Job Opportunity @ LI-BIRD

Site Officer (3 Positions)

Local Initiatives for Biodiversity, Research and Development (LI-BIRD) is a non-profit making, nongovernmental organization (NGO) established in October 1995 with its head office in Pokhara. LI-BIRD is committed to capitalizing on local initiatives for sustainable management of renewable natural resources and improving livelihoods of  rural people who are dependent of natural resources. 

Integrating Traditional Crop Genetic Diversity into Technology: Using a Biodiversity Portfolio Approach to Buffer against Unpredictable Environmental Change in the Nepal Himalayas is a UNEP/GEF supported project to be implemented in 4 districts of Nepal by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). This 5-year project is being executed jointly on the ground by the Nepal Agricultural Research Council (NARC), LI-BIRD, Department of Agriculture and Bioversity International. The project’s objective is to mainstream the conservation and use of agrobiodiversity in the mountain agricultural production landscapes of Nepal to improve ecosystem resilience, ecosystem services and access and benefits sharing capacity in mountain ecosystems. The project’s research and dissemination work will mainly focus on its 8 mandate crops: amaranth, barley, naked barley, buckwheat, finger millet, proso millet, foxtail millet, cold tolerant rice and beans.

Applications are invited from qualified Nepali citizens for the following positions.

Site Officer (Level 6-7) – 1 Each To Be Based In Humla, Jumla, Kaski And Dolakha 

Job Summary

The Site Officer is responsible for ensuring that the project in her/his district contributes to the overall project goal, objectives and outcomes. The Site Officer is responsible for timely planning and quality implementation of the project activities on the ground. The Site Officer is responsible for establishing and maintaining congenial working relationships with DDC, DADO, Regional NARC Stations, local CSO partners and other key stakeholders. The Site Officer directly reports to the Project Leader based at LI-BIRD with regular communication with the National Project Coordinator at NARC.

Key Responsibilities and Duties

1. Project Planning, Implementation and Coordination

• Assist in developing six-monthly work plans working with the site management team and the site coordination committee
• Work in close coordination with DADO and DDC to ensure that the project work plans are mainstreamed in the local development plans
• Ensure Community Organizers are adequately oriented and the work plan is prepared and implemented as per the project document
• Organize timely meetings of the site management team and the site coordination committees maintain detailed records of agendas, discussion and decisions
• Ensure farmers’ feedback is reflected and addressed in the site work plans as well as overall project strategy
• Assist in conducting on-farm trials and demonstrations

2. Monitoring and Quality Control

• Ensure timely and quality implementation of the project activities
• Ensure project’s relevance based on farmers’ and stakeholders’ feedback
• Manage the project’s budget at the site level and ensure expenses are done in a timely manner and charged to the right budget codes
• Monitor the performance of Community Organizers, provide timely feedback and identify appropriate capacity building interventions for them.

3. Data Collection, Synthesis and Report Writing

• Collect and manage site level research data
• Prepare and submit quarterly progress reports and annual summary reports to the Project Leader
• Ensure that lessons learnt are shared among the sites and with national operations
• Document, analyse and synthesize farmers’ knowledge and experiences on the project’s mandate crops

4. Communication, Linkages and Networking

• Build relationship between farmers, local stakeholders, partners and the national teams
• Ensure resolution of potential conflicts in a timely and agreeable manner
• Ensure district level stakeholders are aware, positive and supportive of the project through transparent and timely information sharing
• Ensure that farmers’ interests are addressed by project’s objectives
• Ensure the project’s lessons, outputs, outcomes and impacts are documented, analyzed and shared within and beyond project in the form of reports, web and other popular articles, radio programmes and scientific articles
• Write concise progress reports on the Project’s reporting system

Required Qualifications

A Bachelors Degree in a related field, preferably in plant breeding, plant pathology, agriculture, agronomy, , population biology, botany, anthropology, natural resource management, environmental science, rural development or socio-economics. Candidates with two years of work experience in a rural setting and coursework in plant breeding will have an advantage.

Required Skills and Competencies

• Strong conceptual, inter-personal, communication, negotiation, facilitation and representation skills
• Knowledge of basic statistical concepts, experimental design, hypothesis testing and data interpretation
• Knowledge of biodiversity indices, population biology and genetics
• Course or field work in plant breeding, landrace enhancement and/or plant pathology will be highly valued
• Knowledge and skills to use participatory and empowerment tools and methods
• Willingness to work closely with the farming community in remote areas of the country
• Self-motivated with ability to learn new skills and research methods
• Can pay attention to details and is able to meet strict deadlines
• Computer literate with proficiency in MS Office or Libre Office. Ability to type in Nepali and experience in managing website will be an added advantage
• Good written and spoken English and Nepali

How To Apply?

Interested candidates are requested to submit their applications along with copies of Curriculum Vitae with two references, citizenship certificate and all the relevant testimonials by 26 March 2014 (12 Chaitra 2070). 

Application can also be sent by email at opportunities@libird.org with the email subject starting as: [VACANCY] or mailed to: Human Resources, LI-BIRD, PO Box 324, Pokhara, Kaski.

Only short listed candidates will be called for the interview. Selected candidate will be required to take responsibility as soon as possible.

LI-BIRD offers competitive remuneration and other benefits as laid out in its Personnel Policies.

Applications from women and members of indigenous and disadvantaged groups are highly encouraged.

Opportunity to be Youth Ambassador

Join us as YOUNG AMBASSADOR for the GSMICSIT14:GS Multi-Conference on Sciences and Technology 2014 (the biggest conference in the history of the GULF States) onNovember 07-09, 2014  in Dubai, UAE.

Deadline : 2/14/2014

Who Can Join as Young Ambassador of GS-MICST 14

Students and young faculty members can be YOUNG AMBASSADORS for the GSMICST’14.
If one cannot attend conference, he/she can contribute as conference coordinator and can get certificate.

Incentives or benefits of Joining as Young Ambassadors

Add leadership and community-building experience to your resume.
Develop your professional communication skills.
Network with prospective employers/universities and faculty members/ future colleagues.
Get a personal certificate for your contribution

If you are interested then email me @ kesubagale07@gmail.com with following information:

Full Name with Title (Mr,Ms,Mrs etce) , e.g. Ms.Alice
Designation(Lecturer, PhD Scholar, MS Student, BS Student etc) e.g. MS Student
Department Name e.g. Department of Law
University/College Name e.g. University of Hull
Country e.g. UK
Email address e.g alice@gmail.com

hurry up time limit is till tomorrow only

For more informationhttp://www.gspublishers.com/conferences/gsMICST14/ya.html
fill free to contact me for further quires

Special Issue 'Impact of climate change on food safety'

Climate change is often studied in relation to agricultural production, crop yield, food security, etc but increasingly it is being recognized that climate change may also impact on food safety. Some of the potential impacts of climate change on food safety might include microbial evolution as a result of abiotic stress; emerging pathogens, enhanced ability of fungi to develop and produce mycotoxins; increased use of pesticides; challenges to keep the cold chain and decreased water availability influencing the safety and quality of foods. In particular the relationships between climate change and food safety are difficult to quantify due to a lack of good models, observational data and available scenarios. For this special issue we welcome papers related to the impact of climate change on food safety. These may include conceptual frameworks, field observations, modelling approaches for impact assessment, scenario analyses and adaptation studies to deal with these projected changes. Topics may be related to both microbial and chemical hazards and be linked to any type of food or production or supply chain. This special issue will present the state-of-the-art in the field of climate change and food safety.

Submission guidelines:

Please refer to the journal's Guide for Authors for specific advice on how to prepare a paper. Papers must be submitted electronically via the Elsevier Editorial System (EES) site for the Journal - beginning in December 1st, 2013 (select Special Issue: Impact of Climate Change on Food Safety). Closing date for submissions is April 1st, 2014. Any inquiries regarding the content of papers should be submitted to either Dr. Mieke Uyttendaele (Mieke.Uyttendaele@UGent.be) or Nynke Hofstra (Nynke.Hofstra@WUR.nl).

Timelines:

December 1st, 2013: Beginning of paper submission
April 1st, 2014: Deadline for paper submission
October 1st, 2014: Final acceptance deadline

For Further Detail

Job Opportunity @ LI-BIRD

For Further Information Click Here

Career

Local Initiatives for Biodiversity, Research and Development (LI-BIRD) is a non-profit making, non-governmental organization established in 1995 in Pokhara, Nepal. LI-BIRD is registered with the District Administrative Office of Kaski(Regd. No. 217/025/053) and affiliated with the Social Welfare Council (Regd. No. 3394)

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Project Officer (Livestock)

Posted Date: 2/5/2014 
Deadline Date: 2/19/2014 

Position Summary:

Project Officer (Livestock) (Level 6) – 1 (To be stationed at Nawalparasi, with frequent travel to project sites in Chitwan, Nawalparashi, Kaski, Lamjung, Manang and Mustang districts) The overall responsibility of Project Officer for LCC-CRSP II includes implementing action research aimed at improving the livestock productivity through a combination of low-cost high impact innovations in the six districts of the Gandaki River basin of Nepal. Successful candidate will work closely with the Principle Investigators and Project Coordinator to communicate research outcomes to policymakers and other relevant stakeholders in Nepal. The Project Officer is also responsible for coordinating all field level activities with the project collaborators such as Agriculture and Forestry University, Regional Directorate of Livestock Development, District Livestock Service Offices, and Regional Agricultural Research Station-Lumle, NGOs and Community-Based organization of six districts. 

For Further Information Click Here 

Responsibilities:

• Design and implement action research on five thematic areas identified by the project by mobilizing Technical Assistants and Community Mobilizers • Collate data, analyze findings and synthesize information from the action research and prepare assessment reports, summary reports and papers • Review literatures to collect secondary information on different topics relevant to the project • Build capacity (through training, coordinating work plans and schedules, mentoring) of the participating communities to respond and adapt to the challenges emanating from climate and other ongoing changes • Provide training to government and NGO support staff in conducting community-level training and recording and handling data • Monitor and evaluate ongoing field activities and report to project Investigators and Project Coordinator • Coordinate and collaborate with government line agencies and NGOs working in the area to build synergy and leverage resources and establish congenial relationship with them 

Required Experience And Skills:

Education and Experience: Bachelor Degree in animal sciences, relevant experience will be an added advantage. Competencies and Personal Specification • Strong interest to work on issues related to livestock health and fodder management • Desire to conduct community-based training on climate adaptation and livestock management • Ability to work with peers and project collaborators • Strong communication (written and oral) and networking skills to effectively correspond with a diverse audience of the project • Willing to travel extensively to the research sites to conduct trainings and other field research and able to adjust and work in tough field situations • Ability to take responsibility, meet deadlines and make progress with minimum supervision • Capacity and will to learn new skills, research methods, and work routines under the mentorship of Principle Investigators and Project Coordinator • Proficient in M.S. Office (Excel, Power Point and Word) and Knowledge of basic statistical concepts and the ability to deal with large data sets with the help of statistical packages such as SPSS
For Further Information Click Here 

Call For Paper

GS International Conference on            Agricultural Sciences 2014 is                                                   part of

GS International Multi-Conference on Science and Technology 2014
                                                (GS-MICST 14)

                                                            August 01-03,2014
                                                Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE)


Important DatesPaper Submission Deadline:
April 30,2014

Author Notification:
May 25,2014

Registration Deadline:
June 30,2014

Camera Ready Paper Submission Deadline:
June 30,2014

Conference Dates:
August 01-03,2014

For further detail about the conference go click on this 

The GS International Multi-Conference on Science and Technology 2014 (GS-MICST 14) will be the biggest conference not only in the history of United Arab Emirates (UAE) but also in the history of the Gulf States.

The GS International Conference on Agricultural Sciences 2014 aims to address issues in Agricultural Sciences and other emergent related fields. The GS-MICST 14 conference has different conferences according to several themes.

The GS-MICST 14 provides a platform for bringing together researchers, practitioners, and academia to present and discuss ideas, challenges and potential solutions on established or emerging topics related to research and practice in different fields of science and technology.



All accepted papers will be published in the conference proceedings published by GS Publishers. Proceedings will be sent to ISI, EI Compendex, ELSEVIER, SCOPUS ACM, ISTP,AMS, ACS,EBSCO,Engineering Village / Engineering Index (EI),DOAJ,Library of Congress,British Library,Electronic Journals Library, Google Scholar ,DBLP and several more international indexes.

All accepted papers will also be published in GS Journals and GS eBooks.

Scope

Agricultural Biotechnology
Agricultural Biotechnology regulations, rules & perceptions
Agricultural biotechnology & developing countries
Amino acid sequencing
Animal biotechnology
Application of artificial intelligence in food engineering research and in industry
Beverage and Fermentation Technology
Bio-MEMS and microbioreactors
Bio-ontologies + semantics
Bio-signal processing and analysis
Biocatalysis, organocatalysis and nanobiotechnology
Biochemical, cellular, molecular and tissue engineering
Bioelectrical and neural engineering
Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
Biological data integration and visualization
Biological data mining and knowledge discovery
Biological databases and information retrieval
Biomaterials & biomedical optics
Biomedical Computational drug discovery
Biomedical Engineering
Biomedical devices, sensors, and artificial organs
Biomedical imaging, image processing & visualization
Biomedical robotics and mechanics
Biometric and bio-measurement
Biomimetic and self-assembled materials
Biopharmaceuticals
Biosensors and molecular diagnostics
Biostatistics and Stochastic Models
Breeding and genetics
Cancer informatics
Cell and tissue engineering
Cellular and molecular biology
Cheminformatics
Combinatorics and bioinformatics
Comparative genomics
Composition of foods
Computational MolecularSystems & Problems
Computational drug discovery
Computational evolutionary biology
Computational proteomics Computational Systems Biology
Computer-based medical systems
Control and system engineering for food industry
Crop breeding, genetics & genomics
DNA and RNA structure, function and sequence analysis
Data acquisition, normalization, analysis and visualization
Diet-related diseases
Domestic animal breeding, genomics & biotechnology
Drug screning and pharmaceutical synthesis
Electronics and instrumentation in food industry
Environmental Biotechnology
Enzyme Engineering
Epidemic models
Evolution and phylogenetics
Evolution of regulatory genomic sequences
Experimental medicine and analysis tools
Food & dairy agricultural biotechnology
Food Chemistry and Biotechnology
Food Nutrition and Evaluation
Food Packaging, Materials and Equipments
Food Sensory and Flavours
Food Texture and Rheology
Food and Nutritional Science
Food bioavailability
Food biotechnology
Food fortification and supplementation
Food microstructure development and characterization
Food processing, preservations and packaging
Food properties including thermal, chemical and mechanical properties
Food safety and hygiene
Functional Food and Bioactive Factors
Functional foods, nutrition, nutraceuticals & bioactives
Gene expression analysis; Gene expression databases
Gene expression databases
Gene pattern discovery and identification
Gene regulation
Gene regulation, expression, identification and network
Genetic network Modelling and inference
Genomics and Proteomics
Graph theory and computational biology
Health monitoring systems and wearable system
Heat, mass transfer and fluid flow in food processing
High-performance computing and applications in biology
Image processing in medicine and biological sciences
Immuno- and Chemo-informatics
Industrial Biotechnology
Macromolecularstructure prediction
Marine & algal biotechnology
Marine Biotechnology
Mathematical Modelling and software development for food processing purposes
Meat science
Medical informatics
Metabolic Modelling and pathways
Microarrays
Microbiology
Microorganism technology
Model Design and Evaluation
Molecular dynamics and simulation; Molecular interactions
Molecular pharming in plants & animals
Molecular sequence classification, structure databases, alignment and assembly
Nano Biotechnology
Nanoparticle sequestration in biomolecules
Nanoparticles, nanocomposites, and nanoporous materials for bio-applications
Non-ruminant nutrition
Non-thermal food processing
Nutrition and health of the public
Nutrition for people with special needs
Nutritional status of various ages
Pattern Recognition, Clustering and Classification
Pattern classification and recognition
Personalized medicine
Pharmaceutical Applications
Pharmaceutical Biotechnology
Physiology and endocrinology
Plant biotechnology
Plant design using conceptual design techniques
Protein and gene delivery systems
Protein interactions, docking and function
Protein Modelling
Protein structure, function and sequence analysis
Proteomics; Protein folding and fold recognition
RNA and DNA structure and sequencing
Rehabilitation engineering & clinical engineering
Role of ag-biotech innovation for national and international competitiveness
Ruminant nutrition
Seed, fruit & reproductive plant biotechnology
Separation and purification processes for food production
Sequence analysis and alignment
Stochastic Modelling
Structural Bioinformatics
Structural Variations
Structural and functional genomics
Structural, functional and comparative genomics
Structure Prediction
Sustainable Agriculture
Systems Biology
The future of plant genetic engineering
Thermal processing
Transcriptomics

Student Farmer Program

                                          A Group Discussion before going to farmer's house at Dhading

Youth for Sustainable Development (YSD) had conducted a three day Student Farmer Program from January 5 to 8 in Chapang community, which is most marginalized and backward community of Nepal, at three hilly district. Hakrang of Dhadinng, Thumkagau of Gorkha and Kholagau of Tanahun were the program venue. 10 students along with teachers took participation in the program.

                                         Interaction with farmer at Hakrang
The main objective of the program is to bring learning process outside the boundary of the college to farmer field. To provide new innovation and ideas to farmer is another objective. During this program a multiple question were asked to farmer individual basis and suggestion were also provided at instant. The program was facilitated by teacher and student participator noted down some problems of farmer to discuss them later at campus at find the solution.

    
                                        One to one Interaction between farmer and student
                                     

Project Life Cycle – Planning Your Youth Development Projects

The project develops through 4 main phases: Preparation, Planning, Implementation and Conclusion. It is important to understand what each phase entails in order to write a successful proposal. In fact, when submitting a proposal (or a concept note) you must demonstrate to have an innovative idea to solve a contingent problem, a methodology to tackle this problem, a way to attract the attention and begin a productive collaboration with your target group, a strong vision on how you will manage all the proposed activitiesand deliver what you promised timely and respecting the financial restrains of the allocated budget.

Preparation for Your Youth Development Projects

The main goal of the first phase is to write a successful proposal to attract funding from donors. First of all it is good practice to convene all the members of the organisation to discuss about potential ideas for a new project. This first meeting should decide what you would like to do broadly. For instance, your organisation realises that one of the main problems of young people in your community is the high level of unemployment and, as such, members of your organisation decide to set up a training program to increase the employability of the target group.

The members of the organisation will be divided in two groups. Group 1 will conduct background research with the aim of gathering information about the situation of youth unemployment also in relation to what has been done previously to solve this problem. Group 2 will be in charge of organising focus groups with young people. The goal of this group is to test whether the target group would be interested in attending trainings and whether they have ideas or suggestions to help you design these trainings according to their needs and interests. This second group will also have the task of collecting real life stories from young people to further probe that your project is really needed. The results of group 1 and 2 will be disseminated among all the members of the organisation. At this point you have all the information necessary to develop a strong proposal. Namely, you will need to elucidate:

1. What is the main goal of your project? How the life of young people in your community will be affected by the implementation of this project? For instance, the goal of your project could be to decrease the rate of unemployment among people aged 18 to 25 living in your community.
2. What are the outcomes of the project? How the life of young people in your community will be improved thanks to your trainings? For instance, people attending the trainings will know how to write a resume successfully, they will know how to use a certain software, they will know how to speak a foreign language (according to what the aim of the training was).
3. What are the outputs of the project? What will be produced as a result of the training? For instance, a manual could be assembled for further trainings or a report could be written to analyse the strengths and weaknesses of the training cycle.
4. What are the activities of the project? Activities are the concrete means to reach a stated goal. For instance, a cycle of trainings in a specific field is an activity.
5. What are your inputs? What do you need to implement the project? Inputs could be money, facilitators, manuals, or infrastructures to run your trainings.

Project Management for Youth-based Projects

Source: www.fonsforngos.org 

Whether you are an experienced project leader or you are moving your first steps in the NGO-world, you should keep in mind that the secret of being successful in this field is to plan in advance to deliver what you promised. To have a good idea is rarely enough to achieve concrete changes in your community. Certainly, creativity will help you imagining how to tackle an existing problematic situation and propose a set of activities, which could interest the youth of your community. Yet, if you want to attract funding both from development agencies and private donors you have to learn how to write a project,monitoring its development and report to those whosponsored you. This is why to understand what projectmanagement entails is of crucial importance.

Project management is the process of designing and monitoring the development of a set of activities aimed to reach a goal. It starts with the analysis of one or more issues relevant to your community in order to propose a concretestrategy able to address said issues with the aim of solving existing problems. Project management begins with an in-depth analysis of the economic, social and political situation of your community.

Once you gathered this information, you will draw on the collected data to build your project proposal, which will include the rationale of the proposed project, its main goals, the timeframe and its main outputs. A successful project proposal is the one that clearly states the steps you are taking to move from the evaluation of a problematic situation to its resolution in a limited time span. Additionally, a successful proposal includes an explanation of how you intent to monitor the development of your project as a means to assess its final outcomes and your overall success. You should also take into consideration that planning has to deal with the uncertainty of the future.

As such, a strong proposal draws on the analysis of the present to list a series of potential risks that the project is taking also to imagine ways in which you could engage with them if they happened. Lastly, a good proposal spells out how you intent to report on the progress of your project to your stakeholders being them your donors, potential partner organisations, your community and your target group. This part is of utter importance especially for those who are financially supporting your activities. To clearly state how you will communicate with them, when, and how they will become part of your project (for instance by participating in the final events, meeting the participants, or reviewing your financial activities) will demonstrate your ability to manage a grant and it will support the creation of long-term working relationships with donors, who might become interested in sponsoring other future projects.

The next 5 sections will guide you through the main phases of project management. You will be given a general idea of what is expected from you. You will also find a list of common mistakes to be avoided. Further, each section will give you examples and practical information that you can use to write your own projects targeting youth.

http://www.fundsforngos.org/free-resources-for-ngos/project-life-cycle-planning-youth-development-projects/

Will be continue in next blog.

CALL FOR APPLICATION

Bigyan Memorial Research Award

Raju Memorial Youth Award

1. Bigyan Memorial Research Award

On 23^rd September 2006, the helicopter crash at Ghunsa took place and the world lost 24 dedicated people working in conservation and environment. Among these 24 was Late Bigyan Acharya, an environmentalist and a member of Environment and Public Health Organization(ENPHO). In honor of Late Acharya, ENPHO has established a “Bigyan Memorial Research Award” to enable individuals to conduct research work on the field of environment and science, which will help to build younger generation working on environment sector. 

This Memorial Award will be granted each year and this year the award will be announced in 22^nd annual general assembly of this ENPHO. In this regard, a research proposal is requested from interested students/researchers for conducting research work in the following fields of study:

• Water and Sanitation
• Climate Change
• Ground water resource and River Pollution
• Other Environment related issues

Required Documents:

• Proposal maximum 10 pages
• Updated CV
• An Official “Letter of Recommendation” form applicants’ supervisor or mentor
• An Official “Letter of Approval” form department/college head.

Eligibility Criteria:

• All students who had passed Master 1st year & currently joined Masters’ Second year program and supposed to start their thesis.
• Age less than 30 years.

Memorial award of amount: NRs. 25,000/-

• Deadline for submission of proposal: 31^st August 2013
• Selection Notification: October 3^rd Week
• Duration of Research Grant: November 2013 - April 2014 (6 months)

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2. Raju Memorial Youth Award

On April 21, 2011, Environment and Public Health Organization had lost a member, young colleague and a youth working with ideas and commitment to bring safe drinking water and sanitation to rural people of Nepal. In recognition of this untimely and tragic loss, ENPHO has established “Raju Memorial Youth Award” to be awarded to individual or organization working remarkably on water and sanitation sector in Nepal. In this regard, individual or organizations working in water and sanitation sector in various areas of Nepal are requested for application along with detailed documents reflecting experiences in the following address.

Required Document:

• Proposal (flexible)
• Organizational Profile (If you are approaching through organization) Valid recommendation letter from two professional referee (If you are applying individually)

Memorial award of amount: NRs. 10,000
Deadline for submission of proposal: 31^st August 2013

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Application should be addressed to:
Environment and Public Health Organization (ENPHO)
New Baneshwor, Kathmandu
Contact no. 4493188, 4468641
Email:  enpho@enpho.org

2013 Urban Photographer of the Year Competition

Deadline:  31st August 2013.

Calling all amateur and professional photographers alike! The CBRE Urban Photographer of the Year competition challenges you to capture what you consider to be the essence of urban life at any time of day, anywhere in the world. Our theme this year, ”Cities at Work’’, encourages you to portray the life of your chosen town or city.
Theme : ‘Cities At Work’

The Urban Photographer of the Year will be the person who, in the eyes of the judges, has best captured the brief to portray the life of a town or city at a given time of day. Whilst the photograph does not necessarily have to be taken at that specific time of day, it does need to look as though it was. You can choose to photograph any town or city at work worldwide.  For example, a photograph could capture London at 4am, Lisbon at 2pm, Dubai at 9pm and so on. When you submit your photographs you will be asked to select which hour of the day each represents – this will place each in an hourly prize category. Please note, you can only submit one photograph for each hour of the day. You will also be given the option to enter each under one of six new categories based around urban themes. If you do not feel your photograph is represented by any these, please choose ‘none of the above’.   You cannot change your entry one you have submitted it. Therefore, we advise that you take great care when selecting the hour and category for each image that you wish to submit.
The new categories are as follows:

1.Travel/Transport
Travel is a vital part of any urban landscape; the Travel/Transport category will house your pictures of modes of transport, journeys and movement.

2.Workplace
This category will showcase the very best of the competition’s images of people at, or places of, work.
3.Architecture

Architecture and the built environment is an integral part of urban society. Here we ask you to submit imaginative shots that capture the history, atmosphere and character of a city’s buildings.

4.Urban regeneration
Urban regeneration is seen as essential to revitalising impoverished urban areas, developing communities and improving the infrastructure of society. We are seeking the most thought provoking images depicting how these projects are transforming our urban environment.

5.Cityscape
By day or night, many city’s have distinctive skyline’s. Can you capture the life and stature of an urban landscape in one photograph?
6.Environment

Integrating environmental thinking into urban development has resulted in much creativity as cities seek to breathe fresh air into the hustle and bustle of daily life. We’re looking for images that have demonstrated green thinking.

What size does the image have to be?
Images should be no smaller than 2MB and no larger than 3MB. Images should be in JPEG format. All images must be saved in the RGB colour model and be at a minimum of @300 dpi. (8 X 10). Please note that we will contact you by email for the higher resolution image should we require your image for our coffee table book. Images that are taken on camera phones can be entered into the competition. These images should still be no smaller than 2MB in order to enter them – we may need to contact you for a higher resolution image. The entrant must be the sole author and owner of the copyright and all other rights in all images, which they enter. Images that have won prizes in other competitions are not eligible for this competition.

Prizes

First Prize: photo safari holiday,

Second Prize: Olympus OM-D Camera,

Third Prize: Blue Dot display stand

Click here for more information.

Citrus greening : a deadly fruit disease

By: UTPAL DEY

A. P. SURYAWANSHI

Citrus greening disease is an important disease of citrus which greatly affects the production of the fruits in several parts of India.

Characteristic symptoms include yellowing of leaf veins and adjacent tissues, followed by premature defoliation, dieback of twigs, decay of feeder rootlets and lateral roots.

Infected fruits are small, lopsided with bitter taste. Such fruits may fall prematurely; while those that remain on the tree do not colour properly, remaining green on the shaded side.

Management

Routinely scout citrus for signs of greening so that infected trees can be removed. Scouting should be done at least four times a year, or more in areas known to have infected trees. October through March is the best time for scouting, but symptoms can be present at other times of the year.

For effective management remove infected trees. This is the only way to ensure that they won’t remain a source of infection for other trees. Pruning symptomatic limbs is often ineffective since other parts of the tree may be infected, but do not show symptoms.

Before removing, the tree should be sprayed with a foliar insecticide to kill any psyllids in order to keep them from moving on once the tree is removed.

Focus Integrated Pest Management (IPM) efforts on using disease-free nursery trees, reducing infection sources (inoculum) by frequent surveys and diseased tree removal, and suppressing Asian citrus psyllid through area-wide management

Foliar spray

Spray foliar insecticide prior to tree removal. Increase frequency of scouting in areas where infected trees have been removed

The complex of natural enemies attacking ACP around the world usually includes various species of ladybeetles, syrphid flies, lacewings, spiders.

Use soil-applied systemic insecticides on young trees. Foliar sprays of fenpropathrin (Danitol 2.4 EC), chlorpyrifos (Lorsban 4EC), petroleum oil (2 per cent rate).

(Utpal Dey, Ph.D. scholar, Department of Plant Pathology and Dr A.P. Suryawanshi, Head in charge, Department of Plant Pathology, Marathwada Agricultural University, Parbhani, Maharashtra, India, email: utpaldey86@gmail.com, mobile: Mob : 8275824103.)

Source: The Hindu