African Fall School on Microbial and Geochemical Oceanography in Upwelling Ecosystems

From 29 March to 29 April 2016, the Sam Nujoma Campus of the University of Namibia hosts the 3rd African “Research Discovery Camp” for research-based training on the “Sustainable Use and Management of marine Ecosystems”. Selected students, instructors and lecturers from countries all over the world will carry out research in the Benguela Upwelling Ecosystem (BUE). They will be working at sea on the R/V MIRABILIS and in the laboratories of the Marine Research Center in Henties Bay.

The Benguela Current creates one of the world’s strongest upwelling system that is the basis for a rich biodiversity and an economically important fish stock productivity. This year’s research topics are focused on questions related to microbial and geochemical processes that assure the proper functioning of the ecosystem. Topics of interest are the cycling of nutrients and trace elements between sediments and the water column, the release of CO₂ and the loss of nitrogen and associated acidification in oxygen minimum zones and the diversity of microorganisms that mediate these processes. Another line of experiments is devoted to the natural mechanisms that can lead to phosphorite deposits, to causes of toxic microbial blooms and the search for biotechnologically useful marine microbes.

Participation requires interest in carrying out a research project during the course and being recommended by project supervisors. The students are asked to propose research projects, which lead to discoveries and to a better understanding and the sustainable exploration of the BUE.

The course is part of SCOR’s cross-national capacity building initiative, and it is supported by grants from the Agouron Institute and from the Swiss i-Research & Training Institute. Additional contributions come from the hosting institutions, the universities of the participating instructors and the Namibian Ministry of Fisheries and Marine Resources through its National Marine Information and Research Center.

The course is announced under

https://www.olat.uzh.ch/olat/url/RepositoryEntry/14345109504?guest=true&lang=en

Application details can be found at http://www.microeco.ethz.ch/rgno_namibia_16/RGNO_Namibia_16.html


Deadline for Application is 1 February 2016.