Message From the Director | |
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I am delighted to share that the Invasive Species Working Group was selected as one of the two teams for the Destination Area 2.0 Phase 2 award! This is a major accomplishment as the university has committed significant resources to support invasive species science, management, policy, outreach, and teaching. The Steering Committee has been hard at work on a number of fronts. We will be investing our funds to support a large range of projects, events, and opportunities that will be forthcoming and we hope you will all participate! In fact we are forming several sub-committees and will be looking for volunteers from the community to assist.
Given how much new work will be ongoing we made it a priority to advertise and hire a Program Coordinator. I am excited to announce that Hallie Harriman will be joining us in late October. I will let her introduce herself in a future newsletter, but she brings tremendous experience to the group and I am sure will elevate our game!
Our next order of business following DA funding has been to develop a hiring plan. The DA award came with four funded new positions, which we have negotiated to be five positions! We have been working with colleges across campus to identify the best fits and are excited about bringing five new colleagues to campus. We are still working out some details, so are not quite ready to announce the positions but can say they include a range of social, political, technological, data, and biophysical sciences - we are striving to bring a dynamic range of expertise to campus to complement our existing strengths. We are working on organizing these as a cluster hire and will share all of the details once they are finalized. We are hopeful you will participate as members of the search committees.
Be on the lookout for messages in the not too distant future about research grants, seminars, outreach events, and an Invasive Species Research (Half)Day. We are truly looking forward to engaging much more with the broader community!
Jacob Barney, ISWG Director
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Invasive Species Graduate Student Grants | |
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The ISWG would like to announce a Request for Graduate Student Research and Outreach Proposals related to Invasive Species.
These grants are for projects with direct relevance to invasive species in one or more of the following areas: policy, prevention, ecology, technology development, management, human dimensions, or arts, are encouraged to apply.
Projects may be submitted by an individual student as a collaborative student group. Individual grants are for students who are doing their graduate work with invasive species. Maximum grant amounts for individual submissions will be $2,000.
Collaborative projects are also encouraged, where multiple students propose an activity that may be outside the realm of their specific graduate project. Max grant amts for collaborative projects are $4,000.
Submissions are due Oct 31, 2023. Proposal Reviews will be completed by Mid-November. Funds must be spent by June 1, 2024.
The ISWG goal is to support as many high quality proposals as we can.
Details of Proposal | Application Form
Interested in serving as a proposal reviewer? See the call for graduate student grant subcommittee members below!
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Recruiting Members for ISWG Subcommittees | |
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Are you a VT-affiliated faculty, graduate student, or staff member interested in becoming more involved with the ISWG? Consider volunteering for one of our subcommittees! We are seeking members for the following groups.
Doctoral Student Research Grant Subcommittee: We will be considering applications in 2023-2024 to support graduate student research, outreach, and professional development opportunities. We are looking for ISWG related faculty, staff, and students to serve on this committee to help review applications. Applications are tentatively set to be due on October 27, 2023 and reviews and recommendations will be made by the Committee by mid-November. If you are interested in serving on this Committee, please contact Scott Salom (salom@vt.edu)
Invasive Species Seminars Subcommittee: We are interested in hosting several high-profile seminars each year and partner with existing seminar series across the University to bring researchers working on questions relevant to invasive species science, policy, management, and human elements. This subcommittee will create and implement a vision for ISWG seminars on campus. If you are interested in serving on this Committee, please contact David Haak (dhaak@vt.edu)
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Grant Award for Invasive Species Policy Database | |
The Invasive Species Working Group recently received funding from the US Geological Survey to develop an Invasive Species Policy Database that will integrate with the interagency National Early Detection and Rapid Response (EDRR) Information System, which will serve as an online resource hub for invasive species information sharing and collaboration. We are excited to work with the USGS team to integrate policy data into their system! Learn more about the National EDRR Program | |
Hokie BugFest 2023
October 7th, 10AM- 3PM
Squires Student Center, Blacksburg VA
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The ISWG will be at BugFest this year! We have table located next to the Forest Entomology group; stop by and say hi!
Hokie BugFest is a free, one-day festival that celebrates the exciting science of entomology with science, technology, engineering, art, and math activities for all ages.
Highlights include more than 30 exhibits from Virginia Tech labs, local museums, and community groups as well as live arthropods, hands-on science activities, and the Dan Capps Insect Collection. Learn more about BugFest here.
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From Virginia Tech News
Have you heard about the toxic (and invasive!) hammerhead worms appearing in Virginia backyards? Learn how to control them with advice from Theresa Dellinger with the VT Insect Identification Lab
The now infamous spotted lanternfly is spreading in Virginia. Read tips to help control this from VT Experts.
Sick of reading about spotted lanternfly ? Learn to help prevent the spread in this fun Video! (Also check out the VPM article about the video, by Patrick Larsen)
ISWG Steering Committee Member Dr. Luis Escobar received an NIH award to study rabies transmission from wildlife to humans. Congrats, Luis! By Krista Timney for VT News
And, in case you missed it in our Director's Message above, the ISWG was one of two teams to receive a Destination Area 2.0 Phase II Award!
Thanks to the entire ISWG community for your input and support!
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Photo ID (from top to bottom): Feral hog (Sus scrofa); Jacob Barney at the February VT Invasive Species Summit; Chinese mantis (Tenodera sinensis); shovel-headed garden worm (Bipalium kewense; photo by Pierre Gros, wikimedia commons)
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Do you have an opportunity or announcement you'd like to share with the VT Invasive Species community? Send us an email! | | | | |
