AAG 2009 CALL for Marine Geomorph Papers

2009 AAG ORGANIZED SESSION
Marine Geomorphology and Mapping for an Ecosystem-Based Management Approach to Marine Reserve Design and Planning

Seeking co-sponsorship from the Coastal and Marine (CoMa), GI Systems and Science, and Biogeography Specialty Groups

Association of American Geographers Annual Meeting, March 22-27, 2009 Las Vegas, NV, USA

ORGANIZERS:
Dawn Wright, Oregon State University, dawn@dusk.geo.orst.edu Will Heyman, Texas A&M University, wheyman@geog.tamu.edu

DESCRIPTION: These sessions will be a follow-up to the highly successful AAG sessions of 2008 entitled "Marine Geomorphology as a Determinant for Essential Life Habitat: An Ecosystem Management Approach to Planning for Marine Reserve Networks." In 2009 we will continue to present and critically examine the growing body of data suggesting that the underlying geology and geomorphology of marine environments dictates the location of critical life habitat for a variety marine species. The broad implications of these findings suggest that geomorphology might be used as a proxy for (or at least help to identify) critical life habitat for marine species, and thus serve to advance the application of ecosystem-based management (EBM) to the design of marine reserve networks. Our goal once again will be to bring together a group of scholars working on this and related issues, and to further advance collaboration between scientists and marine managers towards more efficient conservation and management of marine systems.

Papers are welcome in the areas of:
- essential benthic habitat and geomorphology
- marine GIS and/or remote sensing for the purposes of integrating geomorphology and biology
- applications for marine reserve network design

These will be combined into at as many sessions as needed and will likely include a final panel discussion.

DEADLINES:
October 14, 2008 (TUESDAY): Submit a PIN to either Dawn Wright or Will Heyman

All participants must first register individually for the meeting. 
Please follow the instructions at http://www.aag.org/annualmeetings/2009/registration.htm. Upon registration you will be given a participant identification number (PIN). Send this PIN and a copy of your final abstract to Will or Dawn. They will not edit your abstract, nor will the AAG, so please make sure it is grammatically correct and without typos.

October 16, 2008: Sessions submitted to the AAG for approval.

March 22-27, 2009: AAG Meeting in Boston. Exact day and time of  sessions to be announced.

Postdoctoral Position in Paleoclimate Research

IMPERIAL COLLEGE LONDON
Department of Earth Science and Engineering
Postdoctoral Position in Paleoclimate Research
Applications are invited for a Research Associate to work on the reconstruction of deglacial Atlantic Ocean ventilation rates, funded by the Natural Environment Research Council, under the direction of Dr Tina van de Flierdt (Imperial College London). The position is available to start on or before 1 April 2009.

Deglacial Atlantic Ocean Ventilation Rates
Ocean ventilation rates are closely linked to climate change through the formation and convection of deep waters. Since the deep ocean contains most of the carbon in the ocean-atmosphere system, ventilation rates exert an important influence on climate via the greenhouse connection. Knowledge of the ventilation rate in the modern and the past ocean is therefore a key parameter in understanding the carbon cycle and climate change. Within the proposed project, ocean ventilation rates for the deglacial Atlantic Ocean will be reconstructed using paired radiocarbon and Nd isotope measurements on U-Th dated deep-sea corals.

The successful candidate will have a PhD in paleoclimate, paleoceanography, isotope geochemistry, or closely related subject areas. Good laboratory skills are highly desirable and candidates with experience in clean room chemistry and mass spectrometry are particularly encouraged to apply. You will join an international collaborative project with Dr Laura F Robinson (WHOI) and Professor Jess F Adkins (Caltech). Your work will focus on the radiogenic isotope geochemistry of deep-sea corals and will be carried out in the new isotope geochemistry facility of the Earth & Planets Section of the Department of Earth Science and Engineering at Imperial College London. The department has close ties to the newly opened Grantham Institute for Climate Change offering a multidisciplinary and stimulating environment for paleoclimate research.

Further information can be obtained from Tina van de Flierdt, tina.vandeflierdt@imperial.ac.uk.
Application forms and further details of the post can be downloaded from http://www3.imperial.ac.uk/employment/research.

A completed application form, a curriculum vitae, brief statements of research with the names and contact details of at least two referees, should be sent to Darakshan Khan, email: d.khan@imperial.ac.uk,. Please quote PDRA/TvdF/corals in all correspondence.

Closing date: 30 October 2008