[ECOLOG-L] Grant-writing workshop for early-career palaeoresearchers in Prague, 26-29 May 2019

[Xavier Benito Granell]

Dear colleagues, 


Hoping you all have started the new year with inspiring professional and 
personal perspectives! 

We would like to draw your attention to the PAGES workshop ‘Funding starts here 
- Grant writing for early-career researchers’, which will be held in Prague, 
Czech Republic, 26-29 May 2019. This workshop is organized by the Pages 
Early-Career Network  and aims to 
introduce ECRs in the paleosciences to the funding agency landscape, provide 
strategies and advice on the grant writing and submission process, and 
encourage networking among ECRs interested in initiating or developing research 
grant proposals.

We are pleased to announce that our list of speakers includes Dr. Maria Uhle 
(National Science Foundation), Dr. Jonas Bunikis (European Research Council), 
and Dr. Jana Cejkova (EU H2020 program). They will talk about international 
grant agencies as well as discuss what it takes to write a successful grant in 
the field of paleoscience. Furthermore, Dr. Alessio Rovere, an ERC starting 
grant fellow at MARUM (University of Bremen, Germany) will share his successful 
grant proposal application experience.

The workshop will take place at Masarykova College just outside the city centre 
of Prague. The registration fee is 150 USD and covers the cost of lodging, 
breakfasts and lunches. Travel support will be available for early-career 
researchers, especially those from developing countries. 

Registration deadline: 15th of February 2019

For more information on the workshop and how to apply, please see the flyer and 
check out our website . If you have 
any questions, contact us via workshop.pages@gmail.com 

We hope to see many of you in Prague!

Kind regards,

PAGES ECN Workshop Committee


Xavier Benito
Postdoctoral fellow
National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC)
University of Maryland
Webpage  | ResearchGate 
 | ORCID 
 

[ECOLOG-L] PAGES ECN invites early-career researchers in palaeosciences for grant-writing workshop

[Xavier Benito Granell]

**Apologies for any cross-posting**

Dear colleagues,

We would like to draw your attention to the PAGES workshop ‘Funding starts here 
- Grant writing for early-career researchers’, which will be held in Prague, 
Czech Republic, 26-29 May 2019. This workshop is organized by the Pages 
Early-Career Network 

 and aims to introduce ECRs in the palaeosciences to the funding agency 
landscape, provide strategies and advice on the grant writing and submission 
process, and encourage networking among ECRs interested in initiating or 
developing research grant proposals.

We are pleased to announce that our list of speakers includes Dr. Maria Uhle 
(National Science Foundation), Dr. Jonas Bunikis (European Research Council), 
and Dr. Jana Cejkova (EU H2020 program). They will talk about international 
grant agencies as well as discuss what it takes to write a successful grant in 
the field of palaeoscience. Furthermore, Dr. Alessio Rovere, an ERC starting 
grant fellow at MARUM (University of Bremen, Germany), will share his 
successful grant proposal application experience.

The workshop will take place at Masarykova College just outside the city centre 
of Prague. The registration fee is 150 USD and covers the cost of lodging, 
breakfasts and lunches. Travel support will be available for some early-career 
researchers, especially those from developing countries.

Registration deadline: 15th of February 2019

For more information on the workshop and how to apply, please see the attached 
flyer and check out our website . If 
you have any questions, contact us via workshop.pages@gmail.com 
.

We hope to see many of you in Prague!

Best wishes,

Xavier Benito
On behalf of the PAGES ECN Workshop Committee

Xavier Benito
Postdoctoral fellow
National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC)
University of Maryland
Webpage  | ResearchGate 
 | ORCID 
 

[ECOLOG-L] PhD position on diatom meta-barcoding for freshwater bioassesment

[Xavier Benito Granell]

PhD student position in the application of high-throughput sequencing DNA tools 
(metabarcoding) in aquatic ecology, announced jointly by the Centre for Climate 
Change (C3) at the University Rovira i Virgili (URV) and the Marine and 
Continental Waters Program of the Institute for Food and Agricultural Research 
Technology (IRTA) in Sant Carles de la Ràpita (Spain).
Ref of the PhD position: 2018PMF-PIPF-22

Topic: Diatom metabarcoding: developing new tools for bioassessment of aquatic 
ecosystems
Project description: Aquatic ecosystems are essential to planetary function and 
to humans and hence their protection and restoration are of vital importance. 
The Water Framework Directive and Marine Strategy Framework Directive were 
adopted by the EU more than 10 years ago to ensure good functioning of water 
bodies in terms of biological communities and hydrological and chemical 
characteristics. Diatoms and plankton are among the principal biological 
indicators used to monitor waters for these directives and, until now, they 
have been assessed through microscope-based assessments of communities. This 
thesis project aims to develop innovative alternatives to microscope-based 
assessments, using high-throughput sequencing (HTS) and DNA metabarcoding. This 
will include (1) understanding how methodological and biological parameters 
affect the relationship between DNA reads (from HTS) and cell numbers, (2) 
developing DNA reference databases, (3) developing appropriate bioinformatics 
pipelines for converting HTS reads into ecological assessments, and (4) 
refining knowledge about the relationship between species occurrences and 
ecological factors in particular critical cases (to test current assumptions 
about species’ ecology). To do this, the candidate will assemble and use 
matched sets of HTS data, microscope-based diatom counts, and physico-chemical 
data. As well as providing the basis for new biomonitoring systems, the project 
may provide novel data on the biogeography of microalgae and protists, touching 
on general questions of dispersal and differentiation in populations of 
microscopic organisms. Initially, the focus will be on diatom biomonitoring of 
Catalan rivers, but the project may extend into coastal habitats and include 
the opportunity to develop new methods of detecting pathogenic or toxic species 
and to analyse the ‘hidden’ diversity of previously unrecognized or 
unidentifiable organisms.
Requirements: The candidate must have a degree in biology or related 
disciplines. Preference will be given to candidates familiar with 
bioinformatics tools for the analysis of DNA sequence data or practical 
experience in molecular techniques such as DNA extraction, PCR and DNA 
sequencing. Good analytical skills will be an advantage, and some knowledge of 
algae, including diatoms, would be helpful though not essential. Knowledge of R 
would also be an asset. Good communication skills in written and spoken English 
are necessary. Applicants should note that the research activities will take 
place at the IRTA centre in Sant Carles de la Ràpita (under the supervision of 
Dr. Rosa Trobajo and Dr. David G. Mann) but that the PhD student will work in 
close collaboration with other labs working on similar projects, both in Spain 
and internationally.

We offer: 3-year contract within URV
Foreseen starting date: End January 2019
Details of the call: 
http://www.urv.cat/en/research/support/programmes/urv/programa-marti-franques/pipf/2018-1/
 In "Conditions of the competition" the regulatory bases of the program are 
given. In "List of grants offered” all the scholarships offered in this call 
are listed and, the reference of the PhD on diatom metabarcoding is 
2018PMF-PIPF-22. In "Application form" is where you can apply.
Details of the qualifications and documentation required can be found at: 
https://www.sgr.urv.cat/cgi-bin/programes/application/detall.cgi?conv=2018PMF-PIPF-=22=ENG
 Note that In addition to the documentation listed there, candidates should 
also include a letter of intent/motivation
Deadline for application: 28th November 2018
For any doubt or further information, please contact:
Rosa Trobajo (rosa.trob...@irta.cat) IRTA-Aquatic Ecosystems Ctra Poble Nou Km 
5.5 43540 Sant Carles de la Ràpita, Catalonia, Spain
Or Javier Sigró (javier.si...@urv.cat) Centre for Climate Change (C3), Dept of 
Geography, University Rovira i Virgili (Tarragona) Avda Catalunya 35 43071 
Tarragona, Catalonia, Spain


Xavier Benito
Postdoctoral fellow
National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC)
University of Maryland
Webpage  | ResearchGate 
 | ORCID 
 

[ECOLOG-L] ECR survey on open data - share your experiences

[Xavier Benito Granell]

Dear early-career researchers (ECRs),

Are you a PhD+5 years of experience or a current PhD/ Ms student? We are 
seeking information on data sharing and best practices in the paleo research 
community from an early-career researcher perspective. The results of this 
survey will be part of an article that will be published in the PAGES magazine. 

Fill out our 10 mins survey about your experiences with data sharing. The link 
to the survey: https://rutgers.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_6PQPrvhBSFXhVEp  

 (works from you mobile, too!)

While you are here, don't forget to talk about your experiences and training in 
our Google Forum 

Please distribute widely among your contacts. Many thanks in advance.

Xavier


Xavier Benito
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Webpage  | ResearchGate 
 | ORCID 
 

[ECOLOG-L] Young Diatomists - New early-career researchers group of the International Society for Diatom Research

[Xavier Benito Granell]

Dear Ecolog-L Community, 
 
With this email, we would like to inform you about the formation of a Young 
(early-career) Diatomists section within the International Society of Diatom 
Research   which was developed during the last 
International Diatom Symposium held in Quebec City (Canada) in 2016.
The idea behind this formation is (a) to address the interests of early career 
diatomists directly to the ISDR committee by an elected early career 
representative and (b)  to assist early career researchers to build 
collaborations and develop skills needed for career enhancement. A better 
exchange with experienced diatomists should be facilitated providing workshops 
dealing with key topics of diatom research within IDS meetings (e.g the next 
International Diatom Symposium held in Berlin, 2018) or either before or after 
these main meetings. 
 
The Young ISDR  also tries to improve global networking with other 
international scientific organisations and related diatom research topics at 
the cutting edge of the ecology: limnology, paleolimnology, oceanography, 
biochemistry, taxonomy, physiology or biomonitoring among others.

For a better communication and speed up information exchange among both young 
and experienced researchers we recently created an interactive forum and a blog 
(https://youngisdr.blogspot.com/ ), which we 
would like to spread around the globe now!!! Both tools highlight job offers, 
possible funding, future workshops, research reports and key publications 
within the field of diatom research. 
 
If you are a young diatomist and would like to join the volunteering team, 
constantly working on this blog, feel free to contact us via 
youngdiatomi...@gmail.com  and/or sign up in 
our google group 
(forum).
 
 
We hope to have peaked your interest: become a part of our new young diatomist 
networking community! We are looking forward to this and we expect to get in 
contact with you soon! Sorry for cross-posting ;)
 
Best wishes,
 
Xavi and Andrea & Hannah (Early Career Representative for the ISDR)

Xavier Benito
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences
University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Webpage  | ResearchGate 
 | ORCID