Dear BioGeoSCAPES Community,
We have had a productive first quarter of 2024 and are excited to share a number of updates with you. Read below to see how various components of BioGeoSCAPES have been busy and click here to learn more about BioGeoSCAPES and how you can become a champion!
BioGeoSCAPES Science Plan writing is underway: Using the Science Plan outline created during the November 2023 Planning workshop, 38 scientists from 12 nations are currently writing the first draft of the BioGeoSCAPES Science Plan. We look forward to sharing updates about writing progress in the coming months!
OSM24 Town Hall: Thanks so much to those of you who joined us in New Orleans for our Ocean Sciences Meeting Town Hall on Accelerating Toward an International BioGeoSCAPES Program on February 20, 2024! 
The BioGeoSCAPES Community filled the room to hear updates on activities associated with: 1) An international workshop held in November 2023 to develop the BioGeoSCAPES science plan. 2) Education and training activities, funded by a US NSF AccelNet award, including the launch of the first cohort of a BioGeoSCAPES fellows program, webinars and summer schools. The town hall ended with a short Q&A session followed by informal discussion, intended to foster community engagement and facilitate BioGeoSCAPES progress and plans.
Recruitment Begins for Second BioGeoSCAPES Fellows Cohort: We are excited to announce the launch of a second BioGeoSCAPES Fellows program funded by the NSF AccelNet award. This program brings together an international, interdisciplinary cohort of early career (postdocs and senior graduate students) researchers working in the areas of ocean metabolism, biogeochemical cycling, biological oceanography, chemical oceanography, and marine microbiology. We encourage applicants from both experimental and modeling backgrounds. Each Fellow will each receive a professional development award that can be used for travel related to laboratory exchanges, courses, workshops or conferences. Fellows will participate in monthly networking events for at least one year, as well as an in-person workshop in summer or fall 2025. Postdoctoral researchers and senior graduate students from any nation who are working on BioGeoSCAPES-relevant research are eligible to apply.
Application requirements: Fill out Google Form application and send abbreviated (2-page) CV to info@biogeoscapes.org. Applications are due June 15, 2024. Applicants will be informed by August, and cohort activities will begin September, 2024. Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:
- Applicant’s readiness level to benefit from professional development activities of the Fellows Program
- Quality, novelty, and relevance (to BioGeoSCAPES mission) of applicant’s research activities to date
- Applicant’s authentic experience and/or interest in interdisciplinary research endeavors
- Applicant’s leadership experience and/or potential to help advance the BioGeoSCAPES mission
BioGeoSCAPES International Implementation Committee: The International Implementation Committee was recently assembled and will hold their first meeting in May 2024. The committee is composed of 20 individuals representing 16 nations and will meet quarterly to make strategic decisions about future international BioGeoSCAPES efforts. This committee is also tasked with overseeing the drafting of the Science Plan and will eventually be responsible for establishing a scientific steering committee.
Upcoming Events
EGU General Assembly: Join us in Vienna, Austria, April 14-19, 2024, for the EGU General Assembly, Ocean Sciences Session 3.1: Understanding ocean ecosystems, biogeochemical cycles and their responses to climate change. This session invites submissions, from both observations and modeling efforts, that address the impact of historical variability and climate change on net primary production, biogeochemical cycling of nutrients and oxygen, and the ocean carbon cycle, including cascading effects for marine ecosystems to modulate biodiversity and ecosystem services.
BioGeoSCAPES Fellow, Meriel Bittner, will present a poster, “BioGeoSCAPES: Ocean metabolism and nutrient cycles on a changing planet”, on Wed, 17 Apr, 16:15–18:00 (CEST) Hall X4 | X4.27.
‘Omics Webinar Series: The OCB is supporting an exciting new small group activity Intercomparison of metatranscriptomic methods for characterizing microbial eukaryote contributions to the biological carbon pump, which is being led by Harriet Alexander (WHOI), Natalie Cohen (UGA), Sarah Hu (TAMU), and Adrian Marchetti (UNC Chapel Hill). The goal of this working group is to determine how various methodological choices made during metatranscriptome processing influence downstream biological interpretations. Click here to learn more about the webinar series.
BioGeoSCAPES Fellows Webinar Series: The first Fellows cohort is planning a webinar series later this year focused on developing a shared language for BioGeoSCAPES. The 4-part series will address key concepts and terminology related to ‘omics, modeling, biogeochemistry, and the language needed to integrate those three fields. Keep an eye on our website and social media accounts for additional information on dates and how to register
Upcoming Workshops: The NSF AccelNet will support a number of workshops in the next year, including international workshops on Data Management and on the Status of Intercalibrations. Keep an eye on our website or follow us on social media to stay up to date!
Stay in Touch!
Follow us on Twitter/X (@biogeoscapes) and BlueSky(@biogeoscapes.bsky.social). Visit our website (https://biogeoscapes.org/) and scroll to the bottom to subscribe for future Newsletters and other email updates. Want to get involved? Click here to become a champion of BioGeoSCAPES!