Prof Helmut Hillebrand
Are there tipping points for biodiversity change?
08 November 2023, 13:00 - 14:00, Zoom and Venue (Hybrid)
Understanding the anthropogenic transformation of biodiversity is a key target of current ecology and mitigating this transformation a major aspect of environmental policies. So far, our efforts to reduce the rate of change has not been successful as shown by the lack to fully achieve any of the 2020 Aichi targets. Ever increasing pressures on Earth’s biodiversity has led to concerns that we may exceed thresholds of impacts leading to a “tipping” in the biodiversity response.
In this overview seminar presentation, Prof Helmut Hillebrand has first explored whether we see indications of such threshold transgression and disproportional change in diversity in ecological data. In this context, he has addressed the scale sensitivity of biodiversity responses to environmental change and interpret these in the context of tipping risks. Then Prof Hillebrand turned the question around and asks whether diverse ecological systems have a lower risk of reaching tipping points in central ecosystem processes and whether we see erosion of this insurance effect. Finally, he has asked whether delimiting safe operating spaces for biodiversity (change) can be a valid strategy for environmental management – and if so at which scales this approach can be useful.
Prof Hillebrand is the director of Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity at the University of Oldenburg, HIFMB, Germany. He is generally very interested in the mechanisms that constrain and alter biodiversity in a variety of ecosystems. Prof Hillebrand likes to think about the complex nature of biodiversity change and ecological stability. Trained as an experimental ecologist, recently he has focused more on research syntheses and data analyses.
Prof Hillebrand's presentation is available via this link. Please click here to access the recording of his presentation.
Prof Lara van Niekerk
2030 Global Biodiversity. Framework: Opportunities for Estuary Protection and Restoration
15 August 2023, 13:00 - 14:00, Zoom and Venue (Hybrid)
In this seminar, Prof Lara van Niekerk has presented the 2030 Global Biodiversity Framework focussing on the estuarine targets. She has discussed the challenges and solutions related to these proposed targets, as well as the immediate next steps.
Prof van Niekerk is a principal researcher at the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR) in South Africa. She specialises in the physical dynamics of estuaries; estuarine condition assessments; environmental flow requirements; climate change impacts on estuaries; and estuary management and policy. Prof van Niekerk led the team of national specialists that assessed the health and ecosystem conditions of all the South African estuaries as part of the National Biodiversity Assessment in 2011, 2018 and will lead the planned assessment in 2024/5. She conceptualises the South African National Estuarine Management Protocol and forms part of the core team that developed the related planning guidelines. Prof van Niekerk is an author / co author of about +-50 papers in national/international peer reviewed journals and has published more than 70 scientific reports.
Prof van Niekerk's presentation is available via this link. Please click here to access the recording of her presentation.
Ms Nina Faure Beaulieu
Developing a Shark and Ray Conservation Plan for South Africa
Tuesday, 1 August 2023, 13:00 - 14:00, Online
In this seminar (2023 Marine Protected Area (MPA) Day), Ms Nina Faure Beaulieu has presented on the findings from her recently published article “A systematic conservation plan identifying critical areas for improved chondrichthyan protection in South Africa”. Owing to the wide ranging distributions of many sharks and rays as well as a lack of occurrence data, they are often overlooked in MPA design. Ensemble models were developed for 87 species' distributions, which informed a systematic conservation planning analysis The current representation of sharks and rays in South Africa's current network of 41 MPAs were assessed and priority areas for protection were identified.
Ms Faure Beaulieu joined the WILDTRUST team as a research assistant on one of their shark and ray protection projects after completing her Masters degree in 2021. This is where she started working on building a shark and ray conservation plan for South Africa under the guidance of Professor Mandy Lombard. This work involved collaborating with a wide network of shark and ray scientists across the country, developing distribution models for these species and then using these spatial data for a conservation plan.
Ms Beaulieu's presentation is available via this link. Please click here to access the recording of her presentation.
Dr Heidi van Deventer
Using GIS and Earth Observation to Report Changes in Extent and Integrity of Aquatic Ecosystems Aligned with Global Biodiversity Framework Targets
18 April 2023, 13:00 - 14:00, Online and Venue (Hybrid event)
Four new Goals and 23 Targets have been set for the years 2030 and 2050 under the Global Biodiversity Framework (GBF). Goal A focus on changes in the extent, integrity and connectivity of systems, including of Inland Waters, that includes rivers, estuarine and freshwater wetlands. Target 2 focus on ensuring that 30% of the extent of degraded ecosystems are under effective restoration, whereas Target 3 aims at 30% of the extent of systems are effectively conserved and managed. GIS and remote sensing play a key role in being able to track changes over time for reporting to these two targets of Goal A. The use of GIS and remote sensing in mapping and typing of Inland Waters for South Africa will be presented, demonstrating progress and challenges with ongoing projects. Challenges in the reporting to these targets will be raised, both from a South African and global perspective.
Dr Heidi van Deventer is a principal researcher at Natural Resources Enabling Infrastructure & Professional Services of the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR). She focuses on the use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and Earth Observation (EO) technology or Remote Sensing (RS) for the mapping, classification, and monitoring of Inland Waters for the Post 2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, related to both estuarine and freshwater ecosystems.
Dr van Deventer's presentation is available via this link. Please click here to access the recording of her presentation.
Dr Tegan Carpenter-Kling
From High Seas to Coastal Islands: From Counting Seabirds to Spatial Analysis in R
22 February 2023, 13:00 - 13:30, Online and Venue (Hybrid event)
Dr Carpenter-Kling is a new post-doctoral fellow at the CMR working with Professor Mandy Lombard on the Algoa Bay Project. She specializes in working with spatial data in R and developed her spatial analysis skills during her PhD research in which she worked with tracking data from 8 seabird species. Dr Carpenter-Kling’s research included correlating seabird movements to oceanographic variables, creating multispecies ‘isoscapes’ and developing an agent-based movement model in R. More recently, she worked for BirdLife South Africa, where she applied her skills to provide or support scientific evidence for at-sea management and conservation strategies of South Africa’s Endangered coastal seabirds.
In this seminar, Dr Tegan Carpenter-Kling presented highlights of her past, present and future research. This has included her work on sub-Antarctic seabird species as well as how she applied her skills to contribute towards efforts to conserve South Africa's seabirds. She has briefly touched on the work she will be doing for the Algoa Bay Project and other future research plans.
Dr Carpenter-Kling's presentation is available via this link. Please click here to access the recording of her presentation.