Tag Archives: policy

Assessing the state of marine biodiversity in the Northeast Atlantic – for the first time, ever!

A paper has recently come out that I’m really, really proud of. As you might (or might not!) know, the EU countries are committed to achieving Good Environmental Status (GES) in their marine waters under the EU Marine Strategy Framework … Continue reading

Posted in biodiversity, Fisheries, Indicators, Knowledge Exchange, Marine Conservation, MSFD, OSPAR, Plankton, Policy | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Come do a PhD with me!

Developing meaningful marine biodiversity indicators to support conservation I’m looking for an exceptional candidate to carry out an interdisciplinary PhDship at University of Plymouth, in collaboration with Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Marine Biological Association. The PhD is co-funded with … Continue reading

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Plankton Highlights 2020

It’s been a busy year in plankton science for policy in the UK and OSPAR. Much of our work focused on further developing our ability to assess the state of pelagic habitats through the Improving Confidence Evaluating GES for Regional … Continue reading

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Why do we need a global plankton diversity monitoring programme?

When most people think of biodiversity they think of iconic habitats like rainforests and coral reefs. Much of the ocean’s biodiversity, however, is too small to see without a microscope. Plankton are one of the most diverse groups of organisms … Continue reading

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Communicating science to policy: Parliamentary POSTnotes

The transfer of science from academia into policy is a challenge that is lamented at science and policy workshops, conferences, and meetings. In the UK we are actually improving this knowledge transfer process through joint science-policy working groups, co-production of … Continue reading

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Putting the science in science-policy

Achieving Good Environmental Status most definitely requires science-policy collaboration. At the OSPAR level, for marine biodiversity, this collaboration happens through ICG-COBAM (the Intersessional Correspondence Group on Coordinated Biodiversity Assessment and Monitoring). Our delivery of the 2017 Intermediate Assessment, the first … Continue reading

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Senior Policy Fellow: I’m now a (part-time) civil servant (advisor)!

In fall of 2018 Defra (UK Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs) advertised for a Senior Policy Fellow – Marine to work with Prof Ian Boyd (Chief Scientific Advisor) and his team to develop a systems approach to thinking … Continue reading

Posted in Brexit, Knowledge Exchange, Marine Conservation, Policy | Tagged , , , , | 2 Comments

Influencing the future of UK fisheries – providing evidence as a witness in Parliament

The UK practices evidence-based environmental policy making, where scientific data and research play a key role in informing decisions about how we manage the environment. Much of the UK’s scientific knowledge, however, lies outside of Parliament and Government. Parliamentary Inquiries … Continue reading

Posted in Brexit, Fisheries, Knowledge Exchange, Marine Conservation, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

How can we use marine biodiversity indicators for marine conservation policy and management?

Indicators are effective tools for summarising and communicating key aspects of ecosystem state and have a long record of use in marine pollution and fisheries management. The application of biodiversity indicators to assess the status of species, habitats, and functional … Continue reading

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Assessing pelagic habitats: Changes in plankton diversity

EU Member States are required to assess the Good Environmental Status (GES) of their pelagic habitats under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). OSPAR has coordinated this process in the Northeast Atlantic, supporting the development of a suite of three … Continue reading

Posted in Knowledge Exchange, MSFD, OSPAR, Plankton, Policy, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment