Hi there a project that I am involved in is looking for candidates interested in a fully-funded PhD project focusing on large scale marine mammal conservation issues and shifting baselines. For more information, see below. cheers Kristin *********************** Human impact on the global patterns of marine mammal distribution and abundance Overview: This 3-year, fully funded, PhD project, will quantify the impact of historical human activities on the global patterns of diversity and abundance of marine mammal species. It will be based at the Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionelle et Evolutive, Montpellier, France, supervised by Ana Rodrigues. Application deadline: 31 October. Key words: marine ecosystems, marine mammals, macroecology, species distribution models, sustainable management, shifting baselines Background We live in a human dominated planet, and the oceans are no exception. Through a combination of a growing population, mounting consumption and waste, and increasingly sophisticated technologies, human activities now impact all marine ecosystems, from the deep-sea to coral reefs, to remote islands, to the open ocean. Whereas these changes are accelerating, significant human impacts on marine systems started millennia ago. Yet because such changes took place gradually and with little recorded evidence, the full scale of the cumulative human impact on marine systems has only recently begun to be understood through anecdotal historical records showing evidence of past seas of spectacular abundance. This case of collective amnesia by the progressive adjustment to increasingly impoverished ecosystems has been termed the ‘shifting baseline’. It affects not only scientific and popular perception of what natural ecosystems look like in terms of species composition and abundance, but also narrows our perception of the options available for the future. This project will investigate the extent to which the introduction of an historical perspective affects perceptions of past human impact, projections of future change, the goals, targets and options considered, and ultimately the recommendations for conservation and management of marine natural resources. This will be done through the lens of marine mammals, a particularly interesting group given their strong and long relationship with humans, from millennia-old cave-art, to the near-obliteration of some species through commercial exploitation, to the emotional attachment felt even by many who have never been in direct contact with these species. Furthermore, some of these species have important roles in shaping ecosystems, and despite their charisma many remain very poorly known. Objectives and methods This project will quantify the impact of historical human activities on the patterns of diversity and abundance in marine mammal species, as a basis for conservation and management strategies at the global scale. Specifically, the project will: - Review and synthesise information on the historical and current distribution of all marine mammal species, both from existing datasets and by compiling scattered data from the ecological, archaeological, zooarchaeological, and historical literatures. - Participate in the development of statistical models for predicting the current and historical global distribution of marine mammal species. - Quantify and map the impact of historical global change on patterns of diversity of marine mammal species, using Geographic Information Systems. - Participate in the development of a multidisciplinary reflection of the goals, targets and options for the conservation and management of marine mammals within a human-dominated planet. - Contribute to the dissemination of the results of this project to a wide and diverse audience comprising scientists, stakeholders and the wide public. Candidate profile The successful candidate will possess: - A solid academic background in ecology. - A rigorous and detail-oriented approach to work with an aptitude for exploring and analysing historical datasets. - Strong analytical skills, including knowledge or capacity to learn GIS and programming skills (for example in R) for the manipulation and analyses of large spatial datasets. - Good interpersonal skills needed for working as part of a large team, and for coordinating multi-disciplinary, multi-institutional meetings involving scientists and stakeholders. - Good command of the English language. Institutional context This PhD is a part of the ANR-funded MORSE project: “Management of Ocean Resources under Shifting Expectations - bringing the historical perspective into marine mammal conservation”. The MORSE project is a partnership between the Centre d’Ecologie Fonctionelle et Evolutive (CEFE CNRS UMR5175; www.cefe.cnrs.fr), the Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (David Kaplan, IRD UMR212, www.umr-eme.org/), and the laboratory Ecologie des systèmes marins côtiers (Fabien Leprieur, ECOSYM CNRS UMR5119, http://www.ecosym.univ-montp2.fr), with the collaboration of a network of international partners. The student will be supervised by Ana Rodrigues (http://www.cefe.cnrs.fr/dynamique-des-paysages-et-de-la-biodiversite/ana-rod...), based at the CEFE, and affiliated with the SIBAGHE Doctoral School, Université Montpellier 2 (http://www.sibaghe.univ-montp2.fr). Gross income is about 1700€. The student will be hired under a doctoral contract that includes pension and health benefits. The PhD will start the 1st of December 2011 or as soon as possible afterwards. Application procedure Please send a detailed CV, course grades from most recent academic work, letter of motivation, and name and contacts (email and phone number) of two or more researchers capable of assessing your competence for this position via email to ana.rodrigues@cefe.cnrs.fr by the 31 October 2011. ************************************* Kristin Kaschner, Ph.D. Evolutionary Biology & Ecology Lab Institute of Biology I (Zoology) Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Germany ph: ++ 49 178 547 7760 email: Kristin.Kaschner@biologie.uni-freiburg.de http://www.biologie.uni-freiburg.de/data/bio1/kaschner/index.html