PlantLink News – November 2018
Autumn has definitely arrived, and with it lots of activities in plant research. Check the latest newsletter to find out more about plantLink’s job fair, NordPlant, announcements for new courses and more! |
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Newsletter Contents
- Join the PlantLink PhD/Post doc-student job fair and PlantLink industrial mentor program!
- Plant Biologicals Network symposium – deadline 1 November
- NordPlant has officially started!
- PlantLink joins SPPS!
- United front for precision breeding, PlantLink signs position paper
- PhD position on properties of cabbage and root vegetables deadline 1 Nov.
- PhD position novel plant protection in forests
- PhD-course in structural equation modelling
- South Africa cooperation funding with PlantLink researcher
- ESCAPAdE – a new Erasmus+ strategic partnership
- Alexandre Antonelli new director of science at Kew
- PlantLink-researcher Pål Axel Olsson in the media
- Symposium and vernissage for Beyond plant blindness-project
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PhD/Post doc Job fair 28 February – 1 March 2019
We continue to plan for the job fair for PhD and post doc students with companies, NGOs and governmental agencies. Dates are 28 February to 1 Marc 2019 (lunch-to-lunch) at Ystad Saltsjöbad. This will be combined with another round ofPlantLink’s industrial mentorship program starting the 18th of January. PhD student or post doc at Lund University or SLU Alnarp, please register your interesthere ! The job fair is sponsored by SPPS. As part of PlantLink you can join SPPS as an individual member here |
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PBN start symposium
The newly formed Plant Biologicals Network invites you to the first annual symposium, 14-15 November in Copenhagen. Through inspiring talks, the newest knowledge about biologicals for increasing plant health and productivity will be shared. The symposium will focus on the newest knowledge on biologicals for increasing plant health and productivity. Find the program here. It will be a great opportunity to network with industry, researchers and organizations interested in plant biologicals. Participation is free of charge. |
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NordPlant has started!
On the 24-25 of October the new NordForsk university hub ”NordPlant” was launched in Helsinki, Finland. NordPlant is one out of a total of six Nordic University Hubs funded by NordForsk. NordPlant will address a number of focus areas: plant pathogens in new Nordic climate conditions, retained biomass production in climate change, forestry in automated phenotyping, microscopy and plant cell phenomics, modelling including remote sensing and ecosystem modelling and field phenotyping. During the kick-off, facilities and research activities within the five NordPlant funding universities were presented.
The spotlight then turned to networks facilities and similar networks in Europe: Roland Pieruschka presented the progress with the EMPHASIS-PREP as well work within EPPN, Thomas Roitsch talked about 6P2 and Nordic Plant Phenotyping Network (NPPN) and Lukas Spichal High-throughput image-based shoot phenotyping in their facility in the Czech Republic. Read more about the kick-off meeting here.
At the end of the meeting a successful speed-dating session for scientists was held with no less than 87 requested one-to-one meetings. Presentations will be available at www.nordplant.org soon. Here is the meeting schedule and you can sign up to the NordPlant newsletter. |
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PlantLink joins Scandinavian Plant Physiology Society (SPPS)
PlantLink is happy to announce that we have joined a supporting organization to SPPS. This gives a number of benefits. SPPS was founded in 1947 with representatives from Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden. The society promotes plant biology, arrange meetings and publishes the journal Physiologia Plantarum. More information on SPPS here. As part of PlantLink you can join SPPS as an individual member here |
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United front for precision breeding between European research institutes
European research institutes and organizations including PlantLink have endorsed a position paper to call upon European policy makers to safeguard innovation in plant science and agriculture. You can read the position paper here |
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PhD position on properties of cabbage and root vegetables – deadline 1 November!
A PhD position on ‘The influence of genetic and environmental factors on the sensory and bio-chemical properties, and consumer acceptance of cabbage and root vegetables’ is available. Find more information here |
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PhD position novel plant protection in forests
Ecological consequences of novel plant protection strategies
The development and use of novel plant protection strategies against insect pests is steadily increasing as we move away from the use of pesticides, and towards more sustainable modern forestry practices. Conifer seedlings whose defenses have been enhanced through hormone treatment and other methods are better protected against pests (intrinsic factor), and increased diversity in forests may increase the natural biocontrol of pest insects (extrinsic factor). This project will quantify the relative impact of intrinsic and extrinsic factors on plant damage inflicted by insect pests, and explore how intrinsic and extrinsic factors may interact to increase plant protection in future forests. Find more information here |
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PhD-course in structural equation modelling
With support from the Graduate research school ClimBEco, Dr. Jarrett Byrnes from UMASS Boston (one of the developers of the ‘lavaan’ package in R) visits Lund University to introduce structural equation modeling for ecology and evolutionary biology students and researchers. Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) or path analysis is a multivariate technique that can test for the nature and magnitude of direct and indirect effects of multiple interacting factors.
When and where: 11-15 February 2019, Lund
More information can be found here |
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SASUF funding with PlantLink researcher granted
Congratulations to PlantLink researcher Rajni Hatti-Kaul and colleagues, who received funding for the South Africa – Sweden University Forum project “Sustainable plant, soil and arthropod management – towards a safe, productive and diverse biosphere”. As a side note SLU is a new member of SASUF from the fall 2018. |
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ESCAPAdE – a new Erasmus+ strategic partnership in applied plant sciences
SLU is part of a consortium that has recently been granted funds from Erasmus+ to develop a partnership in applied plant sciences. The project ESCAPAdE
aims to capitalize on the diversity of study modes and thematics offered to MSc students during their Erasmus exchange within the area of applied plant sciences. It also wishes to include and exploit the professional network around higher education institutes, in order to offer our students diversified and original academic profiles increasing employability in the sector of plant biodiversity management, plant breeding and crop protection.
A website will soon be launched, where students and teachers can share and take part in information about courses and exchange opportunities. We are also looking forward to summer schools in Czech Republic in 2020 and in Alnarp in 2021, which will both be combined with a job fair.
For more information, please contact Dennis Eriksson (dennis.eriksson@slu.se) or Rodomiro Ortiz (Rodomiro.ortiz@slu.se). |
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Alexandre Antonelli new director of Science at Kew gardens
Alexandre Antonelli, Professor of Biodiversity at the Department of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, has been appointed new director of science at Kew gardens, the largest botanical garden in the world. Read the article from the Science faculty at Gothenburg University here. |
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PlantLink-researcher Pål Axel Olsson in the media
Following their Nature-publication “Structure and function of the global topsoil microbiome”, media showed an interest in the interesting world of soil bacteria and we could read about the research in Sydsvenskan, helsingborgs Dagblad, Landskron Posten and Norra Skånes tidning. Read the article here. |
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Symposium and vernissage for Beyond plant blindness-project
Welcome to the symposium “Beyond plant Blindness: Where can a single plant take you?”. At the PlantLink-day, Dawn Sanders introduced the journal Plants, People, Planet. She here sends an invitation to attend an exciting symposium in Gothenburg on 11 November. The day starts with a symposium and a visit at Gothenburg Botanical Garden, and ends with a vernissage. Sign up for the symposium to dawn.sanders@gu.se. More information can be found here.
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