
IMBeR ClimEco8 Summer School – Sustaining the Ocean We Need for the Future We Want
This will be the 8th in IMBeR’s Climate and Ecosystems (ClimEco) Summer School series. ClimEco summer schools are designed for 60-70 post-graduate students and early career researchers, and are led by an extraordinary interdisciplinary group of marine scientists, many who are leaders in their respective fields.
When and Where
ClimEco8 will be held from 19-24 June 2023 at the ZRS-Mediterranean Institute for Environmental Studies in Koper, Slovenia
Focus of ClimEco8
The United Nations declared 2021-2030 as the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development. The objective is to motivate international efforts aimed at improving ocean health by providing the science necessary for sustainable development of the oceans to underpin ‘The ocean we need for the future we want’. Achieving this, however, needs more than more than ‘just’ more data and knowledge. It will require new approaches for understanding and tackling complex socio-ecological problems in their entirety. It will require an increased focus on building ocean literacy and public support for ocean futures. It also needs scientists and decision-makers to identify how to facilitate the use of available science and encourage the necessary change of behaviours, and the implementation of policies— at individual, local and global scales — that will leverage greater environmental benefit. The task at hand is a challenging one, that will require scientists to be able to work across disciplines, across knowledge systems, and with a diversity of stakeholders.
To this end, IMBeR will convene its 8th International ClimEco Summer School (ClimEco8), in Koper, Slovenia, to help develop the next generation of marine researchers who will be at the forefront of addressing ocean challenges. Under the guidance of a group of internationally-recognised experts from the marine natural and social sciences, students, postdocs and early career scientists will develop a strong theoretical and applied understanding of different disciplines, and how they can be integrated to help generate solutions to the grand challenges facing the world’s oceans. To complement this, participants will also gain practical skills in science communication and how to operate effectively at the science-policy-society interface, so that they can influence decision-making processes in relation to the world’s oceans – to help secure the ocean we need, for the future we want!
Topics to be covered
Climate change and the world’s oceans
- Delineating the issues of climate change and impacts to marine ecosystems
- Biogeochemical impacts of climate change on the world’s oceans
- Social and economic impacts of climate change in marine ecosystems
- Prioritising adaptation options, including social acceptability
- Adaptation in practice: case studies from around the world
Managing marine resources
- Governing marine systems; key concepts and strategies
- Justice, equity and inclusion in marine governance and management
- Unexpected management outcomes (and how to avoid them)
- The role of science in marine governance
- Principles for co-producing knowledge for marine governance
- Foresighting as a tool to inform futures governance
Modelling the socio-ecological marine system
- Overview of ecological modelling types (inc. coupling models)
- Economic and bio-economic modelling
- Network modelling
- Qualitative modelling
- Climate modelling, projections and uncertainty
- Key considerations when engaging decision-makers with models
Social and economic research methods
- Introduction to social science, and quantitative methods
- Qualitative social science research methods
- Behavioural economics and social psychology
- Ethics in the social sciences
Just and equitable ocean futures
- Blue justice and environmental (in)justice in the ocean
- The potential to advance equitable marine conservation
- Transformations towards ocean equity / just transitions
- Towards an equitable blue economy
- Data justice
- Gender equality in the marine sciences
Practical sessions and workshops
In addition to the lectures outlined above, the summer school will include a series of workshops focused on building the practice skills that can help early career researchers build a thriving career. Workshop topics will include:
- How to write a winning research grant
- How to write scientific papers (and to know where to target them)
- How to develop a policy pitch and policy brief
- How to work across disciplines (and collaborate well)
- How to build successful careers both inside, and outside of, academia
More Information
Apply to be considered for selection to attend ClimEco8. Complete the application form by clicking the button below. Deadline for applications is 10 April 2023. Successful applicants will be informed by 24 April 2023.
A registration fee (amount to be announced soon) will be charged to cover costs of the training course. Accommodation and travel costs are not included in the registration fee and must be paid by the participant.