IUSS Alert - 25 (May 2007)
Information for and from the global soil science community
Universities worldwide
BRAINTRACK is a worldwide University-Index on the Internet. It contains information about Universities, Polytechnics, Colleges and other higher educational institutions from all over the world. BRAINTRACK is the largest University-Index on the Internet. It is produced and maintained by AAA Science Network.
Conference soil environmental and criminal forensics
An international conference focussing on soil environmental and criminal forensics is to be held in Edinburgh, Scotland, on the 30 October - 1 November 2007. The conference will explore novel approaches in soil forensics. Topics being covered include; Environmental Soil Forensics, Criminal Soil Forensics, Geoforensics, Geographic Information Systems and Soil Analytical Diagnostics. It will provide an international arena for discussion of research and development in forensic soil science for the benefit of both environmental protection and criminal investigation, relevant to the high priority areas of environmental health and international terrorism.
Confirmed speakers include Dr Rob Fitzpatrick, Director of the Centre for Forensic Soil Science, Australia; Professor Ken Killham, University of Aberdeen, UK; Patricia Wiltshire, University of Aberdeen, and Dr James Robertson, Forensic Laboratories of the Australian Federal Police, Australia . Along with others, the British Society of Soil Science (BSSS) are sponsoring the conference. The Call for Papers is open until 20th April 2007. The web site of the conference is www.soilforensicsinternational.org
IPCC reports Climate Change 2007
The IPCC Fourth Assessment Report "Climate Change 2007" consists of three Working Group Volumes and a Synthesis report. The first volume is on the Physical Science Basis of Climate Change, and will be published in early June 2007 by Cambridge University Press. The second volume is on the Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability, and the third on Mitigation of Climate Change. These two volumes are expected to be published by September 2007, also by Cambridge University Press.
The summary for policymakers of the Working Group I report "The Physical Science Basis" is here: www.ipcc.ch/SPM2feb07.pdf
The summary for policymakers of the Working Group II report "Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability" is available here: www.ipcc.ch/SPM6avr07.pdf
Information on the Working Group III report "Mitigation of Climate Change" is available here: www.ipcc.ch/meet/session26.htm
The summaries for policymakers will be translated into the official UN languages, i.e. Arabic, Chinese, French, Russian and Spanish. The translated versions are expected to be ready by October 2007, see the IPCC website: www.ipcc.ch
Happy reading!
Land Degradation & Development
Land Degradation & Development is an international journal which seeks to promote rational study of the recognition, monitoring, control and rehabilitation of degradation in terrestrial environments.
Special Issues include:
Land Degradation in Changing Environments (Vol 17, Issue 4)
Addressing Soil Erosion in Europe (Vol 16, Issue 6)
Land Degradation and Mitigation (Vol 16, Issue 2)
Visit the journal homepage (click cover) to set up Table of Contents Alerts or RSS Feeds and be the first to read the latest research and hot papers in this field.
New IUSS Logo
In our strive for professionalism as a scientific union we are seeking ideas for a new IUSS logo. But: what should be the theme/themes to be expressed by a logo? If you have thoughts on what the new IUSS logo should embrace and look like please mail Alfred Hartemink. These themes will be submitted to a graphic artist who will be asked to produce logos for consideration by the IUSS Council in Brisbane in July 2008.
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