Hi,
The autumn semester is well underway, and most people have probably settled back into their daily rhythm by now.
The seventh report from the UN Climate Panel will be published toward the end of 2029, and 12 researchers from Norwegian institutions have been selected as lead authors. Three of these researchers have been appointed coordinating lead authors, among them Professor Vigdis Vandvik. This is an important responsibility and a great recognition for one of our professors! Vigdis will work on the chapter addressing how climate change affects biodiversity, ecosystems, and ecosystem services on land and in freshwater. Congratulations, and good luck!
As many of you probably have noticed, the government announced Polhavet 2050 this week, committing to finance research in the Arctic Ocean with 1 billion NOK over the next 10 years, starting in 2026. The projects GoNorth and Framtidas Polhav are being merged under the new name Polhavet 2050. Eighteen Norwegian research institutions, including UiB, have joined this new project. At BIO, we have a long tradition of Arctic research, and we have recently established a polar group to coordinate efforts at the department. The head of this group will be Professor Øystein Varpe. I am very pleased that Øystein has taken on this important responsibility, and I look forward to a strong contribution from BIO on key research questions in this field in the years to come!
The team in ECC (Early Career Community) continues to launch new activities at BIO. They have just sent out an invitation to everyone at BIO for the very first Early Career Conference. It will take place on December 1st this year, and we hope the conference will bring together the whole of BIO! The goal is to create a low-threshold arena where everyone in the early phase of their scientific career can present their work. The conference is organized by members of the ECC and is intended as an event for everyone at BIO and many of our partners. It will be a day where we can all come together across the department to get to know the research happening at BIO, and to get to know each other better as well.
Have a great week!
Ståle