Members of the wider PERC network may be interested in the Political Ecology Society (PESO) announcement of the 2019 Eric Wolf Prize for the best article-length paper. They seek papers based in substantive field research that make an innovative contribution to political ecology. Clear links to some specific sets of political ecology ideas and literature is important. To be eligible for …
Running a ‘nearly carbon neutral conference’ – Lessons from the Feral Conference
Reflections from PERC members on the experience of hosting an online conference have been published over at the LSE Impact Blog: “While the sharing of online video is often discussed as a solution to questions of access, even as that format overcomes barriers, it introduces others. For instance, whereas access to video-making tools and software is widespread, it is far …
In the News: European Parliament adopts new rules on single–use plastics to reduce marine litter
The European Parliament has implemented new rules on single-use plastics as part of the fight against global marine litter. The Single-Use Plastics Directive voted on by the European Parliament includes a ban on single use plastic products for which alternatives exist (such as cotton buds, straws, and plastic cutlery), an ambitious collection target for plastic bottles, Extended Producer Responsibility schemes …
We need a legally binding treaty to make plastic pollution history
PERC co-director Trisia Farrelly, writing for The Conversation, outlines the fallacies associated with current methods of dealing with plastic waste. She describes how plastic recycling and plastic-to-energy schemes are not safe or viable solutions to a matter of serious international concern. She argues a “global, legally binding treaty with clear targets and standards is the real game-changer we urgently need”. …
PERC at the 4th session of the United Nations Environment Assembly
PERC co-director Dr. Trisia Farrelly recently attended the 4th session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-4) in Nairobi, Kenya. Here, several resolutions were considered by member states to address the deleterious impacts of plastic pollution. The first proposition, from Norway, Japan, and Sri Lanka, sought to bolster international cooperation and coordination on marine plastic litter and microplastics. The second …
Association of Commonwealth Universities Blue Charter (Marine Plastic Pollution) fellow: Xiaoyu Lei
PERC extends a warm welcome to Xiaoya Lei, an Association of Commonwealth Universities Blue Charter (Marine Plastic Pollution) fellow from Keele University, UK. During the fellowship, Xiaoya will be working with the PERC team to develop a Keele University website, ‘Hacking Plastic’, and an online conference which focusses on the role of the arts in plastic pollution literacy. Xiaoya will …
PERC in 2018
2018 was a productive year for PERC, with more national and international activities and networking. In conjunction with the Sociology of Development and Change (SDC) group at Wageningen University, we ran our second nearly carbon neutral online conference Feral. Led by Dr Nick Holm, over 43 participants from 8 countries produced about 14 hours of publicly accessible video for the conference. …
Killing for conservation “unnecessary”
Dr. Arian Wallach (University of Technology Sydney) spoke to Radio New Zealand ahead of her keynote presentation as part of Feral: A nearly carbon-neutral conference. Listen:
FERAL – How Humans Frame Nature
Nick Holm joined Bryan Crump on RNZ nights last night to discuss PERC’s latest online conference ‘Feral.’ Listen:
Feral Keynote Speaker Announcement
PERC is very excited to announce that Arian Wallach will be giving a keynote address at the upcoming ‘Feral’ conference. Arian is the Chancellor’s Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of Technology Sydney. Her research investigates the ecological role of large predators on biodiversity and functioning of novel ecosystems. She conducts fieldwork across the Australian arid zone, where she is researching the …