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Apply now for ENDURE's 2016 Summer School. focusing on 'The role of Integrated Pest Management in mitigating the effects of climate change on pest dynamics - modelling approaches'


Europe
December 30, 2015

Student group

Applications are now being accepted for ENDURE's fifth Summer School. Focusing on 'The role of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) in mitigating the effects of climate change on pest dynamics - modelling approaches', the Summer School will run from October 9 to 14, 2016.

The Summer School will take place at SIAF, an International School of Advanced Education recently established by the Scuola Superiore Sant'Anna of Pisa and the Foundation of the Cassa di Risparmio di Volterra. SIAF is located in Volterra, 60km south-east of the Italian city of Pisa, in the heart of the Tuscany countryside.

Aims and rationale

The objective of the Fifth ENDURE Summer School is to allow PhD students to meet scientists who are actively implementing modelling approaches to develop IPM strategies which are able to take into account future climate scenarios.

The organisers note that climate change, through its effect on temperature, rainfall and atmospheric CO2 concentration, will impact many agricultural production situations worldwide. In addition to the direct impact on yield, climate change will also affect biocenosis dynamics.

In particular, they say, pest (plant pathogens, animal pests and weeds) and beneficial dynamics will be affected and lead to new injury profiles and associated quantitative and qualitative damage to crop production. Given the complexity of the crop-soil-atmosphere-pest-auxiliary system, modelling is a key scientific approach to help design future cropping systems more resilient to biotic stress, with limited reliance on pesticides.

Students and lecturers pictured at ENDURE's first Summer School, in 2007. Copyright: SSSUP, Italy.

Programme

The Summer School programme will include lectures given by internationally renowned experts, team work to facilitate the active participation of the selected PhD students and their interaction with lecturers, and opportunities during the whole week for students to discuss individually with lecturers their PhD project or related questions.

The teaching objectives are to:

  • Present up-to-date knowledge on climate change and its impact on pest and beneficial dynamics.
  • Present the conceptual and methodological principles of various modelling approaches.
  • Illustrate how modelling can be used to help design IPM strategies for future climate
  • Give hands-on experience in a class modelling project that will test IPM strategies under climate change.

The exact programme is being developed by the team of Summer School lecturers and details will be decided based on the CVs of selected students.

Lecturers

Guest lecturer Katia Laval. Copyright: LMD.

  • Camilla Moonen (local organisation), Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna, Pisa, Italy
  • Jean-Noël Aubertot (coordinator), INRA, France
  • Daniel Wallach, INRA, France
  • François Brun, ACTA, France
  • Til Feike, Julius Kuhn Institute, Germany
  • Mark Szalai, Szent Istvan University, Hungary
  • Niels Holst, Aarhus University, Denmark
  • Yves Dumont, CIRAD, France

Guest lecturer

During the Summer School there will be a guest lecture by Katia Laval (pictured right), Emeritus Professor at the Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris. For more information on her professional career, click here. She recently published a book, titled Incertitudes sur le climat . You can read more here

Who can apply

The Summer School will host a maximum of 30 PhD students. The PhD students applying for this course are expected to be enrolled in a PhD programme whose topic is connected to IPM for sustainable crop protection. Upon request, the selection committee may decide to accept participation of researchers with a special interest in this topic who are not performing a PhD.

At the start of the Summer School students need to be basic users of R. During the selection procedure, organisers will give precedence to PhD students with R-programming experience. However, based on the entrance level of interested participants, the organisers may provide an introductory course on the use of R or suggest some online courses that students will have to follow before the start of the Summer School.

Teamwork

Students present the results of their teamwork at the 2012 Summer School. Copyright: ENDURE.

Selection criteria

Interested students are requested to register to the application website and complete the online application procedure.

Applications must include:

  • Short CV (maximum two A4 pages, Times New Roman 12 pt)
  • Summary of PhD Project (maximum one A4 page, Times New Roman 12 pt)
  • A motivation letter (maximum one A4 page, Times New Roman 12 pt)
  • A support letter from PhD supervisor(s)

Cost

The cost of participating in the Summer School is €750, and includes housing, meals, access to the lecture room, daily coffee breaks and a guided tour of Volterra on the Wednesday afternoon. The cost is reduced with respect to the actual cost of participation thanks to co-financing by ENDURE partners, which covers the participation of lecturers. Travel is not included, except for the bus from Pisa airport to SIAF Volterra on Sunday evening and back again on Friday afternoon.

Important dates

  • 31 January 2016: Closing date for receipt of online applications.
  • 26 February 2016: Notification of acceptance to applicants (via e-mail) .
  • 10 March 2016: Selected students have to communicate formally their acceptance to participate and payment will be issued.
  • 9 October 2016 at 17.00: meeting at Pisa Airport and departure by bus to SIAF, Volterra.
  • 10 - 14 October 2016: Summer School.

For more information:



More news from: ENDURE - EU Network for the Durable Exploitation of Crop Protection Strategies


Website: http://www.endure-network.eu

Published: January 4, 2016

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