Event Reports
We hold a wide range of events, from large-scale conferences to panel debates and focused workshops, bringing together ecologists and policymakers.
Ecology for the National Adaptation Programme for Climate Change Workshop report Final
May 2017
(694 KB pdf)
This is the workshop report from the BES Climate Change Ecology Special Interested Group lead workshop ‘Ecology for the National Adaptation Programme for Climate Change’. It combines the highlights from the presentations and the breakout groups. The presentations have also been uploaded in separate document.
The main part of the workshop was given over to short (5 minute) talks and break out groups. The short talks covered either new scientific research or case studies of climate change adaptation to help capture some of the key developments that have taken place since the last National Adaptation Programme was published. Unlike climate change impacts research, adaptation is a necessarily practical discipline and the lessons learnt from experience are at least as important as those from academic research. The breakout groups were typically composed of a mixture of experts in the specific fields and participants with more generalist knowledge and expertise.
Presentations from the Ecology for the National Adaptation Programme for Climate Change Workshop
May 2017
(8 MB pdf)
These are the presentations from the BES Climate Change Ecology Special Interested Group lead workshop ‘Ecology for the National Adaptation Programme for Climate Change’. The main part of the workshop was given over to short (5 minute) talks and break out groups. The short talks covered either new scientific research or case studies of climate change adaptation to help capture some of the key developments that have taken place since the last National Adaptation Programme was published. Unlike climate change impacts research, adaptation is a necessarily practical discipline and the lessons learnt from experience are at least as important as those from academic research.
The presentations PDF can be viewed along side the main workshop report which combines the highlights from the presentations and the breakout groups. The presentations have also been uploaded in separate document.
The future of the British uplands workshop summary and presentations
March 2017
(6 MB pdf)
This workshop, jointly organised by the British Ecological Society and Newcastle University, aimed to capture the diverse range of views regarding the future of the uplands. The key policy and research priorities will be identified from the workshop and will help to guide future work by British Ecological Society (BES) in this important area. Here is a brief summary of the day including the presentations.
2016
Making Brexit work for Ecology and the Environment
Workshop at the 2016 BES Annual Meeting
December 2016
(476 KB pdf)
Our workshop identified priorities, challenges and opportunities to shape our engagement with Brexit during 2017, and to inform the work of our Brexit Policy Working Group.
Workshop report by Rick Parfett, Policy Intern.
Scottish Policy Group Training Workshop
Presentations from the 'Understanding the science-policy interface in Scotland' training workshop
November 2016
(6 MB pdf)
Our workshop on ‘Understanding the science-policy interface in Scotland’ included presentations from:
- Tom Edwards, Scottish Wildlife Trust
- Sarah Boyack, former MSP and Minister
- Debbie Bassett, Scottish Natural Heritage
- Rea Cris, RSPB
Read Rick Parfett’s blog post from the workshop
The Place of people in rewilding
Scottish Policy Group "Pie and a Pint" event report
October 2016
(358 KB pdf)
This report summarises the discussion held at the BES Scottish Policy Group Pie and a Pint, on the 26th October 2016 in Inverness.
The event was open to all BES-SPG members and policy relevant people. About 40 people attended from wide range of organisations.
The event was opened by three short 10 minute talks from the following people presenting their own perspectives on rewilding:
- Adam Smith of the Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust,
- Rob Brooker read a statement from Fenning Welstead from Alladale Estate as Fenning was unable to attend due illness
- David Balharry of Rewilding Britain
The group then split into four, with each group taking it in turns to address the four questions. The report summaries the key messages from each of the four groups.
Protected areas and beyond
A write up from the Scottish Policy Group's Pie and a Pint event looking at the future of protected areas in Scotland
April 2016
(395 KB pdf)
On 20th April 2016 the British Ecological Society’s Scottish Policy Group ran a ‘Pie and a Pint’ (PAAP) event on the topic “Beyond Protected Areas”. The document presented here is a note of the main themes and points raised during the evening’s PAAP discussion; it is not a minute of the meeting but hopefully accurately captures the balance of ideas and opinions presented.
The event started with introductory thoughts from four speakers:
- Adam Smith – Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust Director in Scotland
- Davy McCracken – SRUC (Scotland’s Rural College) Professor of Agricultural Ecology
- Andrew Bauer – National Farmers Union Scotland, Deputy director for policy
- Lloyd Austin – Head of Conservation Policy for the RSPB in Scotland.
Following on from the presentations, the attendees split into four groups; the four speakers rotated between the groups every 10 minutes. The discussion from each group is written up in the report note.
Making a difference in conservation: Improving the links between ecological research, policy and practice
A joint British Ecological Society and Cambridge Conservation Initiative Symposium
April 2016
(199 KB pdf)
This symposium brought together the ecological research community and those involved in policy and government, to assess the value and applicability of a range of techniques for improving the decision making process. By working together, we aimed to enable delegates to get greater impact from their research, and to improve policies and practice.
- Revisit the event on Storify
- Read blog posts from Camilla Morrison-Bell, Ruth Mitchell, Alice Plane, Paul Sinnadurai
Symposium report by Clive Mitchell (Scottish Natural Heritage) and Juliette Young (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology)
2015
The BES GM debate
Public debate held at the Royal Society of Edinburgh as part of the 2015 BES Annual Meeting
December 2015
(64 KB pdf)
At our 2015 Annual Meeting, we held a public debate on GM crops, with speakers Pete Ritchie (Nourish Scotland), Helen Sang (Roslin Insitute), Joyce Tait (Innogen Institute), Rob Livesey (NFU Scotland) and Heather Ferguson (University of Glasgow). Chaired by Alan Gray (Centre for Ecology and Hydrology).
Report by Amy Fensome, Policy Intern