In this email:

1. Call for Board of Governors Nominations

2. Remember Renew your SCB Membership Now and Save!

3. Call for 2009 Award Nominations

4. The 2008 Annual Report of SCB is available

5. Read ‘Priorities for Policy-Relevant Conservation Research: a View from SCB Regional Sections’ recently published in Conservation Biology.

6. Call for proposals for 24th ICCB - deadline 14 October 2009

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Contact:
Society for Conservation Biology
1017 O Street NW
Washington, DC 20001-4229 US
+1-202-234-4133
homeoffice@conbio.org

Call for Board of Governors Nominations Extended to 1 December


SCB seeks nominees to serve on the Board of Governors. Three positions are open to nominees from any country.Nominees must be SCB members in good standing. By agreeing to stand for election, nominees indicate their willingness to serve by attending SCB by Board of Governors meetings during their three-year (Members at Large) or six-year (President Elect; two years each as President Elect, President and Past President) term of office that begins 1 July 2010. Except under extreme circumstances, BoG members are expected to attend all Board meetings, which are scheduled well in advance, wherever possible at their own expense though some funds can be made available when necessary.  In addition, Board members are expected to be actively engaged in directing SCB through committee work and by working with Sections and local chapters.

In response to a growing need to restructure the board to efficiently carry out the business of the Society, a vote by members of the Society at the recent global meeting in Beijing resulted in changes in the board structure. Specifically, the Society by-laws were changed to allow open nominations of board members irrespective of professional affiliation. In addition, the number of at-large elected board members has increased from 6 to 9 (see this Newsletter for additional details). In part, this transition will be accompanied by an explicit effort to place Board Members as chairs of Society Committees. The transition to the new board structure will occur gradually over the next few years.  This year we seek nominations for three at large seats.

In order to undertake its business effectively the Board needs members with the full range of experience and expertise necessary for overseeing the work of the Society. Following consideration of the current Board members, the schedule of retirements, and of significant tasks for the Society over the next few years, we particularly welcome nominations, or self-nominations, from individuals with experience and interests in the following areas: international conservation biology conferences and meetings; conservation biology teaching, training and education; development and fundraising.  There is also a continuing need for individuals on the Board with experience and an active interest in social sciences and humanities. Positions on the Board, however, are not restricted to these topics. 

Nominations will be accepted until 1 December 2009. Candidates for each seat will be chosen from the nominees by the Governance Committee. Slates of candidates for each office will be organized into the ballot. Ballots are available for approximately 30-60 days in the first quarter of 2010. The ballot will be made available to SCB members in good standing via the SCB Web site and a paper ballot in the February newsletter.

If you are interested in serving on the Board, or would like to nominate another candidate, please express that interest to the Chair of the Governance Committee, Georgina Mace, g.mace@imperial.ac.uk. Nominations should include complete contact information for the nominee. Please also indicate whether the nominee has confirmed interest in serving. Self-nominations are permitted and encouraged.

Renew your SCB Membership Now and Save!

Renew online before prices increase on 1 November 2009, to take advantage of the current low rates.  Log on at www.conbio.org.  Your memberid is [insert peopleID].  If you don't know your password try your last name capitilized.

Renew now to continue to have access to SCB’s exciting membership benefits – free subscription to Conservation Letters and the SCB Newsletter, discounts on annual meeting registration and affiliate publications, access to your flourishing conservation community by joining a Section, Chapter or Working Group, participate in the US Policy arena and more! 

Call for 2010 Distinguished Service and Edward T. LaRoe III Memorial Award Nominations Extended to 1 November

SCB annually presents awards for distinguished service in any field associated with conservation biology to individuals or institutions from academia, government, and other affiliations. Nominations are solicited from all conservation professionals.

New in 2009, SCB seeks to honor an outstanding conservation professional who is making a significant contribution to the science or practice of conservation early in his or her career, normally within ten years of receiving his or her last degree or beginning his or her first professional position.

The Edward T. LaRoe III Memorial Award is given annually to an individual with a distinguished record of research and outstanding application of science to the conservation of biological resources. The intent of the award is to recognize the innovative application of science to resource management and policy. Although all scientists are eligible for the award, because of Edward LaRoe's distinguished career as a public servant, preference is given to employees of governmental resource management agencies or science agencies.

Nominations must be received by 1 November 2009. The forms are available at http://conbio.org/SCB/Activities/Awards/. Letters and form must be submitted as a single document in Word. Separate letters will not be accepted. Please send nominations to Steven Beissinger, beis@berkeley.edu.

The 2008 Annual Report of SCB is available

We are pleased to announce that the 2008 Annual Report of SCB is available! Read about the efforts SCB undertook towards achieving our goals and increasing our impact in 2008. The document is available electronically, but we are happy to mail a paper version... Contact the SCB Executive Office to request a hardcopy.

Read ‘Priorities for Policy-Relevant Conservation Research: a View from SCB Regional Sections’ recently published in Conservation Biology.

“In the papers compiled in this Conservation Focus on the sections of the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB), we… approached the need for conservation science to effectively inform policy, and asked each SCB section to identify the major policy challenges they face.  The SCB regional sections are divided according to geography, with six occupying continental regions (Africa, Austral and Neotropical America, Asia, Europe, North America, and Oceania) and one encompassing all the world’s seas and oceans (Marine). The sections differ in many ways, and their perspectives on science and policy do as well.”  (Rodríguez, 2009)

To get involved in important projects like this one, be sure to join an SCB section.  Simply log into your member homepage (www.conbio.org) with your memberID [insert peopleID] and click the link ‘My Section and Working Group Affiliations’ under Society Involvement.

Call for proposals for 24th ICCB  - deadline 14 October 2009

The 24th International Congress for Conservation Biology: Conservation for a Changing Planet (ICCB) will be held from 3-7 July in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Proposals for symposia, workshops, discussion groups and short courses are welcome until the deadline of 14 October 2009.

All proposals must be submitted by 14 October 2009. Decisions will be made by 25 November 2009. Complete instructions for submitting proposals are available on the meeting Web site - www.conbio.org/2010.

SCB is GIVING VOICE, STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY
 Visit us online at www.conbio.org to:
   >> Get involved in our conservation policy activities
   >> Read our award-winning magazine, Conservation
   >> Join us for our 24th International Congress for Conservation Biology in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
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   >> Join us in our Me + 10 Initiative

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