PhD in conservation and livelihood impacts of wildlife captive breeding for trade / wildlife farming at Lancaster Unviersity

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From: Meredith Gore [mailto:gorem@msu.edu]
Sent: Monday, January 18, 2016 9:34 AM
To: Michael Mascia <mmascia@conservation.org>; Long, Barney <Barney.Long@WWFUS.ORG>; Jessica Kahler <kahlerj1@msu.edu>; Kramer, Daniel <dbk@msu.edu>; Robert A. Montgomery <montg164@msu.edu>; Puja Batra <batrapuja@gmail.com>; Linda Kalof <lkalof@gmail.com>; Hadas Kushnir <hkushnir@usaid.gov>; Axelrod, Mark <axelrod3@msu.edu>; International Green Criminology Working Group <GREENCRIMINOLOGY@JISCMAIL.AC.UK>
Subject: PhD in conservation and livelihood impacts of wildlife captive breeding for trade / wildlife farming at Lancaster Unviersity

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Illegal wildlife trade remains a leading threat to global biodiversity.
The contemporary "poaching crisis" that faces species such as elephants, tigers and rhinos has spurred renewed debate over the most effective and appropriate policy responses. Wildlife farming (also known as captive breeding, ranching, cultivation, aquaculture) is one proposed strategy through which to reduce pressures on wild populations, while continuing to satisfy consumer demand with legal, sustainably farmed alternatives.
However, wildlife farming has been subject to little scrutiny, and experiences to date seem to have yielded mixed conservation and livelihood outcomes. Related debates are increasingly contentious, and are at the forefront of global fora, including the Convention on International Trade of Endangered Species
(CITES) that governs international wildlife trade.
To enable more evidence-based decision-making, this research will explore the impacts of wildlife farming on (a) biodiversity conservation, particularly harvesting of targeted wild populations, (b) other species (e.g., feedstock), (c) broader habitats (e.g., rangelands for farmed taxa), and (d) local community livelihoods and rights.
Research will involve meta-analysis of diverse taxa subject to wildlife farming, including flora and fauna, different types of wildlife use (e.g., luxury, medicinal) and scales of trade (e.g., domestic, international). Because detailed data on many important parameters do not exist, research will draw on expert knowledge - notably IUCN taxa specialist groups - to evaluate many of these impacts. This will involve interviews/questionnaires and quantitative social science methods such as Delphi iterative process and Qualitative Comparative Analysis. The project will also include field-based research on a target species to ground observations (e.g., with local expert knowledge, socio-economic, attitudinal, and possibly ecological data). The case study taxa and types of data will be selected based on access/data availability, the student's prior travel, research and language skills, and might include Panthera tigris, Andrias davidianus, Orchidaceae, Ursus thibetanus, Salmo salar, Pecari tajacu.
What's in it for you
Inform global policy. The policy community remains deeply divided on wildlife farming, and this study has a clear opportunity to inform policy debates via NGOs, IUCN and CITES.
Network with leading conservation agencies. This project involves collaboration with the University of Queensland, International Union for Conservation of Nature's (IUCN), and TRAFFIC the wildlife monitoring network, and will engage a wide range of taxa experts. As a result, it presents ample opportunities to establish professional ties with leading practitioners globally.
Field and desk-based experience. The project involves both desk and field-based work, and different types of data, allowing for a range of experiences and skill development.
Both hands-on supervision and independence. This project will involve close collaboration with the supervisors and partner organisations, while also allowing ample scope to shape the project direction/methods, develop additional lines of enquiry, and contribute/develop individual skills.

Who should apply
We are seeking applications from graduates, or those who expect to graduate in 2015, with a good Masters degree in a relevant field.
Candidates should have a demonstrated interested in conservation, experience with quantitative methods, and an interest in expanding their quantitative social science skills and engaging in policy dialogues.
Candidates should ideally have experience writing scientific publications and with field research in the tropics.
The small print
Studentship funding: Full studentships (UK/EU tuition fees and stipend
(£14,057 2015/16 [tax free])) for
UK/EU students for 3.5 years or full studentships (International tuition fees and stipend (£14,057 2015/16 [tax free])) for International students for 3 years.
Academic Requirements: First-class or 2.1 (Hons) degree, or Masters degree (or equivalent) in an appropriate subject.
Deadline for applications: 14 February 2016 Provisional Interview Date: [tbc] Week Beginning 29 February 2016 Start Date: October 2016 For further information or informal discussion about the position, please contact Dr Jacob Phelps (j.phelps@lancaster.ac.uk).
Application process: Please upload a completed application form (download from
http://www.lancaster.ac.uk/media/lancaster-university/content-
assets/documents/lec/pg/LEC_Funded_PhD_Application_Form.docx) and a covering letter outlining your background and suitability for this project at LEC Postgraduate Research Applications, http://www.lec.lancs.ac.uk/postgraduate/pgresearch/apply-online.
You also require two references, please send the reference form (download from
http://www.lancaster.ac.uk/media/lancaster-university/content-
assets/documents/lec/pg/LEC_PG_Reference_Form.docx) to your two referees and ask them to email it to Andy Harrod (lec.pg@lancaster.ac.uk), Postgraduate Research (PGR) Co-ordinator, Lancaster Environment Centre by the deadline.
Due to the limited time between the closing date and the interview date, it is essential that you ensure references are submitted by the closing date or as soon as possible.
Further reading
1. Biggs, D., Courchamp, F., Martin, R., Possingham, H.P. 2013. Legal trade in Africa's rhino horns. Science 339:1038-1039.
2. Challender, D.W.S, McMillan, D.C. 2014. Poaching is more than an enforcement problem. Conservation Letters 7:484-494.
3. Conrad, K. 2012. Trade bans: a perfect storm for poaching? Tropical Conservation Science 5:245-254.
4. Laurance, W.F. et al. 2012. Averting biodiversity collapse in tropical forest protected areas. Nature 489:290-294.
5. Lyons, J.A., Natusch, D.J.D. 2011. Wildlife laundering through breeding farms: Illegal harvest, population declines and a means of regulating the trade of green pythons (Morelia
viridis) from Indonesia.
Biological Conservation 144:3073-3081.
6. Phelps et al. 2013. A Framework for Assessing Supply-Side Wildlife Conservation. Conservation Biology
       28:244-257.

7. Secco, L.D., Pirard, R. 2015. Do tree plantations support forest conservation? CIFOR InfoBrief No. 110. Center for International Forestry Research, Bogor, Indonesia. URL:
http://www.cifor.org/publications/pdf_files/infobrief/5485-infobrief.pdf.

--
Meredith L. Gore, PhD
Associate Professor
Academy for Global Engagement Fellow
President, Social Science Working Group, Society for Conservation Biology Michigan State University Department of Fisheries and Wildlife School of Criminal Justice AgBioResearch Natural Resources Building
480 Wilson Road, Room 13
East Lansing, MI 48824
p: 517.432.8203
f: 517.432.1699
www.conservationcriminology.com

Vacancy, Wageningen University: Assistant/Associate Professor in Disaster and Crisis Studies (Tenure Track)

The Sociology of Development and Change (SDC) chair group has a vacancy for an assistant or associate professor with demonstrated excellence in teaching and research in the area of crisis and disaster studies. This position contributes to the chair group by focusing on crises and disasters within the context of contemporary processes of development and social change. The chair group is characterized by its interdisciplinary character, its ethnographic and its critical approach to studying development and change in diverse settings. The candidate will contribute to and further a research agenda focusing on challenges related to natural and human-made hazards, crises, conflicts, and their effects against the background of broader political, economic, social, cultural and environmental change, including climate change and migration. As these developments will increasingly play out in highly populated areas, peri-urban and urban settings, they bring new conceptual and policy challenges that the SDC group is keen to study and address.

The position entails research, teaching and supervision of Bachelor's, Master's and PhD students, acquisition and other service or management tasks. We expect the candidate to have an affinity with educational innovation and to be able to contribute to improving the disaster and crisis studies course portfolio.

The candidate must have:

  *   a PhD degree in a relevant social science field (anthropology, sociology, geography, development studies, political science) with a focus on conflict or disaster studies,
  *   relevant fieldwork experience,
  *   a strong international network and a promising (assistant professor) or excellent (associate professor) publication record,
  *   an innovative and creative approach to opening up new avenues for research and the acquisition of funding.
Ideally, the candidate should also be able to connect the field of crisis and disaster studies to the fields of critical development studies and/or political ecology. In addition, we expect the candidate to have experience with interdisciplinary work and connective capacity in creating a team-building atmosphere. The candidate should have a passion for education, proven by a track record of academic teaching and supervision. Interpersonal skills and the ability to enthuse students and colleagues are also key assets. The candidate should be fluent in English. Foreign candidates are expected to learn Dutch.

We offer
We offer a tenure track position as assistant or associate professor, depending on experience (for more information about the Tenure Track at Wageningen UR visit www.wageningenur.nl/tenuretrack<http://www.wageningenur.nl/tenuretrack>). We are looking for high potentials who excel in education and research. The position is a temporary one, with a possibility for a permanent contract after 6 years. A part time position of 0.8 fte is negotiable.
Gross salary: from € 47436 per year (holiday allowance and end-of-year bonus included) , based on full time employment and dependent on expertise and experience.

Dienstverband: Temporary, Onbekend

We are
Sociology of Development and Change (SDC) focuses on the structures and practices of development and change with a particular scientific interest in inequality, marginalization and political agency. The group's vision is to be a world-leading, politically engaged and interdisciplinary research and educational centre in development studies, political ecology, anthropology of law and crisis and disaster studies. Our mission is to gain and communicate a deeper understanding of inequality and marginalisation generated by global and local structures of power and political-economy and so contribute to social and environmental justice. At the same time we study how actors generate forms of agency and practices that enable them to deal with these dynamics and create new opportunities.
For more information visit the SDC Group webpage: www.wageningenur.nl/sdc<http://www.wageningenur.nl/sdc>.

Wageningen University and Research Centre
Wageningen University & Research centre aims to deliver a substantial contribution to the quality of life. That's our focus - each and every day. Within our domain, healthy food and living environment, we search for answers to issues affecting society - such as sustainable food production, climate change and alternative energy. Of course, we don't do this alone. Every day, 6,500 people work on 'the quality of life', turning ideas into reality, on a global scale.
Could you be one of these people? We give you the space you need.

For further information about working at Wageningen UR, take a look at www.wageningenur.nl/career<http://www.wageningenur.nl/career>.
Additional information
A more detailed profile can be obtained from Ms Marielle Takes (mari<mailto:marielle.takes@wur.nl>elle.takes@wur.nl<mailto:marielle.takes@wur.nl>), and from www.wageningenur.nl/dis<http://www.wageningenur.nl/dis>. Additional enquiries should be addressed to the chair of the SDC group,
Prof. Dr Bram Büscher (bram.buscher@wur.nl<mailto:bram.buscher@wur.nl>).

Application
To apply, please upload the following materials via the online 'respond' button (via https://www.academictransfer.com/employer/WUR/vacancy/32113/lang/en/), before 1 March 2016:

  *   Letter of motivation and CV
  *   Names of two referees
  *   One selected publication
  *   Teaching evaluations
  *   Statement on your research vision of the advertised position within the research themes of the chair group (500 words maximum)

You will receive an automatic e-mail confirmation within 24 hours. Interviews will be held around mid to late march 2016.