The Annual Margaret Savigear Lectures
Event details
Description
The Margaret Savigear Lectures acknowledge the importance of role models to the next generation of scientists by explicitly increasing the visibility of women biologists and celebrates the importance of mentors.
The format is to invite inspirational female academics representing an early and a later career stage. Margaret Savigear received her BSc from what was then the Department of Zoology in 1939, and was awarded an MSc in 1949. Her pursuit of a postgraduate degree was unusual at the time and supported by the then Head of Department, Leonard ES Eastham.
In recognition of Professor Eastham's inspiration and mentoring, Mrs Savigear donated to the department to establish the Leonard Eastham prize for final year undergraduates to undertake a Zoology research project.
The lectures will be followed by a frank and illuminating Q&A session. This is a fantastic opportunity to ask the speakers about their research, career and get advice. Our aim with these events is to offer inspiring role models for our researchers, especially those early in their careers. If you wish to submit questions or topics to ask our speakers please do so .
(Talks will be available online via google meet - please see the event invite in the School of Biosciences calendar for the link.)
Schedule
| Time | Item | Location |
|---|---|---|
| 1.00pm - 1.10pm | Introductions | TBC |
| 1.10pm - 2.00pm | Talk: Prof Sophie Nixon, University of Manchester Understanding the rules of life in microbiomes: From the deep subsurface to volcanic hot springs Abstract: In this talk I will present recent and ongoing research on how microbial communities from two extreme environments – the deep subsurface and geothermal springs – can impact on - and be harnessed for - our quest for Net Zero emissions by 2050, whilst helping us better understand the rules (and limits) of life in microbiomes. Bio: Sophie Nixon is a research fellow and Professor in the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at the University of Manchester (UoM). She holds a BBSRC David Phillips fellowship in addition to a UoM Dame Kathleen Ollerenshaw tenure-track fellowship, and was awarded the prestigious 2023 L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Rising Talent Award for Sustainable Development. Sophie established a new Environmental Microbiology and Biotechnology research group in 2022, based in the Manchester Institute of Biotechnology. | Arts Tower, AT LT05 |
| 2.10pm - 3.00pm | Talk: Prof Jane Memmott, University of Bristol Ecology & conservation at the community level Abstract: In this talk I’ll start by giving an overview of how I became an ecologist, moving on to introduce three research projects. The first studies the biodiversity of a organic farm, using this as an exemplar of how biodiversity could be on farms and asking how the different communities on the farm are linked together by interactions. The second asks about conservation at the landscape level, investigating how different habitats interact and the emergent properties of these interactions. The final project is an ongoing project quantifying the impact of a pesticide ban on an island by comparing it to neighbouring islands. Here we are quantifying insect population and community structure and testing for positive cascading effects through the food chain via the insect's predators and parasitoids. I’ll end the talk with some top tips for remaining sane and happy when working as an academic. Bio: Jane is a community ecologist interested in a wide range of environmental issues. She started her research career as a PhD student (U Leeds), commuting between the UK and the rainforests of Costa Rica, and conducted post-doctoral work on plant-herbivore-parasitoid food webs and the ecology of biological control in New Zealand, Kenya and Australia. She has worked at the University of Bristol since 1997. Her research group studies the impact of environmental change, working in a variety of research fields including pollination ecology, agro-ecology, invasion ecology, urban ecology and restoration ecology. Field sites range from villages in the mountains of Nepal to Bristol allotments, and her group works closely with farmers, conservation practitioners and policymakers. She has received numerous awards and honours, including the Presidents Medal (2011) and the Marsh Award for Ecology (2015) from the British Ecological Society, and the Bristol Genius Prize (2013). She was awarded an OBE for services to Ecology and Pollinating Insects in 2021 and she was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 2023. | Arts Tower, AT LT05 |
| 3.00pm - 3.30pm | Refreshments and informal discussions | Alfred Denny Conference Room |
| 3.30pm - 4.15pm | Q&A with early career researchers | Alfred Denny Conference Room |