World Association of Young Scientists

La 18e conférence des Nations unies sur le changement climatique vient de s’ouvrir, au Qatar, pour préparer un accord prévu en 2015.  Celle-ci s’annonce cruciale pour la prolongation du protocole, adoptée en 1997 et dont la première période s’achève le 31 décembre. Cette prolongation occupera une grande partie des discussions à Doha. À la suite des conférences sur le climat de Copenhague et Durban, la politique climatique mondiale se trouve à la croisée des chemins. D’un côté, le renouvellement du protocole de Kyoto après [...]

See original: Les aspects de justice climatique ne pourront pas être laissés de côté lors des négociations de l’après-Kyoto

À la suite des conférences sur le climat de Copenhague et Durban, la politique climatique mondiale se trouve à la croisée des chemins. D’un côté, le renouvellement du protocole de Kyoto après la fin de la première période d’engagement en 2012 est incertain. De l’autre côté, un nouveau traité climatique rassemblant l’ensemble des États du monde doit être négocié d’ici 2015 pour entrer en vigueur en 2020. La répartition de ces cibles entre les différents groupes de pays – pays industrialisés, pays en voie de développement, pays en transition, relève de considérations éthiques, pragmatiques et politiques. Ultimement, tous les pays devront être prêts à des compromis, si l’objectif de stabilisation du climat énoncé à Copenhague doit être respecté. Cependant, les aspects de justice climatique ne pourront pas être laissés de côté.

See original: Kyoto, Doha et après : enjeux autour des négociations de l’après-Kyoto

Dans le cadre du programme Paris 2030, la Ville de Paris soutient la recherche sur l’avenir des grandes métropoles. Elle s’est associée au programme Changement Climatique et Trame Verte urbaine (CCTV), qui réunit l’UMR Dynamiques Sociales et Recompositions des Espaces (LADYSS-CNRS) et le GIS Climat Environnement et Société pour organiser une après-midi de rencontres autour des fonctions écologiques et sociales de la végétation urbaine, dans un contexte d’adaptation climatique.

La journée articule ainsi deux entrées thématiques : d’une part les liens entre végétation urbaine et climat, deux enjeux majeurs identifiés par le programme CCTV comme par les services de la Ville de Paris ; d’autre part, les aspects socioculturels et écologiques de la végétation, tels que les relations entre les citadins et la nature.

De plus, l’enjeu de cette journée est de dépasser la confrontation de deux sphères habituellement distinctes, afin d’enrichir les pratiques des uns et des autres. Pour la Ville d...

See original: Végétation, Villes et Climat : Approches Scientifiques, Enjeux Politiques

The latest episode of Dara O'Briain's Science Club on BBC was all about extinction. The problem is, they seem to have killed off the plants before they even got started with the show.

The programme itself was excellent. The series has been largely well received and the move to a 'Topgear-style' format  gives it a nice edgy and interactive feel to it. Dara O'Briain has also been engaging as our amusing guide to all things scientific.

My problem is that this week's episode was entirely zoocentric, without any mention of threatened plant species and their importance to the overall ecosystem.

There was an excellent studio piece on the African Clawed Frog and their former use as a rudimentary pregnancy test. Then we had a report on the Giant Panda and whether such "charismatic megafauna" are worth trying to save. We looked at the humble bee and also managed to find time to make a comet. All interesting TV but no mention of plants at all when talking about extinction? That seems a bit odd.

An EU report from 2008 showed that Europe is home to about 12,500 species of vascular plants (flowering plants, conifers and ferns). A staggering 21% of these species are threatened, according to the IUCN and 50% of plants which are only found in Europe are in danger of extinction. The main threats to Europe's wild plants are habitat loss, the introduction of alien species, the effect of pollution, the introduction of plant pests and diseases, and the effect of climate change. And that's just Europe alone!

It would have been nice to see the threat of extinction for plant species being discussed. After all, the solution to human-mediated extinction of animals is unlikely to be found without considering the overall impact of the environment the animal is living in and the plants which they are using for food and cover. It's all connected.

It seems, while outlining the the problem of conservationists becoming distracted from the bigger picture by the Giant Panda and other charismatic megafauna, the programme makers got distracted from looking at extinction in a broad sense and took the animal route alone.

I guess we can chalk this up as an example of 'Plant Blindness' a term coined to describe the inability of some to see the importance of plants in their lives and to the natural world in general. I talk about the importance of avoiding plant blindness in an article in the Winter edition of Walton Magazine. You can read it for yourself here.

Below, a clip from Tuesday's show: A Dodo's Guide to Extinction

See original: BBC Science Club and Plant Blindness

PM David Cameron at Giant's Causeway (Image: National Trust/Harrison)

This Summer, the Giants Causeway visitor centre in Co. Antrim re-opened after an £18.5 million rebuild. However the National Trust, who run the facility were forced to defend some of the information presented in the visitor's centre after severe criticism from scientists.

An audio component of the interactive exhibition seemed to suggest that the National Trust was supportive (or at least sitting on the fence) regarding the notion that the Earth could have been formed 6,000 years ago. This was denied by the Trust in a series of statements at the time.

Even scientist and TV presenter Brian Cox has waded into the argument, tweeting: "to suggest there is any debate that Earth is 4.54 billion years old is pure shit".

For more on the original story, see my post.

Now, following a review of the section of the exhibition in question, the National Trust have re-recorded the end of the piece to "clear up any misunderstanding there may have been", according to Graham Thompson, Project Director for the Giant's Causeway.

"The National Trust only endorses the scientific explanation of the origins of the stones yet recognises that others have alternative beliefs", said Mr. Thompson.

You can read the transcripts of the original and new versions of the passage below (click to view a larger version).

See original: Giant controversy resolved?

A group of Irish biologists have produced a set of eight biodiversity beermats which aim to raise awareness of biodiversity issues in Ireland.

The postgraduate students from the School of Natural Sciences in Trinity College Dublin under the banner of the Trinity Centre for Biodiversity Research  have produced the beermats as an innovative way of sharing their work with the Dublin public.

The beermats were designed and illustrated by Aileen Crossley and can be found in 10 pubs around Dublin. The group are also hosting 2-3 minute long pop-up pub talks on biodiversity.

The beermats have also been featured in the Irish Times and Science magazine in recent months. I'll drink to that!

More info: Biodiversity in our lives website

See original: Biodiversity Beermats

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