Marine Section Membership
The membership of the Marine Section is multinational and multidisciplinary in nature. Our membership cuts across professionals and non-professionals in the field of marine conservation biology and disciplines that directly or indirectly affect nature conservation. We encourage students to join the Section to pursue the mission of the SCB at large. You can always find something to contribute to our mission, no matter your background.
Our general membership comprises any member of the Society for Conservation Biology wishing to support the goals of the Marine Section. Voting members are those SCB members who by SCB by-laws have officially identified themselves by way of registering to vote in the Marine Section. Any member of the SCB has the opportunity to join two sections as a voting member.
If you are already an SCB member, choose your section(s) by editing your member profile at any other time. When you renew your membership is another opportunity to choose sections. After joining, you may decide to participate in any of the number of teams and committees under the Marine Section and your contribution will be a valuable one.
Please read the Marine Section Bylaws for additional information on the Section foundations.
Join Us
You can join the Marine Section (at no additional cost) by logging in to your SCB Membership Profile.
Elections
Elections for the Marine Section Board are held online each December. A call for applications will be made via the Marine Section listserv and the Marine Section social media accounts each year (Facebook / Twitter). Each Marine Section board member is a volunteer and serves a three-year term. Terms are staggered such that not all officers retire each year.
To be eligible for these positions, you must be an active member of the Marine Section of SCB and maintain your membership throughout your term of office. Membership dues start at $10 and can be accessed at http://conbio.org//join/. Ability to attend SCB annual meetings is preferred, but not required. Marine Board meetings generally convene via telephone conference calls.
As noted, the chairs of board committees also represent the Marine Section as liaisons to SCB committees. For job duties, please see the current SCB Marine Bylaws. The Marine Board includes 12 positions: President, President-Elect (Vice President), Secretary, Student Representative and one Officer-at-Large, and the following officers who will serve as heads of standing committees: Communication Officer, Finance Officer, Science Officer, Policy Officer, Diversity Officer, Education Officer, and Interdisciplinary Officer. All officers must be voting members of the Section for their entire term of office. Elections for positions of the board will clearly denote the position that is vacant (officer, student representative or member-at-large).
Featured Sea Star
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Shaili Johri (Postdoctoral fellow, San Diego State University, CA) is pursuing research in the western Indian port of Veraval, Gujarat, through a grant from the Society for Conservation Biology Marine Section’s small grants (2016-17) program. Veraval has the highest share of shark landings in India and is one of the most species rich areas of India with respect to sharks. Shaili and her colleagues are using sampling of sharks at landing sites as well as sampling through eDNA and baited remote underwater cameras to determine shark species and their population abundance and ecology in the waters around Veraval.
By collaborating with social scientists and economists, Shaili hopes to understand the socio economic aspects of the shark trade and to assess stake holder interests, in order to design a sustainable, all-inclusive shark conservation management plan.
Shaili recently presented preliminary finding on this work, at the International Congress for Conservation Biology (#ICCB2017). To read more on her project Shark Conservation in India: a story of sharks for and against the fishermen of India, click here.
Shaili can be found on Twitter at @Its_Shaili