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New research organisation in BECC - from clusters to Grand Challenge Themes

Photo: Pixabay
Photo: Pixabay

Although not yet decided, we have good reasons to believe that the funding of the 43 Strategic Research Areas (SRAs) including BECC will continue. As a result, we are now preparing for the long-term future, including a new internal structure where Challenged Themes replace the former Clusters with the aim to increase the integration between disciplines.

At the BECC 2015 annual meeting, we discussed a number of societal and scientific Grand Challenges. These discussions are the foundation for the three Challenge Themes (“Theme” for short) outlined below. These Themes focus on the major challenges that BECC needs to focus on, but do not exclude additional themes in the future.

The current Challenge Themes are:

  • Constraining the carbon cycle to characterise and mitigate climate change
  • Mainstreaming [consideration of] ecosystem services into land use decision-making under global change
  • Effective strategies for biodiversity conservation under the combined pressures from climate change and land use change

Each relating to a Grand Challenge with regard to the impacts of climate and environmental change on biodiversity and ecosystem services, and the ability of society to adapt to the impacts, or mitigate their causes. Each Challenge Theme (“Theme” for short) thus focuses on an overarching issue of scientific importance, in need of scientific coordination, with high relevance to decision making and with potentially high impact on international research, today and in coming years.

Themes function as platforms for intellectual exchange and mutual learning, where researchers meet and develop ideas for new collaborations, research projects, networking, outreach and dissemination activities. To utilize the full potential of the wide range of experience and expertise represented within BECC, Themes cut across disciplines, departments as well as Lund and Gothenburg universities.

Theme leaders

New theme leaders Cecilia Akselsson, Edith Hammer and Johan Ekroos.
New theme leaders Cecilia Akselsson, Edith Hammer and Johan Ekroos.

Each Challenge Theme is led by a Theme Coordinator and two Deputy Theme Coordinators, appointed by the board for a mandate period (renewable) of two years.

Constraining the carbon cycle to characterise and mitigate climate change

Theme Coordinator: Edith Hammer

Deputy Theme Coordinators: Tobias Rütting and Dan Metcalfe

Mainstreaming [consideration of] ecosystem services into land use decision-making under global change

Theme Coordinator:  Cecilia Akselsson

Deputy Theme Coordinators: Yann Clough and Jessica Coria

Effective strategies for biodiversity conservation under the combined pressures from climate change and land use change

Theme Coordinator: Johan Ekroos

Deputy Theme Coordinators: Fariborz Zelli and Alexandre Antonelli

About the themes

Themes have a budget to cover limited costs for arranging meetings and other activities. Themes are open to all participants in BECC; PIs as well as post-docs and PhD-students supported by BECC in particular are expected to contribute actively to the Challenge Theme which their research is associated to. Participation in multiple themes is permitted and encouraged. Themes organize regular meetings to exchange ideas, define the research agenda of the theme, take initiatives, including organizing internal or external workshops, inviting guest researchers, initiating action groups, and applying for external grants.

Open document about BECC Challenge Themes.