Summer School: Coastal Systems under Pressure
Jointly organized by the Alfred-Wegener Institute, the GKSS Research Centre, the Baltic Sea Research Institute, and the Research and Technology Centre Westcoast.
23 September to 4 October 2008, in Lauenburg and Büsum, Germany

http://coast.gkss.de/events/summerschool08/

More than 50 % of the human population live at the coast. Sea level rise, increasing population density and industrial activities, coastal erosion - all these influences exert pressures on coastal systems where land and water meet and particularly the human influence on the sea and the maritime impact on human societies become apparent. Eutrophication by sewage discharge, organic micropollutants and heavy metals released to rivers and the sea, hydrocarbons from oil and gas mining are among the impacts that man exerts on marine ecosystems, but also the protection of human settlements from sea level rise, storm surges or tsunamis are of increasing importance. The coastal areas of the North and Baltic Sea are among the most frequently visited searoutes worldwide, and the danger of fatal accidents is increasing. For all these reasons, we consider it of utmost importance to disseminate knowledge gained in our research centres. Experts in the fields of physical and chemical oceanography, coastal meteorology, biology and ecology, and coastal zone management will present their experience during the school.

The Alfred-Wegener Institute for Marine and Polar Research, the Baltic Sea Research Institute, GKSS Research Centre and the Research and Technology Centre Westcoast are the leading national centres for coastal research in Germany. They have been organising a common annual summer school since 2002 in Sylt, Helgoland, Geesthacht, Büsum and Warnemünde.

The School is designed for diploma and PhD students and Postdocs with a background of earth science, geology, physical and chemical oceanography, or biology. All costs are covered by the organizers.

For application, please send a short cv and a list of publications to: Mrs. Ilona Liesner, GKSS, Max-Planck-Strasse, D-21502 Geesthacht, email This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . Deadline is the 31st of July 2008.