Lake Bohinj, Triglav National Park, Slovenia. (Photo by David Matthews)

However, despite the apparent optimism, the application of DNA technologies to address environmental challenges does not seem to have fully realized its potential to date.

Having developed a particular interest in this area through my involvement in ecological consulting, I have made this topic the focus of a short research project as part of an MSc in Environmental Management. The project hypothesis is that there are barriers to the adoption of DNA technologies that are delaying or preventing deployment. The research questions that the project is seeking to address include:

• What opportunities exist for the application of DNA-based technologies to biodiversity assessment, for environmental protection, decision-making and conservation?
• What barriers exist to the adoption of DNA technologies in biodiversity assessment, for environmental protection?

The research project is using a number of approaches to investigate these questions further, including semi-structured interviews, further literature analysis, and the completion of a short on-line survey. This survey can be found at: https://www.surveymonkey.co.uk/r/DNA_Applications

I would welcome your input. The survey should take no more than 10 minutes to complete, and I would be happy to share the findings.

The post Can advances in DNA technologies provide solutions for biodiversity assessment, conservation and environmental protection? appeared first on Biodiversity Professionals.

Megastigmus schimitscheki, a type of cedar wasp, is considered to be an invasive species in southern France. (See Fabre JP, Auger-Rozenberg MA, Chalon A, Boivin S, Roques A. 2004. Competition between exotic and native insects for seed resources in trees of a Mediterranean forest ecosystem. Biological Invasions 6:11‒22. Photo courtesy of Thomas Boivin.)

Invasive species project: first phase goals

During the first phase of the project, we are gathering opinions via an online survey on the global and local issues that might affect the management of biological invasions in the next 20 to 50 years. We want to explore issues that may emerge and have implications in a more distant future than currently considered in the management of biological invasions. These can be issues which might have positive or negative implications.

Invasive species project: survey goals

We invite people working with or interested in biological invasions to fill in the survey on our website: www.alienfutures.org.

Click to take the invasive species survey

The survey is also available in French and Spanish on that page. We encourage people to think creatively beyond the time frame of their current work. All of the issues identified will be published online on the project webpage. Project outputs will include a long list of global issues, a long list of local issues and a shortlist of global issues. We will make the data available for use and further research, with workshops planned to explore the implications of these issues for policy and management.

Please share the invasive species project survey

We would like to distribute the survey as widely as possible and ask people to share it within their networks. Please contact us at info@alienfutures.org if you want an email draft (available in English, French and Spanish).

Follow the invasive species project

You can follow the progress of the project on the website www.alienfutures.org or Twitter at @alienfutures. You can search or follow using the hashtag #alienfutures.

The post Horizon scanning for future issues affecting invasive species management: call for participants appeared first on Biodiversity Professionals.