[Coral-List] Reminder proposals due 14 December for 1st International Marine Think Tank

[John Cigliano]

THE 1ST INTERNATIONAL MARINE CONSERVATION THINK TANK
25-28 November 2011


The Marine Section will be hosting a special set of marine themed
focus groups, designed to address specific problems and hopefully come
up with concrete plans and solutions, on marine conservation issues of
special concern for the southern hemisphere. The meetings are being
planned to be held immediately prior to the SCB global meeting in
Christchurch, New Zealand.

Workshop themes include:

Antarctic issues
Reefs in crisis
MPA effectiveness
Deep sea ecosystems
Marine wildlife tourism
High seas governance
Small, isolated populations
Sustainable fisheries

We are currently looking for short (one page maximum) proposals for
1-3 day sessions under these themes or other themes directly relevant
to marine conservation in New Zealand and the Oceania region.
Proposals should be for projects that have a high conservation impact
with defined and substantial outputs (e.g. publications, reports,
legal text, policy briefs, white papers or action plans).
Venues and audiovisual materials will be provided for these meetings.
Focus group leaders will be requested to present their findings during
a special session during the International Congress for Conservation
Biology which immediately follows the Think Tank (28 November to 2
December).

For more details International Congress for Conservation Biology (ICCB) visit:
http://www.conbio.org/Activities/Meetings/2011/

Proposals will be peer-reviewed and due to limited sessions available,
the final selection will be highly competitive. Registration for the
Think Tank will be via the ICCB website.

Focus group attendance will be limited to the number of spots
available (40) in each session, with priority given to experts
identified in session proposals.  Proposals should identify focus
group leader(s) and potential panel leaders (if valid) that have
confirmed attendance.

(NOTE to US participants- Thanksgiving in 2011 falls on Thursday 24th
November, so we highly recommend making the most of the gorgeous
scenery and wildlife of New Zealand and take a Thanksgiving vacation
in New Zealand – for details about what Christchurch has to offer for
single or family vacations see:
http://www.nzescape.com/christchurch-attractions.html). More links
will also be available soon on the travel section of the ICCB webpage.

Please send your proposals to: imccprogram at conbio.org by 14 December 2010

Carolyn Lundquist, John Cigliano, Chris Parsons & Carol Scarpaci
IMC  Think Tank Steering Committee