BES Facebook pageBES Annual Meeting 2006
University of Oxford, UK
5 - 7 September 2006
Plenary Lectures
Professor Sir John Lawton FRS opened the meeting with his BES Presidential Lecture. On Wednesday, Professor Charles Godfray FRS gave the Southwood Lecture. In the late morning of Thursday, Professor Sir Partha Dasgupta FBA FRS presented the BES Lecture, which marked the end of the Annual Meeting.
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.
Annual General Meeting & Awards Ceremony
The AGM and Awards Ceremony were held at 11:30 - 13:00 on Wednesday 6 September in Lecture Theatre A, Department of Zoology. Business for the AGM includes a major revision of the Articles of the Society. Members attending the event were invited to a drinks reception immediately afterwards.
Ecological Question Time
The BES held an incredibly successful Ecological Question Time. It was an opportunity for delegates to ask questions about topical ecological issues to a panel consisting of leading politicians, a journalist and an ecologist.
Chair: Alex Kirby
Panellists: Barry Gardiner MP, Bill Wiggin MP, Chris Huhne MP, Tim Radford and Professor Georgina Mace
Free Afternoon
Formal sessions were not held on the Wednesday afternoon, but we did organise a range of events for everyone including Professor Alan Thorpe engaging with BES members about changes to CEH, a student's career workshop, Specialist Interest Group meetings, a field visit and an opportunity to meet and chat to BES staff.
Social Events
A range of social events was organised. The meeting started with a Welcome Mixer in the evening on Monday 4 September, giving everyone the opportunity to meet up with old friends and make new ones. There was a wine reception on Wednesday along with one of the two poster sessions. Members attending the Awards Ceremony and AGM that preceded lunch on Wednesday were invited to a drinks reception that lunchtime.
Thematic Topics for 2006 Annual Meeting
Thematic Topic 1:
Animal Dispersal: from Theory to Field
Keynote Speaker: Michel Baguette, Louvain, Belgium
Invited Speakers: Hans Van-Dyck, Louvain, Belgium; Thomas Hovestadt, Wurzburg, Germany; Silke Hein, Zurich, Switzerland; Calvin Dytham, York, UK
Organiser: Calvin Dytham
Thematic Topic 2:
Plant Invasions: Quantifying the Threat to Tropical Ecosystems
Keynote Speaker: Marcel Rejmanek: 'Global Patterns of Plant Invasion in Tropical Forests'
Invited Speakers: Anna Lawrence, Oxford University, UK; Phil Harris, Coventry University, UK; Wayne Dawson, CEH and Aberdeen University, UK; Phil Hulme, CEH and Aberdeen University, UK; Sean Murphy, CABI, UK
Organiser: Phil Hulme
Thematic Topic 3:
Spatial Analysis of Forest Biodiversity
Keynote Speaker: Rick Condit, Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama: 'Spatial Patterns of Tropical Forest Trees'
Invited Speakers: Richard Law; David Burslem; Janine Illian; Georg Gratzer, Robert Bagchi
Organiser: David Burslem
Thematic Topic 4:
Seed Dispersal: Advances and Applications
Keynote Speaker: Ran Nathan, Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel: 'Sleeping Life: Waiting to be Spread and Dispersed'
Invited Speakers: Merel Soons, Utrecht, Netherlands; Olav Ronce, Montpelier; John Pannell, Oxford, UK; Ken Thompson, Sheffield, UK
Organiser: James Bullock
Thematic Topic 5:
Invertebrate Ecology in Agro-ecosystems: Linking System Components
Keynote Speaker: Stephen Goldson, AgResearch, New Zealand: 'Field manipulation of Root Nodule Herbivory as a Way of Measuring the Impact of Varying Nitrogen Stress in Lucerne'
Invited Speakers: Tim Benton, University of Leeds, UK; Nigel Boatman, CSL, York, UK; Jane Memmott, University of Bristol, UK; Barbara Smith, Game Conservancy Trust, UK; Adam Vanbergen, CEH, UK
Organiser: Scott Johnson, Cathy Hawes and Dave Bohan.
Thematic Topic 6:
Research and Research Priorities in Teaching Ecology
Keynote Speaker: Carol Brewer, University of Montana, USA: 'Linking Ecological Education and Research Through a Continental-scale Ecological Observatory Network'
Invited Speakers: Michael Mappin, University of Calgary, Canada; Bruce W. Grant, Windener University, USA; Ros Roberts, University of Durham, UK; A.M. Langan, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK; Chen-yung Lin, National Taiwan Normal University, Taiwan; Michael Reiss, University of London, UK; Steve Tilling, Field Studies Council, UK; Marcus Hamman, Westfalische Wilhelms-Universitat Munster, Germany; Franz X. Bogner, University of Bayreuth, Germany; Susan Barker, University of Alberta, Canada
Organiser: David Slingsby
Thematic Topic 7:
Wetland Restoration
Keynote Speaker: Curtis J. Richardson, Duke University, North Carolina, USA: 'Restoration of the Mesopotamian Marshes of Iraq'
Invited Speakers: Jos Verhoeven, Utrecht University, Netherlands; Jane Bunting, Hull University, UK; Ed Maltby, University of Liverpool, UK; Sarah Ross, Penny Anderson Associates Ltd, UK; Patrick Crushell, University College Cork, Ireland
Organiser: Deborah Pearce
The local organiser was Dr Owen Lewis, of the Department of Zoology, Oxford University.
