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2nd AFQUA Conference

Location
Ifrane, Morocco
Dates
-
E-Mail address
@email
Meeting Category

The 2nd AFQUA Conference and workshops will be held from 6-14 September 2017 at the Al Akhawayn University (AUI) in Ifrane, Morocco.

Logistics

The meeting will be open to approximately 150 participants. All aspects of Quaternary research in Africa, including paleoclimatology, paleoecology, geomorphology and archaeology will be discussed.

Ifrane is a beautiful town located in the Atlas Mountains, about an hour’s drive from the Fes international airport. Al Akhawayn University (AUI) (33.53905°N, 5.10583°E) is located within a national park for the preservation of cedar forests, and the region has a rich archaeological and natural heritage.

Description

As a conference series, AFQUA – The African Quaternary: environments, ecology and humans – brings developed and developing world researchers together to discuss developments in studies of the Quaternary period (the last 2.6 million years) in Africa, bridging regional divides, and fostering communication and collaboration at both regional and continental scales.

Along with talks on subjects including paleoclimatology, paleoecology and archaeology, equal time is dedicated to a series of focus groups and training workshops. These include thematic discussions of cutting-edge research topics as well as workshops that introduce and train young and developing researchers in the skills they need to develop and communicate their science in the modern research environment.

AFQUA is designed to bridge the existing gap between large international meetings (AGU, EGU, INQUA Congresses and PAGES Open Science Meetings (>500 delegates)) and the regional West, East and southern African conferences (WAQUA, EAQUA, SASQUA (~50 delegates)), and foster communication both within and beyond Africa. The global distribution of research and educational funds favours developed world researchers to become the recognized leaders in African Quaternary studies, but often their interactions with the local scientific communities is limited to their direct collaborators.

There is therefore a need to 1) create a more fully integrated African research network and 2) provide opportunities for African researchers to develop, access and share capacity that will allow for their participation in research projects at the highest level. AFQUA brings developed and developing world researchers together, bridging regional divides, and fostering communication and collaboration at both regional, continental and international scales, including the generation of ideas for establishing PAGES Working Groups by African researchers. But it also goes beyond the standard structure of most conferences, with equal time being dedicated to a series of focus groups and training workshops. These include thematic discussions of cutting-edge research topics as well as workshops that introduce and train researchers in the skills they need to develop and communicate their science in the modern research environment (e.g. R, age-depth modeling, database management, data-model comparison, writing and presentation skills, and project/proposal design). AFQUA has a clear mentoring mandate, and focuses on the professional development of African scientists.

Circulars

See the first circular here (pdf)

Attendance

If you are interested in attending, or would like more information, please contact the local organising committee (afqua.congress@gmail.com) or check the conference website at http://afquacongress.wix.com/afqua2017

Scientific program

The program will include plenary talks by world-renowned experts and provide opportunities for both oral and poster presentations. The whole event will last nine days:
- Six days of conference with oral presentations, posters and plenaries and a one-day break for field excursions.
- Three days of focus group discussions and specialised training workshops. We expect to have about five parallel sessions per day.

Important dates

Early registration before: 30 March 2017
Late registration up to: 30 June 2017
Abstract submission up to: 31 April 2017
Book field excursion before: 30 June 2017
Pay registration by: 31 April 2017

Local Organising Committee

Dr. Jaouad Anissi: Al Akhawayn University, Ifrane, Morocco.
Prof. Hassan Aouragh: University Mohamed I, Morocco: aouraghe1@yahoo.fr
Prof. Abdelfettah Benkaddour: Université Cadi Ayyad, Morocco: a.benkaddour@uca.ma
Dr. Ilham Bouimetarhan: MARUM-Centre for Marine Environmental Sciences, Universität Bremen, Germany: bouimetarhan@uni-bremen.de
Dr. Matthieu Carré: Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier, France: matthieu.carre@umontpellier.fr
Dr. Rachid Cheddadi: Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier, France: rachid.cheddadi@umontpellier.fr
Prof. Ali Rhoujjati: Université Cadi Ayyad, Morocco: a.rhoujjati@uca.ma
Prof. Khalid Sendide: Al Akhawayn University, Ifrane, Morocco: K.Sendide@aui.ma
Dr. Manuel Chevalier: Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier, France: chevalier.manuel@gmail.com

AFQUA Scientific Steering Committee

Dr. Brian Chase: Director of the AFQUA Scientific Steering Committee, Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier, France: brian.chase@univ-montp2.fr
Dr. Asfawossen Asrat: President of EAQUA, School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia
Dr. Morgan Andama: Secretary of EAQUA, Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Uganda
Prof. Marion Bamford: President of SASQUA, Bernard Price Institute for Palaeontological Research, University of Witwatersrand,
South Africa
Dr. Lynne Quick: Secretary of SASQUA, University of Cape Town, South Africa
Prof. Izuchukwu “Mike” Akaegbobi: President of WAQUA, Department of Geology, University of Ibadan, Nigeria
Dr. Yabi Ibouraïma: Secretary of WAQUA, Université d’Aborney-Calavi, Benin
Dr. Rachid Cheddadi: Centre National de Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Institut des Sciences de l’Evolution de Montpellier, France: rachid.cheddadi@umontpellier.fr
Dr. Ilham Bouimetarhan: MARUM-Centre for Marine Environmental Sciences, Universität Bremen, Germany: bouimetarhan@uni-bremen.de

1st conference

The African Quaternary: environments, ecology and humans (AFQUA) held its highly successful inaugural conference in Cape Town in 2015. Read about that conference here.

About AFQUA

AFQUA represents a simple and functional step towards improved communication between research communities and seeks to enable African researchers to become more competitive by providing training that they may not have access to otherwise. More vibrant, visible and engaged local communities will greatly enhance the synergy between the laboratories and funding available in the developed world, with the vast, and too often untapped, wealth of local experience and knowledge that African researchers hold. Improving the equity and accessibility of the resources of each group has the potential to significantly invigorate and advance African Quaternary research.

Further information

Contact organizer Brian Chase: brian.chase@um2.fr