing at all in the most CO2-rich zone.

Writing in journal Nature Climate Change, the scientists say this “lab” mimics conditions that will be widespread if CO2 emissions continue.

Read the full article from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-13569442

KMFRI hosts LOC and WIOMSA Secretariat to deliberate on progress of planned activities.

Progress on preparations by KMFRI and WIOMSA to co-host the 7^th WIOMSA Scientific Symposium is on-course.  This was the verdict reached by participants during a scheduled meeting of the Symposium’s Local Organizing Committee (LOC) and the WIOMSA Secretariat held at the KMFRI Conference hall on 19^th May 20^th May, 2011.

The meeting was held to review activities undertaken by the LOC and to seek further guidance from the WIOMSA Secretariat. It was attended by the Director of KMFRI, Dr. Johnson Kazungu, the Executive Secretary of WIOMSA, Dr. Julius Francis, Chairman of the LOC, Dr. Jared Bosire, WIOMSA Manager Ms Lilian Omolo, and members of the LOC Dr. Bernard Kirui (KMFRI), Dr. Jacqueline Uku (KMFRI), Dr. Agnes Muthumbi (UoN)Mr. Arthur Tuda (KWS) and Dr. Melckzedeck Osore (KMFRI).

The Symposium will be returning to Kenya, since the inaugural 1^st WIOMSA Symposium was held in the same country in May 1997. The 7^th WIOMSA Scientific Symposium will be held in Mombasa, and at the same venue – the White sands Hotel, in October 24^th – 28^th, 2011. 

Since the LOC was appointed in January 2011, most of the discussions have been on-line. So, this was the first formal meeting all the LOC members. The meeting took place long after expiry of the first important date in the Symposium calendar – the deadline for submission of abstracts, which expired on 30^th April. The next important dates will be in June i.e. notification of abstract acceptance (1^st June), deadline to submit proposals to organize side events (15^th June) and deadline to apply for travel grants (30^th June). All potential participants are urged to take special note of these important dates in June.

An OECD report outlines good practice for effective international research collaboration — but success can never be guaranteed.

One of the most promising aspects of the development scene in recent years has been the growing willingness of researchers, spurred by agencies such as the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, to collaborate across international boundaries to develop potential solutions to important scientific and social problems.

Initially, most of this international collaboration was between scientists in the developed world — who tend to have greater financial and technical resources — and those in developing countries who were often cast in the role of junior partners, allocated tasks such as data gathering or number crunching.

Read the full article: http://www.scidev.net/en/editorials/how-to-get-the-best-out-of-research-collaboration.html

The African Climate Change Fellowship Programme (ACCFP) invites applications for the first of two overlapping rounds of Fellowships to be offered in 2011 and 2012. ACCFP Fellowships provide experiential learning, education, research and training opportunities to African professionals, researchers and graduate students to enhance their capabilities for advancing and applying knowledge for climate change adaptation in Africa. Upcoming rounds of the ACCFP are managed by the Institute of Resource Assessment at the University of Dar Es Salaam (IRA-UDSM) and implemented in partnership with START with funding from Climate Change Adaptation in Africa (CCAA).

This May 2011 call solicits applications for Adaptation Science Fellowships and Adaptation Policy Fellowships. African graduate students, early to mid-career professionals, scientific researchers and university educators are eligible to apply. Applications are particularly encouraged from women and traditionally under-represented regions and countries in Africa. The ACCFP will support clearly defined activities that advance the spirit and objectives of each specific Fellowship type as described herein. Fellowships awarded for the 2011/2012 period will range from four to eight months in duration with maximum award amounts from $10,000 – $15,000 USD, depending on Fellowship type. The timing of when Fellowships may begin and end is flexible within the constraints that follow. Fellowships awarded as a result of this May 2011 Call may not begin before 1 September 2011, and all Fellowships must be completed by 15 May 2012. Applications must be submitted to the ACCFP Secretariat no later than 05 June 2011

Download the full announcement from: http://dlist-asclme.org/document-library/the-african-climate-change-fell

The Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association (WIOMSA) in partnership with the Coastal Resources Center at the University of Rhode Island (CRC) and the Marine Parks and Reserves Unit of Tanzania, is pleased to announce the 3rd offering of Level 1~Marine Field Operations Certification for Marine Protected Area Professionals to be held in Mafia Island Marine Park, Tanzania from the 21-27 August 2011. The language of assessment will be English and Swahili.

Deadline for submission of applications is 30 June 2011

Download the Call for application, application form and Level 1 Competences and Range Statements

4^th National Conference to disseminate results of on-going research funded by the Kenya Government is underway in Nairobi  writes Dr Melckzedeck K. Osore

The Kenya National Council for Science and Technology (NCST) on behalf of the Ministry of Higher Education, Science and Technology has been administering grants for Science, Technology and Innovation (ST&I) since 1977. The main purpose of these grants is to support scientific research and technological innovation.

Status of innovative researches funded by NCST between 2008 and 2011 has been reported during the on-going 4^th National Conference for Dissemination of Research Results and Exhibition of Innovation. The event is currently underway from 3^rd to 6^th May, 2011 at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre, Nairobi.

Among the beneficiaries of the ST&I Grants over the past three years are members of FARI, WIOMSA and scientists of affiliate institutions such as the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI), University of Nairobi (UoN) and South Eastern University College (SEUCO). Other institutions where researchers have obtained ST&I grants include Mombasa Polytechnic University College (MPUC), Maseno University (MaU) and Kenyatta University (KU). Some of the innovative concepts were spin-offs from completed projects funded by WIOMSA. Some of the investigators, projects and institutions affiliated to WIOMSA in research on the coastal, marine and aquatic environment are listed below.

The event of the 4^th National Conference and the full list of beneficiaries of the ST&I Grants are featured in the Daily Nation Newspaper – Wednesday 4^th May, 2011.

In his message to inaugurate the event, the Chief Executive of NCST, Prof Shaukat Abdulrazak said his Council supports the Kenya Vision 2030 of attainment of a globally competitive and prosperous nation with high quality of life by 2030 through its mandate of advisory, promotion and coordination of ST&I.

At a closely related function to commemorate World Intellectual Property Day the previous day, Prof Abdulrazak said, “Kenya allocates a paltry 0.3 % of its Gross Domestic Product to science and innovations and this is not enough to stimulate economic growth to the levels expected to achieve Vision 2030”.

“Innovation is the backbone of development and should not take a back seat as it is in Kenya,” Prof. Abdulrazak lamented. “Comparatively, Kenya ranks poorly with South Africa, which registered 462 patents between 2005 and 2009 to Kenya’s 24 in the same period”.

Full text of his message is available at: http://www.nation.co.ke/business/news/Innovate+for+growth+urges+science+team/-/1006/1151084/-/ub94i3/-/index.html

Innovative researches funded by NCST between 2008 and 2011

On the 21st April Seychelles signed the Nagoya Protocol on Access to Genetic Resources and the Fair and Equitable Sharing of Benefits Arising from Their Utilization. The Nagoya Protocol is a supplementary agreement to the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD). It provides a transparent legal framework for the effective implementation of one of the three objectives of the CBD – the fair and equitable sharing of benefits arising out of the utilization of genetic resources.
It was agreed by the 193 Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity at the Aichi-Nagoya Biodiversity Summit in October 2010. It was opened for signature in New York on 2 February 2011. Read the full article from: http://www.natureseychelles.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=417:seychelles-signs-nagoya-protocol&catid=1&Itemid=139

Seychelles and Mauritius have received official notification from the Secretariat of the United Nations (Division for the Ocean Affairs and the Law of the Sea, Office of Legal Affairs) that following a Joint Submission both countries will now have jurisdiction, as provided under the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS), over an extended Continental Shelf of 396,000 sq. kilometers in the Mascarene region outside the border of their two respective Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs). Read the full article from: http://natureseychelles.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=419%3Amauritius-and-seychelles-to-jointly-manage-extended-continental-shelf&catid=3&Itemid=1