Classes of Excellence 2022
Concept
The broad topic for all classes is research and management of natural capital under climate change. We consider two main themes within this broader topic.
- Theme 1: Future climate risks to our natural capital.
- Theme 2: Ecosystem-climate and atmosphere interactions: how do we measure them and interpret their importance?
For whom?
PhD candidates and postdocs with a broad interest in natural capital.
What?
Throughout these classes, everybody will contribute toward a jointly-written high-level review or perspective paper on natural capital and climate change led by prof. Ellsworth. We will stimulate interaction with academic experts, as well as other stakeholders.
- As one of 40 participants, you will be divided into a group based on your expertise and assigned a topic to work on together with others throughout the six classes.
Each group will focus on a specific natural capital aspect (e.g. soils, water, forest, agriculture, food, …) and examine its climate risk but also an opportunity for enhancing the capital for public-good benefit. - In the first phase, two groups will be assigned the same topic to work on independently and deliver a synthesis text (~800 words), that can feed into a jointly-written perspective paper led by David Ellsworth.
- In the last phase, the two groups merge to make a consensus text.
At each class, the students can continue to work on their project and interact with David, experts, and each other. Each class will last around 2 to 3 hours and will be interactive.
Participants are expected to attend all classes in-person including the inaugural lecture and the closing symposium. Master’s students can apply so long as they intend to follow the full course.
7 September 2022
Kickoff classes of excellence @ UGent: Future climate risks to our natural capital, introduction
Theme 1: Future climate risks to our natural capital.
Location: Campus Coupure, Ghent University
- 9.00-12.00 getting to know each other + class of excellence
- 12.00-13.00 lunch
- 13.00-16.00 free time in Ghent
- 16.00 inaugural lecture David Ellsworth, Aula, Voldersstraat 9, 9000 Gent (register separately)
28 September 2022
Class of excellence @UHasselt: Experimental studies of climate change impact on ecosystem functioning
Theme 2: Ecosystem-climate and atmosphere interactions: how do we measure them and interpret their importance?
Location: Ecotron UHasselt and National Park Hoge Kempen
- 9.00 departure by bus from Hasselt central station
- 9:45 welcome
- 10.00 presentation about Ecotron research: UHasselt researchers: Nadia Soudzilovskaia and Francois Rineau
- 11.00-11.15 coffee break with questions
- 11.15-12.30 visit of UHasselt Ecotron
- 12.30-13.30 lunch at Pizzeria in the Maasmechelen Village
- 13.30-16.00 class of excellence
- 16.00 return by bus to the Hasselt central station, visiting ICOS Ecosystem station in the National Park Hoge Kempen
6 October 2022
Class of excellence @UAntwerpen: Ecosystem processes that mitigate atmospheric CO2
Theme 2: Ecosystem-climate and atmosphere interactions: how do we measure them and interpret their importance?
Location: TBD
- 9.30 welcome and coffee
- 10.00 lecture by Prof. Ivan Janssens: “Measuring greenhouse gas fluxes with eddy covariance: applications and validation”
- 11.00 visit of the Plants and Ecosystems experimental site
- 12.00 lunch
- 13.00 visit of the mesodrome facilities and/or negative emissions experiments
- 14.00-16.30 class of excellence
27 October 2022
Class of excellence @ULiège-Gembloux: Spatial and temporal scales of observations at temperate and tropical ecosystems
Theme 2: Ecosystem-climate and atmosphere interactions: how do we measure them and interpret their importance?
Location: Gembloux
- 09:30 welcome coffee
- 10:00 class of excellence
- 12:00 lunch
- 13:00 visit to the ECOTRON + virtual visit of the ICOS sites and plot network in central Africa (dynaffac)
- 14:30 coffee + posters
- 15:00 Lecture of Prof. Ellsworth: Ecosystem-climate-atmosphere interactions in temperate and tropical forests: sensitive to warming and rising CO2?
- 16:00 drinks (local beers produced in Gembloux) + posters
8 November 2022 (Registration required)
Class of excellence @VUB and ULB: Climate risks for key ecosystem services for human livelihood: water and biodiversity
Theme 1: Future climate risks to our natural capital.
Location: ULB campus Solbosch, Brussels, room Dupréel, 2nd floor of building S of Solbosch campus (access through Jeanne avenue 44, 1050 Brussels)
- 9.00-12.00 class of excellence
- 12.00-13.30 lunch
- 13.30 start mini symposium climate and ecology research at ULB and VUB (8 x (12min talks + 3min questions))
- 13:35 Wim Thiery: The kids aren’t alright
- 13:55 Pierre Regnier: The land-to-ocean loops of the global carbon cycle: biogeochemistry, ecology and climate change feedbacks
- 14:15 Olivier Hardy: Distribution of plant (genetic) diversity in African forests – a legacy of past climate changes?
- 14:35 Tom Van der Stocken: Mangrove dispersal and climate change
- 14:55 Nathalie Gypens: Phytoplankton diversity: a key component of aquatic ecosystem functioning and associated goods and services under anthropogenic pressure
- 15:15 Leon Marshall: Climate impacts on pollination services: potential for spatial mismatches between apple crops and their wild bee pollinators
- 15.30-16.00 coffee break
- 16.00-18.00 public lecture David : Climate risks for key ecosystem services for human livelihood: water and biodiversity
24 November 2022
Class of excellence @UCL: Tree carbon uptake under climate change: interacting effects of elevated CO2, nutrients and water availability
Theme 1: Future climate risks to our natural capital.
Location: Earth & Life Institute - Environmental Sciences (ELIE), Croix du Sud 2, 1348 Louvain-la-Neuve
- 08.45 Welcome with coffee
- 09.15 – 10.00 Seminar from D. Ellsworth
- 10.15 – 12.45 class of excellence
- 12.45 – 13.45 lunch
- 13.45 – 15.15 Station visit to the Bois de Lauzelle (A bus will leave from Louvain-la-Neuve to the forest and bring all participants back)