15.05.2012  |  Anderes
Comparative Research Networks in Africa
Call for Proposals 2012
CODESRIA invites proposals from researchers based in African universities and centres of research for the constitution of Comparative Research Networks (CRNs) to undertake studies on or around priority research themes. The primary purpose of CRNs is to encourage a comparative analytic perspective in the work of African social researchers. To find out more about the details of how to apply, please see the CODESRIA website or contact them by email.

14.05.2012  |  Ankündigung
Rio + 20: The Future Switzerland Wants

11.05.2012  |  Anderes
Schweizer Forscher jagen tödlichen Parasiten
via Tagesanzeiger
Zwei Schweizer Forscher erhalten von der Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) für ihr Projekt zur Parasitenbekämpfung eine Million US-Dollar. Der Basler Parasitologe Reto Brun vom Schweizerischen Tropen- und Public-Health-Institut forscht gemeinsam mit der Berner Molekularbiologin Isabel Roditi an einer neuen Methode, um den sogenannten Trypanosomen-Parasiten zu eliminieren. Dieser Parasit, der in den ländlichen Gegenden Afrikas vorkommt, wird von der Tsetsefliege auf den Menschen übertragen und löst bei ihm die Afrikanische Schlafkrankheit aus

08.05.2012  |  Anderes
Call for Research Proposals - GDN (Deadline 21 May)
The Global Development Network invites researchers from developing and transition countries to submit proposals for the 2012 Global Research Competition. The themes in 2012—which is the pilot year of this program - include Education & Gender, Food Security and Political Economic & Social Transformations. The research competition is inter-regional and multi-disciplinary. Proposals can be submitted individually, or in teams. An online platform will help individuals and incomplete teams to find collaborators. Each winning team will be paired with world-class mentors. Grants are up to US$ 32,000 for projects of up to 18 months.

07.05.2012  |  Publikation
Transnational Land Deals for Agriculture in the Global South
Land Matrix partnership which includes CDE (the Centre for Development and Environment of the University of Bern) published its first analytical report, launched on 26 April 2012 at the Annual World Bank Conference on Land and Poverty. It is based on data from over 1,000 agricultural land deals since 2000. The new data reveal a geographical concentration of agricultural land investments: just 11 countries, many in East Africa and Southeast Asia, account for 70% of the total land area acquired in the deals analysed. The main investor countries are classified into three groups: emerging economies, Gulf states, and Europe and North America. Evidence of increasing south-south investment and intra-regionalism is another major finding.

02.05.2012  |  Medienmitteilung
Switzerland and South Africa step up cooperation on science
A high-level Swiss delegation led by the State Secretariat for Education and Research (SER) arrived in South Africa last week and met their counterparts from the South African Department of Science and Technology to discuss the main points of the second phase of cooperation under the bilateral agreement signed in 2007.

02.05.2012  |  Anderes
Land Matrix
The Land Matrix is an online public database of large-scale land deals. It provides a visualisation of records documenting land deals since 2000. The data you can explore represent about 50% of the entire data base. The remaining deals are being crosschecked and added, together with new data provided, on an on-going basis. The visualisations offer overview of the data as well as giving full access to the public database down to the level of an individual deal.

26.04.2012  |  Publikation
A review on farm household modelling with a focus on climate change adaptation and mitigation
This study systematically reviewed the literature to evaluate how suitable existing farm and farm household models are to study aspects of food security in relation to climate change adaptation, risk management and mitigation. Approximately 16,000 research articles covering more than 1000 models were systematically scanned . They found 126 models that met the criteria for subsequent detailed analysis. Although many models use climate as an input, few were used to study climate change adaptation or mitigation at farm level. Promising mixtures of methodologies include mathematical programming for farm level decision-making, dynamic simulation for the production components and agent based modelling for the spread of information and technologies between farmers. There is a need for more explicit farm level analyses with a focus on adaptation, vulnerability and risk. In general terms, this systematic review concludes that there are enough techniques for integrated assessments of farm systems in relation to climate change, adaptation and mitigation, but they have not yet been combined in a way that is meaningful to farm level decision makers.

26.04.2012  |  Ankündigung
IPBES launched in Panama!
After several years of international negotiations, the final operational design of the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES) was agreed in Panama last Friday. The new IPBES secretariat will be hosted in Bonn, Germany.

19.04.2012  |  Ankündigung
JTI Foundation Resilience Award
GRF Davos is announcing the JTI Foundation Resilience Award of CHF 175’000.- for the best project proposal on resilience increase at city or community level submitted (until 15 June 2012). More information on the award website.

18.04.2012  |  Publikation
Anthropocene - the Geology of Humanity
IGBP Newsletter 'Global Change' No 78, March 2012: This issue looks at the Anthropocene, humanity's epoch. It also examines urban expansion, consumption of resources, natural catastrophes' effects on economics and how to better build our future.

18.04.2012  |  Ankündigung
3rd International Conference on Research for Development
to be held 20-22 August 2012 in Bern
The aim of the 3rd ICRD is to share and discuss recent insights on development-oriented research conducted in North-South partnerships, and to develop a research policy agenda for global transformation. More than 200 abstracts were submitted after the first call. However, the organisers are still gladly accepting abstract submissions for oral or poster presentations at the workshop sessions. New abstracts are continuously being reviewed by session convenors, and may be accepted up until 15 June 2012 at the latest.

17.04.2012  |  Anderes
Wellcome Trust makes research more accessible
The Wellcome Trust has announced that it is launching an initiative to support free, online publication of scientific research to compete with established academic journals. Established in 1936, The Wellcome Trust is a global charitable foundation dedicated to “achieving extraordinary improvements in human and animal health” and remains one of the UK’s largest non-governmental source of funds for biomedical research. Wellcome Trust Director, Sir Mark Walport, states that “research isn’t finished until it’s been published, and by publishing the work that we fund in open access formats it means that as many people as possible are able to have access to the literature without any hindrance at all, and that of course will ultimately maximize the value and the impact of the research that we fund.”

10.04.2012  |  Ankündigung Ankündigung
SFIAR Award 2012 - Call for Proposals
The Swiss Forum for International Agricultural Research (SFIAR) offers an annual Award for scientists working for a Swiss institution in agricultural research for development. With this Award the SFIAR aims to: a) support relevant agricultural research for development (ARD) b) promote knowledge on and visibility of Swiss ARD The SFIAR Award 2012 (prize sum: CHF 5'000.-) focuses on young researcher, PhD or Post Doc projects.

09.04.2012  |  Anderes
Achieving food security in the face of climate change
The Commission on Sustainable Agriculture and Climate Change launched its final recommendations for ensuring food security under a changing climate end of March 2012. The final report was accompanied by the launch of the animation “How to feed the world in 2050: actions in a changing climate”

31.03.2012  |  Tagungsberichte
Planet is in critical state, warns science declaration
via SciDevNet

30.03.2012  |  Anderes
New map overlays conflict, climate change and aid in Africa

30.03.2012  |  Anderes
Factsheets Rio+20
In view of the Rio+20 Conference the Swiss Academy of Sciences prepares factsheets on different topics in collaboration with Swiss researchers: water, mountain areas, biodiversity and food security. The factsheets summarize both the most important global aspects and also include the Swiss perspective.

21.03.2012  |  Anderes
AAAS's new quarterly publication, Science & Diplomacy
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has just launched Science & Diplomacy, a new quarterly publication that aims to serve as a forum for ideas, analysis and research related to the emerging field of science diplomacy by scientists, diplomats and international thinkers.

12.03.2012  |  Ankündigung
Call for Agricultural Research for Development
An ERA-ARD II transnational call for Agricultural Research for Development (ARD) is now open: The theme of this Call is:“Improving rural livelihoods in Sub-Saharan Africa: Sustainable and climate-smart intensification of agricultural production” As a member of the ERA-ARD Consortium, Switzerland has committed CHF 440’000.-. With this amount SDC will fund the participation of Swiss research institutions and their partners from developing countries in this call.

12.03.2012  |  Anderes
Innovation et développement en milieu rural - appel à candidatures
Appel à candidatures pour le recrutement de la deuxième promotion du master AGRINOVIA : "innovation et développement en milieu rural"" du 1 octobre 2012 au 31 Mai 2013 à l’Université de Ouagadougou. AGRINOVIA est un programme de formation professionnelle internationale sur l’innovation et le partenariat destiné à des professionnels ou des étudiants dans le domaine du développement rural en Afrique. Cette formation se déroulera à Ouagadougou (Burkina Faso) du 1er Octobre 2012 au 31 Mai 2013. Peu d’innovations sont le fruit d’un partenariat actif entre différentes familles d’acteurs, restant ainsi prisonnières d’une source de savoir unique, d’une vision du monde particulière, limitant ainsi souvent leur efficacité, leur diffusion et même leur pérennité. Par conséquent, il devient nécessaire de repenser les dispositifs d’appui et d’accompagnement des innovations en mettant l’accent sur le renforcement des approches collaboratives entre ces acteurs. Apprendre ensemble et travailler collectivement s’impose comme un nouveau défi mais nécessite, à l’évidence, l’acquisition de nouvelles compétences et capacités pour les professionnels du développement.

06.03.2012  |  Ankündigung
SDC and SNSF launch new research programme
The Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC) and the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) are jointly launching the "Swiss Programme for Research on Global Issues for Development" (r4d.ch programme) with an initial call for proposals. A total budget of 97.6 million Swiss francs is available for the whole duration of the programme from 2012 to 2022.

28.02.2012  |  Anderes
Swiss Water Partnership launched
Representatives of 45 organisations from the Swiss Confederation, the scientific and research communities, the private sector and aid agencies launched the Swiss Water Partnership (SWP) in the presence of SDC Director-General Martin Dahinden. The SWP aims to strengthen the international profile of the Swiss water sector and to create synergies between its members' activities.

22.02.2012  |  Ankündigung
Executive Master in Development Policies and Practices
The Graduate Institute's Executive Education is pleased to present you its new Executive Master in Development Policies and Practices, in partnership with the University of Ghana Business School (Accra), the Institut supérieur de technologies appliquées (Bamako), the Asian Institute of Technology Center in Vietnam (Hanoi) and theCentro de Estudios y Promoción del Desarrollo (Lima).