24/09/2007

FORECOMAN MEETING

September, 24 2007

Members

Present

Bart M., Raf A., Wouter M., Eric VB, Jan V., Marc D., Johan C., Bert R. (report)

Agenda

Welcoming new technicians

Website

Educational tasks

Projects

Challenges of the month

Varia

Report

1  WELCOMING NEW TECHNICIANS

Our technical team has been seriously extended. We welcome:

·  Johan Coremans, who is working on the department and will have his office together with Eric

·  Marc De Vrieze, who is working on the OT project (together with Wim Aertsen) untill January 2009. Currently, he is working together with Vincent, and he will have his office on the third floor.

·  Kris Ceunen, who will work on the Ecoworm project with Jan V. as from 15 October. He will have his seat on the third floor in the same office as Jan (03.236).

It will be important to work on a good communication with these people in order to provide technical support to anybody who needs it. All planning has to pass through Eric.

The new team members can also realize some support for the educational tasks, such as the working week in Hamont Achel. A meeting for Hamont Achel will be organized soon by Eric.

2  WEBSITE

·  The new feature ‘In de kijker/Up front’ has been updated to show the outside world our recent accomplishments. Newest topic is the recently published paper of Land rehabilitation and the conservation of birds in Ethiopia, by Aerts et al.

·  The English text for the introductory page is finished. It must be checked however whether both the Dutch and English text now still correspond to one another. Bart will ad ‘land suitability‘ as a research topic on the introductory page.

·  Wim Aertsen as well as the new technicians have to be added to the staff members, and to the Forecoman mailing list (Raf)

3  EDUCATIONAL TASKS

Distribution of tasks has been done and has to be checked for correctness. Some small changes still might take place in the nearby future.

4  PROJECTS

OT

-  Final decision has been taken: Wim Aertsen will take the research position. Especially his GIS experience has been an important factor for selection.

-  Marc is the technician recruited for this project.

ECOWORM

-  A new technician, Kris Ceunen, was recruited, starting October 15 for a period of 8 months on a 4/5 base.

Unilever – Bertolli

-  Finally, Unilever – Bertolli could not be convinced, mainly due to the research time needed before enabling possible commercial African Olive Oil extraction, so at this time this project is blown off. However, if ever such Olive Tree project would start anyway, we are going to be involved.

-  Bart discussed this topic at Mekelle University. These people are interested anyway to start up something low profile in a suited area, to gain some more experience on the possibilities of enting European Olive cuttings on African Olive.

Groep Machiels

-  Consultancy job is finalised, concluding the area in Chili is in fact not suited to start up a Jatropha project. We will receive about 2000 euro for this consultancy job.

Klimaatpark Arenberg

-  Klimaatpark Arenberg got its first project: ‘Climate adaptation in agriculture’ led by Erik Matthijs en Jos Van Orshoven.

Federal Science Policy

-  Bart en Kris Verheyen want to resubmit the FORBIO project as a cluster project to the Science Policy call. Bart and Kris will have a meeting with their potential Walloon partners next week.

FWO

-  Brainstorm on a new FWO project:

-  Current ideas are e.g.:

·  work out something with a similar focus as the work done by Wouter M. Wouter and Bart will discuss possibilities.

·  Working out something around Alternative Stable States. It would be good if Bart could submit his paper on this topic before the project proposal has to be submitted.

-  Kenian ornitological project (with Luc Lens, Raf Aerts, Bart Muys): meeting this week.

IWT

-  No IWT proposals were submitted this year.

5  Challenges of the month

Jan:

-  doctoral school OK

-  submit paper on sampling techniques this week

-  Prepare fieldwork

Vincent:

-  prepare users’ committee OK

-  further test field equipment and start field work OK

-  make database

-  present measuring protocol at the lab seminars after new year

Wouter M:

-  report EDUBO by end of October first draft

-  write poster for MeteoClim

-  Presentation for workshop Reinhart Ceulemans

-  greenhouse experiments fully going on

-  DAIS-paper: ongoing

Raf:

-  write a paper for a high impact journal: paper on church forests. Data on extra plots will come from an MSc in Ethiopia, coordinated by Jan Nyssen

-  Get last chapter of Ph.D. published

-  Start up/plan fieldwork Kenia

Bert:

-  finish thigmomorphogenesis paper

-  prepare fieldwork Ethiopia

Joost:

×  test field mapper

Antonio:

-  update research note before 15 Sept

-  Continue the work with W. Achten on the Jatropha suitability paper

Wouter A.

-  Jatropha land suitability paper: ongoing

-  continue greenhouse experiments

-  working on land use impact paper: ongoing

-  guide Pieter

Bart:

-  write new section on land suitability for the website

-  Clean the hallway, get rid of all the boxes: ongoing

-  Finish the paper of Tim (discussion)

-  Finish the paper of Griet (lay-out)

-  Continue writing on the (Un)steady state paper and the relationship between acid buffering and plant communities: ongoing. Bart went prospecting some sites.

-  Agenda ‘sharing’

6  VARIA

-  Raf and Eric will probably organise a training on GPS and vegetation analysis in Jimma, Ethiopia.

-  Planned training on “Modeling”: Bart will check status with Jos VO

-  The KHKempen asked whether there are opportunities for sending two of their students abroad for their master thesis for 3 months next summer. Bart replied that there will be possibilities in Jimma, Ethiopia.

-  New thesis subjects coming year: Wouter A, Wim, Vincent, Raf (Kenia) and maybe Wouter M

7  NEXT MEETING

October 30, 9 a.m.

3/5

FORECOMAN MEETING

August 23, 2007