Our group has grown rapidly over the last year. Expanding from two to eleven members is exciting, but now that we are officially a “group” it was time for our first lab retreat. The HIFMB Photosymbiosis Focus Group therefore packed up our collection buckets and set sail for Germany's only true offshore island: Helgoland.
The HIPP27 HUMAN PROGRESS Call explores how insights from the humanities and social sciences can contribute to research in the natural sciences and help address complex environmental challenges.
Dr. Rossella Alba has joined the HIFMB as Junior Professor of Marine Policy and Management. The professorship is a joint appointment with the Alfred Wegener Institute and the University of Oldenburg. She comes to HIFMB from Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, where she was a postdoctoral researcher, and holds a PhD in human geography from Trier University.
We are excited to announce several new job opportunities in the Photosymbiosis Research Group at the Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity (HIFMB).
Our one-day retreat on the island Spiekeroog aimed to further strengthen the connections within our Marine Governance group and to explore the notion of "Belonging." Already the passage to the island with the small speedboat, which rocked with every sigle wave, raised the question, "Do we actually belong here?"—on the water amidst all the ship traffic, right in the middle of the Wadden Sea National Park, surrounded by countless marine organisms that all depend on this rare and threatened habitat?
My summer spent at the Helmholtz Institute of Functional and Marine Biodiversity (HIFMB) has broadened my horizons and strengthened my research skills. The HIFMB allowed me to explore new areas of research and further develop my interests in advancing how we communicate complex scientific topics to the public.
I was interested in coming to the HIFMB and becoming a part of the MARISCO project, to learn more about oceanic and interdisciplinary research as part of a summer Global Sustainability Scholars scheme. My coursework in environment and biology often mentioned the ocean, but it never went sufficiently into depth or breadth.
This year has marked an exciting time for the Marine Governance Group at HIFMB, one of the core groups of the institute, feeding one of the key pillars of research: conservation and management. New staff at PhD and Postdoctoral level have arrived and Masters students have begun to undertake original research projects. Together they (we!) have been quickly shaping the group, raising critical questions about governing ocean spaces.
A three-story building with almost 2,000 square meters of floor space will be built by 2023. In addition to 85 office workplaces, the building will also offer around 650 square meters of laboratory space, creating the best conditions for marine biodiversity research.
