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Plenary Lectures at the BES 2006 Annual Meeting
5 - 7 September 2006, University of Oxford, UK

THE PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS

The President’s Address will be given by Professor Sir John Lawton FRS on Tuesday 5 September at 09:30.

Ecology, Politics and Policy

“The British Ecological Society aims to promote the science of ecology through research and the use of such research to educate the public and influence policy decisions which involve ecological matters.” So goes the Society’s statement in our annual accounts. The italics are mine. How successful have we been in influencing UK and EU environmental policy?  Many scientists hold to the ‘deficit model’ of turning science into policy, the view that if only politicians are told what the science reveals, ‘correct’ policies will automatically follow.  Nothing could be further from the truth. Politicians have all kinds of reasons, some valid, some less valid, not to adopt what often seem to us to be common sense policies to protect the environment.  This lecture will explore the successes and failures of ecologists to influence UK and European environmental policy, and review the extensive literature (largely ignored by scientists) on the sociology of evidence-based policy making.

THE SOUTHWOOD LECTURE

The Southwood Lecture will be given by Professor Charles Godfray FRS, NERC Centre for Population Biology, Imperial College at Silwood Park and Department of Zoology, University of Oxford, and will take place on Wednesday 6 September at 16:30.

Insect community ecology: the challenge of hyperdiversity

Insects that feed on plants, and the predacious and parasitic insects that attack them, are some of the most numerous and diverse groups of organisms on the planet.  Understanding why so many species of insect occur and co-exist was an abiding interest of Dick Southwood throughout his career.  In this lecture I will explore current ideas about the biological processes that might structure insect-based communities, and the particular challenges faced by community ecologists studying  hyper-diverse groups.

THE BES LECTURE

The BES Lecture will be given by Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta FRS FBA, and will be held on Thursday 7 September from 12:30 – 13:30.

Abstract to follow.

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