Biology competitions: a rewarding challenge

Posted on June 19, 2017 by Philippa Skett

Raghavendra Selvam is our competitions & outreach assistant, overseeing the competitions we run here at the RSB

It is Monday morning and thousands of school students from across the world are logging into their computers to complete an optional biology paper. Why? They are all curious about the natural world.

This year, I have been administering three school competitions for the Royal Society of Biology, targeted at different age groups: the Biology Challenge (13-15 year olds), the Intermediate Biology Olympiad (16-17 year olds), and the British Biology Olympiad (post-16 students).

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General Election 2017: a summary on some of the party positions on science

Posted on June 6, 2017 by Philippa Skett

Justina Briliute, BBSRC PhD student at Newcastle University and a policy intern at the Royal Society of Biology

Throughout the years, political parties have shown commitment to the idea that research and development (R&D) is one of the driving forces of societal productivity, wealth and wellbeing. One of the best places to look for any political party’s position on science, research and education is in their manifestos during election time.
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Raising awareness for diversity and inclusion across membership organisations

Posted on May 16, 2017 by Philippa Skett

Justina Briliute, BBSRC PhD student at Newcastle University and a policy intern at the Royal Society of Biology

Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) are three vital priorities that all workplaces should strive to achieve for their workforce, and those working in the biosciences are no exception.
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Men are still more likely to be promoted than women in academia

Posted on May 4, 2017 by Philippa Skett

Dr Pat Goodwin CBiol FRSB, diversity champion for the RSB Council, discusses some of the findings from the ASSET 2016 report.

When it comes to academia, are a higher proportion of men than women promoted to their current position?

This is true according to the findings of the latest ASSET (Athena Surveys of Science Engineering and Technology), which reveals other concerning disparities between the work experiences of male and female academic staff working in HE institutions. Read more »

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World penguin day and the march of the Adelie penguins

Posted on April 25, 2017 by Philippa Skett

Today is World Penguin Day, an international celebration dedicated to the flightless birds that are almost synonymous with the stretching white plains of the Antarctic.

The date of World Penguin Day – the 25th of April – is being suggested by some sources online as coinciding with the day some colonies of penguin species Pygoscelis adeliae, more commonly known as the Adélie Penguin, starts their winter migration. Read more »

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How will environmental policy change post-Brexit?

Posted on April 19, 2017 by Daija Angeli

“To protect nature, we need targets, investment and accountability, not grand promises with zero detail,” said activist lawyer and ClientEarth chief executive James Thornton to BBC News last week.

He expressed his disappointment with yet another delay of the publication of a 25 year plan for England’s nature, a draft of which has been seen by environmentalists. The publication of the plan has been delayed for over a year now, and there is still no sign of it being published for consultation. Partly, Brexit is to blame. Read more »

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Insect invaders and problematic plants: the threats posed by invasive species

Posted on March 31, 2017 by Philippa Skett

By Barney Slater AMRSB, BBSRC PhD student at University of Cambridge and policy intern at the Royal Society of Biology.

March 27th – April 2nd was this year’s UK Non-Native Species Secretariat (UNNS) Invasive Species Week. During the week NNSS teamed up with Defra to spread awareness of what invasive species are, which pose a threat to the UK, and how to prevent them from spreading. Read more »

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Policy lunchbox: the challenges facing the industrial strategy

Posted on March 31, 2017 by Philippa Skett

By Gabriele Butkute, science policy officer at the Royal Society of Biology and the Biochemical Society

The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy (BEIS) have released an open consultation on ‘Building our Industrial Strategy’ which is currently a hot topic among our Member Organisations and the whole of the bioscience community. As such, we were thrilled to host a Policy Lunchbox seminar on this topic with Thomas Gelderd, assistant director at BEIS. Read more »

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Talking science policy and Trump politics at this year’s Voice of the Future

Posted on March 23, 2017 by Philippa Skett

By Greg Satchell, BSc (Hons) MRSC MRSB ACSFS, junior forensic scientist for Thames Valley Police and representative for the RSB at this year’s Voice of the Future

Having only ever walked past Parliament on a number of occasions, never had I thought that I would be sitting in the Boothroyd Room, conversing with senior members of Government discussing some of the biggest science policy topics.

As if this wasn’t a new-enough experience in itself, being fortunate enough represent the Royal Society of Biology for this year’s Voice of the Future, on behalf of other young and up-and-coming scientists and engineers, was something of a privilege. Read more »

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Podcast: Indian tigers as flagships for conservation

Posted on March 22, 2017 by Rebecca Nesbit

By Rebecca Nesbit MRSB, ecologist and author 

Before I attended the Biology Week debate on ‘Should we save the panda?‘, I was conflicted. The loss of such an incredible species felt like a tragedy, yet ‘it’s cute and furry’ seemed no reason to allocate scarce conservation funds to its protection.

I left the debate with my conflicts resolved: far from being a drain on conservation resources, the panda attracts money and attention. By protecting the panda, we are protecting many species which share its habitat. Read more »

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