In July- the CBC were well represented at two national conferences. On the 4th to the 6th of July 2023 11 members of the CBC attended the National Symposium on Biological Invasions. The symposium was jointly hosted by the Centre for Invasion Biology (CIB) at Stellenbosch University and SANBI at the Houw Hoek Hotel in the Western Cape. The symposium brought together researchers, students, managers and government officials around a theme of meeting ‘Global Invasion Targets in a South African Context’. Having such a multidisciplined group of delegates allowed for constructive dialogue around building capacity in this field and improving policy and strategy. Mr Barney Kgope the Director for Biodiversity Risk Management at DFFE, further touched on this in his keynote talk that addressed how to strengthen policy around biological invasions. The CBC presented 5 oral presentations, 2 speed talk and a poster that highlighted the group’s research programmes and the critical role that biological control research is playing in managing biological invasions in the country. Thembelihle Mbele who is currently doing her MSc. with the CBC and the University of the Free State won best poster for her work on Cortaderia invasions in South Africa. The CBC will be hosting the symposium next year and we look forward to bringing this meeting to Rhodes University.
The CBC team at the National Symposium for Biological Invasion 2023
Rhodes University and the CBC supported 36 CBC staff and students to attend the 23rd Congress of the Entomological Society of Southern Africa, in Stellenbosch, from 11th to the 14th of July 2023. Thank goodness the freezing weather of the past week had headed across the country, and we were treated to beautiful clear skies and warm days which made networking over a cup of coffee a great experience. We presented 24 talks, and 6 posters, on various aspects of weed and insect biological control, showcasing the excellent applied research that we conduct for the benefit of agriculture and ecosystem health, not only for South Africa, but throughout Africa and beyond. Perryn Richardson who presented her MSc work that she did with us received the runner up award for best student presentation. The CBC group highlighted that Entomology is alive and well at Rhodes University. Prof. Julie Coetzee stepped down as President of ESSA, and is now deputy president, along with Dr John Midgley, a Rhodes graduate, and now at KZN Musuem, while Prof. Wheldon of Pretoria University is the new president of the Society. Prof. Iain Paterson will be the Editor-in-Chief of the affiliated journal. Thanks to the organizing committee from Stellenbosch University for putting together a well-organised programme, and for drawing such a large, interactive crowd to the meeting.