The Unique Opportunity for Global South Members

Hi I am Daniela Souza. I am a Brazilian genetic and evolutionary biology masters working for aquatic wildlife conservation trying to to promote real life actions to the conservation of wildlife.

When I saw the ‘FSBI Global South’ reduced fee I knew that I had to attend!

As a Brazilian woman from a poor socioeconomic background the Global South Initiative set up by KU Leuven and the FSBI was perfect. It allowed me to interact with researchers around the world and listen to the wonderful talks including world leading researches like Dr Pauly, Dr Hayden and Dr Maan.

 

 The symposium has already helped me expand my knowledge, networking and scientific vision.

All of the lectures and posters during the symposium were of significantly high quality and really helped facilitate my understanding of many new concepts that I have not come across within my research focus.

For example, the lecture presented by Dr. Hayden illustrated the “winter ecology” concept.  Where winter ecological variations could impact on both feeding habits and ecotyping diversity which in turns, could affect the invading capability of non-native species!

This concept presented in lecture was entirely new for me, and as such, opened my horizons to new analysis outside my focus in my future projects making me a better/completer professional.

[click_to_tweet tweet=“The question is not whether you are a pessimist or optimist, it is whether you will do something” Dr Pauly @FishBaseProject – One of the important quotes that resonated with  @BioSouzaDaniela as a Latin-American researcher  ” quote=”The question is not whether you are a pessimist or optimist, it is whether you will do something” Dr Pauly” theme=”style4]

 

 

As a Latin-American researcher working through the adversities of financing,  governance issues and lower international impact of research this quote by Dr Daniel Pauly resonated strongly with me. Although this quote was made in reference to climate change and the sate of our oceans, I strongly believe that it is highly important for all areas of research in science and fisheries research.

 

I believe that science that is more communicative, inclusive and diverse is also more efficient.

It was also made very clear to me in the communication workshops he importance of social media for science, especially twitter and professional webpages. Not only can networking help initiate the exchange of research experiences but also help expand the globe reach and impact of your research. This can help bring out stronger collaborative efforts in your work which may help you become more efficient in producing results or writing about them.

The FSBI 2021 symposium handed me a unique opportunity that I will never forget.

In just the three short days of the FSBI 2021 symposium has had a significantly developed the way I think about research and has positively impact on my hopes to achieve my academic dreams in the future.

I would advise any global south participants to leap at the chance to participate in any future online symposiums, especially if you are like me an aspirational early career researcher!

 

 

 

Ada’s experience on applying for an FSBI studentship

Hi, I’m Ada, a first-year PhD student funded by the FSBI Studentship program.

My path to a PhD place started in 2018 when I decided to apply for a research-focused masters  in freshwater and fish ecology in the UK.

The first decision was to contact Prof Anne Magurran, at the University of St Andrews, after reading some of her exciting work, and ask whether there would be any opportunities to do a project with her group.

Right after my first email, I received a very nice and positive response. With Anne’s help, I was accepted to do a project studying temporal diversity change in freshwater fish communities on the Caribbean island of Trinidad!

The great experience I received through this masters made me confident that I would enjoy embarking on a longer PhD project.

 

Take time to find out whether you enjoy the day-to-day aspects of your research

 

Firstly, find out if you enjoy the academic research lifestyle. There is no point doing a PhD if the way the academic world works frustrates you.

If you are unsure of what academia is like, then I would advise undertaking an internship or masters by research.

 

Start planning you PhD studentship proposal well in advance

 

Secondly, start writing your proposal as soon as you get a PhD idea that you are excited about. It takes longer than you think!

Start by writing a brief outline, making your objectives and hypotheses clear.

Then, take it to your supervisor or contact your desired future supervisor and pitch it to them! They can help you develop your proposal and give you the direction needed.

In my case, having great guidance from my supervisors and the help & encouragement of all the members of the research team was very important. I doubt I would have achieved anything had I not been in this environment.

Furthermore, attending conferences and symposiums is a great way to get your name and ideas out there to relevant and proactive supervisors, just like Joe Perkins did!

The FSBI PhD studentship is a wonderful opportunity!

 

Without the opportunity offered by the FSBI this project would have not been possible.

Fish are incredibly interesting and an essential resource for humans. It is fantastic that there is an organisation dedicated to research on all aspects of their biology.

 

 

 

 

 

 

How the 2019 symposium led to my PhD place

My name is Joseph Perkins and I am a student FSBI member finishing my masters by research degree at the University of Salford.

In the summer of 2018, I was fortunate enough to get accepted to deliver a speed talk at the FSBI symposium in Hull.

The symposium was focused on advances in eDNA-based approaches to fish ecology and management. The conference was fantastically orchestrated, the talks were incredibly delivered, and the social events provided the chance to meet wonderful scientists, in which their work I have been reading and admiring throughout my studies.

“If I did not join the FSBI or apply for this conference, this opportunity may not have presented itself.”

After I nervously delivered by presentation, I approached a PhD student from James Cook University whose presentation was incredibly inspiring. Here we spoke about the amazing research she had done, along with other research at JCU, this then led to the projects they had on offer. That very evening, I got onto my laptop and found an exciting PhD opportunity at JCU.

Now a few months down the line, I have been offered and now accepted the PhD position. I have obtained a scholarship and I am now in the final stages of completing my visa, before starting the PhD in July at JCU in Townsville, Australia.

[click_to_tweet tweet=”Push yourself and your research, no matter how nervous you are!’- @Perks91’s advice for all early career researchers from the latest FSBI member blog.” quote=”Push yourself and your research, no matter how nervous you are!” theme=”style4]

As a master’s student, my advice would be to push yourself and your research, no matter how nervous you are.

With this, you need amazing organisations such as FSBI to give students, as well as established scientists the opportunity to showcase what they have achieved, so they too, can progress and get such wonderful opportunities like I have.

 

 

 

 

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