You, Me & HIFMB - Stories of Science and the Sea

In this episode, Jan welcomes Daniela Portella Sampaio for a conversation about her scientific journey through Antarctica and current research on Antarctic governance. We particularly focus on Antarctic intersectionality research. Daniela also shares memorable moments from the field (like finding a historic shoe) and tips on how to successfully score grants - she scored 2 (!!) Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowships! Tune in for a return to our regular interview-style format.

Today in another European Commission Edition episode, I talked to Sahar Stevenson-Jones. She is working at SERE (The Society for Ecological Restoration Europe) and there she is the Project Officer for the Marine Restoration Project. The Marine Restoration Working Group was established at the SERE2024 Conference in Tartu, Estonia, and currently meets 4 times a year, with the 5 task forces, which are each focusing on unique objectives, meeting more regularly. The group is currently at 65 members, from across Europe, and includes researchers, practitioners, experts in finance and policy, as well as students. The group is chaired by Roberto Danovaro, and co-chaired by Joel Lindholm. Their primary priority is to adapt the SER International Principles and Standards, specifically the attributes tables of the Ecological Recovery Wheel, to the marine space. You can find out more here: www.ser-europe.org/mrwg. Enjoy the episode! All the best from Brussels.

HIFMB's Transfer Office was attending the Knowledge Exchange Network for Marine Biodiversity Cluster Event at the European Research Executive Agency (REA) of the European Commission (EC). Here in Brussels, I interviewed participants of the event - one of them being Paris Vasilakopoulos - today's guest. Paris works at the EC, specifically the Joint Research Centre (JRC) and, among many topics, we talk about his role in the Knowledge Centre for Biodiversity (KCBD). Enjoy these short episodes of the podcast coming to you straight from Brussels!

Episode overview This episode covers the essentials of social science research in terms of practical concerns and ethical considerations. It firstly spends some time, thinking about time! How researchers can plan projects within specific timeframes, budgetary constraints, possible travel restrictions, and how to also think on vital matters of risk, health and safety in doing social research. The podcast secondly shifts to ethical principles, discussing the importance of taking ethical approaches and engaging formal ethical procedures when working with human subjects. The episode considers matters such as informed consent, confidentiality, and minimising harm and how ethics is not just about forms and approvals but treating people with respect, ensuring their well-being, and building trust. We also offer ‘top tips’. You can tag us on social media #SocialScienceMatters Supporting readings There is a light introduction to practicalities of doing social science research, time, cost, logistics, health, safety and ethics here: https://study.sagepub.com/yourhumangeography/student-resources/chapter-5/external-links This chapter covers the essentials of health and safety in social science work: https://study.sagepub.com/keymethods3e2/student-resources/chapter-2/further-reading On ethics specifically, listeners may find the following useful: https://study.sagepub.com/keymethods3e2/student-resources/chapter-3/further-readinghttps://sk.sagepub.com/book/mono/preview/research-ethics-for-human-geography-a-handbook-for-students.pdf Supporting websites Do you want to know more about ethics? These websites may help (we are not responsible for external content) https://www.ukri.org/councils/esrc/guidance-for-applicants/research-ethics-guidance/https://ec.europa.eu/info/funding-tenders/opportunities/docs/2021-2027/horizon/guidance/ethics-in-social-science-and-humanities_he_en.pdf

Episode overview This episode shifts our focus to how we might start to think about social worlds in our research. It outlines that how we look at the world – the assumptions we hold about it (what exists, how we know what exists) – is crucial to our start points in research, and drives the kind of questions we might ask about the world. This podcast explores the role of theory (and how it is something we are all using, all of the time anyway!) and positions theory as a useful (rather than intimidating) framework for understanding and interpreting the social world. The episode further considers how theory – thinking about the way we view the world – can open space towards valuing knowledges beyond Western understandings. Finally we consider how the way we think about the world, what we want to find out about it, will also guide the kinds of research questions we ask about it, and choice of methods we engage. You can tag us on social media #SocialScienceMatters. Supporting readings In this podcast we discuss how social science can be integrated with natural sciences – providing a different lens for looking at the world (and marine problems). These articles all deal with integration of marine social sciences with natural sciences: https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsx201https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2023.1209356/fullhttps://www.frontiersin.org/journals/marine-science/articles/10.3389/fmars.2021.676394/fullhttps://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10668-007-9095-2https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=3495172 In this podcast we discuss how there are other knowledge systems – ways in which the world can be understood. These are the cited sources: https://doi.org/10.1080/07393148.2020.1842706https://mathewarthur.com/whats-new/pdf/todd-ontological-turn.pdf These papers deal with how theory matters as a framework to understanding. Peters’ article covers why ‘thinking’ and ‘theory’ – ontology (what we know about the world) – matters to marine social science research. No policy work, no work about people is outside of how we think about it. Conde et al’s paper covers this in practice, showing how the ways in which we understand the seabed, shape its practical governance. The Steinberg and Peters paper is the one Kim apologies for, for interested readers! https://link.springer.com/content/pdf/10.1007/s40152-022-00273-2.pdfhttps://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/full/10.1098/rstb.2019.0458https://doi.org/10.1068/d14148p There is a light introduction to theory, in this textbook, and associated ‘study’ website: https://study.sagepub.com/yourhumangeography/student-resources/chapter-2/sage-journal-articles

Episode overview This episode tackles the fundamental question: What is social science, and why does it matter for marine research? We first (try to) define social science, discussing the various disciplines which constitute it, and briefly introduce the methods and approaches that will be discussed further, later in the series. We next discuss marine social science, its special and important place in the marine sciences more broadly, and how it can help us tackle important questions that the natural sciences can’t do alone. We furthermore outline the importance, then, of interdisciplinary work, drawing also on examples of our own projects. You can tag us on social media #SocialScienceMatters. Supporting readings These readings outline marine social science and set out its ‘manifesto’. They also show the most recent research directions of the marine social sciences: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40152-020-00179-xhttps://doi.org/10.1080/08920753.2019.1564958https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envsci.2020.03.015https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-marine-121422-015345 There is a light introduction to methods mentioned in the podcast, in this textbook, and associated ‘study’ website: https://study.sagepub.com/yourhumangeography/student-resources/chapter-7/take-home-messages Supporting websites Do you want to know more about social science and what it is? These websites may help (we are not responsible for external content) https://acss.org.uk/what-is-social-science/https://www.ukri.org/who-we-are/esrc/what-is-social-science/social-science-disciplines/ Examples In the podcast we provided 2 examples of how social science matters to marine research. https://link.springer.com/book/9783031713217 In the podcast we mentioned a blog that discusses the formulation of a biodiversity question. You can read more about it here: https://hifmb.de/science-communication/ Other podcasts and videos These podcasts have esteemed academics from marine social science disciplines talking about this field of study! (We are not responsible for external content). https://www.incommonpodcast.org/podcast/002-interdisciplinarity-and-the-marine-social-science-network-with-emma-mckinley/https://www.listennotes.com/de/podcasts/lets-dive-in-ocean/ep-3-marine-social-science-9HnB7RlpxUT/#google_vignettehttps://www.incommonpodcast.org/podcast/science-and-practice-1-conservation-and-social-science-with-nathan-bennett/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tmDITSswxno

Episode overview This episode welcomes listeners to the podcast "Social Science Matters," which is dedicated to exploring the important world of social science research in the marine environment. In this episode we outline the purpose of the series, which aims to demystify social science methods and make them accessible to marine researchers, practitioners, and anyone interested in the human dimensions of the ocean. We tell listeners what is to come in the series and introduce the ‘shownotes’ – the complimentary materials – which will accompany each podcast, offering a bank of (hopefully!) helpful resources for extending understanding. We hope you enjoy this opening episode and the series to come. This podcast is not about turning you into a social scientist overnight. It's about empowering you to ask better questions, understand complex social issues, and integrate social science insights into your work. You can tag us on social media #SocialScienceMatters. Resources Supporting readings https://doi.org/10.1111/cobi.12326 These readings make the case for why social science matters to the marine realm! Essential! https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsx201https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0006320716305328https://doi.org/10.4324/9781003311171 Supporting websites Do you want to see how the marine social sciences are shaping research on marine environments? Check out this website of the Consortium for Marine Research in Germany! https://www.deutsche-meeresforschung.de/en/strategy/strategy-groups/social-sciences/ Other podcasts For some general podcasts covering interesting topics across the natural and social marine sciences -- see the links below. We recommend our own series but cannot take responsibility for external content. https://hifmb.de/news/podcast/https://sites.nicholas.duke.edu/seastheday/

In the new year, Kim Peters surprises podcast host Jan and turns the tables on him. She Interviews him on: what got him to HIFMB, a quick look into Jan's work on marine biodiversity at the science-policy interface, the wonderful people he got to learn from and work with, and even the Olympics 2028!! Happy 2024 everyone, enjoy!

Kristin (or Tine) Tietje has not only got a super Northern-German sounding name but also recently got a full-time position as the science coordinator of the Marine Governance Group here at HIFMB. She talks about the long winding road that she took to get here and tells us what it means to coordinate science and, more importantly, scientists - which is why she enjoys her job so much.

Today, we hear from Merdeka, a PhD-student in the former Marine Political Ecology Group that is now part of the Marine Governance Group. He reports on his recent manuscript about tin mining by Indonesian divers and how he switches the perspectives in his writing to highlight topics that are otherwise forgotten about. Merdeka also reflects on what it is like to have children as a PhD student and how much he likes his neighbours in Oldenburg.

In a thunderous summer episode, we hear from Anna Roik - postdoc at HIFMB. Her work is centered around harnessing the microbiome (the collection of bacteria, viruses, fungi and their genes) on corals. She transplants the microbiome of more heat resistant corals onto that of heat susceptible ones to boost their resilience in the face of climate change.

Jasmin Groß and Elena Schall - both representatives of the Postdoc-Team a the Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research - bring a hot topic to the podcast: the recently proposed law reforms surrounding the "Wissenschaftszeitvertragsgesetz". This is a "Law on Fixed-Term Contracts in Higher Education and Research" and it is due for a change. Jasmin and Elena will present to us what is included in this change and why it has gotten a lot of negative backlash. As a timestamp: The recording was done in May 2023 and does not discuss the most recent events in the week of the 5th of June 2023. #IchbinHannah

Mita Mahato is an artist who uses art to communicate environmental issues - especially via the use of comix - yes with an X! As our artist in residence in collaboration with the Hanse-Wissenschaftskolleg Institute for Advanced Study, Mita reflects on the work she has done during her time with us.

HIFMB postdoc Dorothee Hodapp is working on biodiversity change and is giving us insights into her recently published study in Global Change Biology. Here, she shows how climate change disrupts core habitats of marine species and predicts their ranges up to the year 2100. She further shares her recipe for successfully blending family life with two kids with a gapless CV in academia and her recent move into a permanent position in the sciene-policy interface.

Today we have Meren on the show. He is the leader of our institute's Ecosystem Data Science Group and considers himself and his group to be placed at the intersection between microbiology and computer science. Mentorship is an imporant topic to him - we talk through his survey Mentorship in life sciences: voices of mentees, where he asked early career researchers how the mentorship that they received affected them and their academic lives. As always, we also talk about Meren's very own academic live and how he got to where he is today. A super valuable episode for academic mentors and mentees alike!

Back from our winter break, we have Jana Massing on the podcast. Jana is a PhD-student in the Biodiversity Theory group and introduces us to her work on marine bacteria. Amongst her many interests, including food webs, modelling, governance and science communication, we chat about her recent paper. There she applies a manifold learning technique, called “diffusion maps” that allows her to gain insights into the functions that bacteria can play in the Baltic Sea.

Gema Martínez Méndez reads her Scientific Fairytale "The Bremen Town Musicians set sail" from "Once Upon a Time – A Scientific Fairytale Vol. 1" that we introduced in Episode 11. Happy Holidays everyone!

In this Episode, postdoc Andrea Franke showcases her latest paper from People and Nature on real-world labs. She also shares with us how she expanded her research from specialised experimental work on herring larvae to transdisciplinary work on the UN Ocean Decade. A great example on how to build interdisciplinary recognition!

Lucie Kuczynski is a community ecologist working on global change and what it implies for biodiversity. One of her recent studies shows why the biodiversity crisis is too nuanced to be tackled in the same way as global warming. She also enlightens us why French wine is the best, why La Rochelle is the best city and why Academia is not the only career path for Academics. A lot of wisdom in this episode – don’t miss it!

Today, it’s all about science communication! And for the first time, we have two guests: Gema Martínez Méndez, marine scientist, and Rebecca Borges, marine ecologist. Both are involved in a sci-comm project called “Once upon a time… a scientific fairy tale” where scientific studies are communicated via the use of fairy tales. Definitely give this one a listen! Read the scientific fairytales here: www.marum.de/en/Discover/Once-upon-a-time.html Intro and outro supported by the wonderful voice of Dr. Kimberley Peters and sound effects from quicksounds.com and pixabay.com.