Author Archives: presspr

BU research finds River Thames among most invaded in the world

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The River Thames catchment is among the most highly invaded freshwater systems in the world, Bournemouth University research has found.

Michelle Jackson, from the Centre for Conservation Ecology and Environmental Science, in BU’s School of Applied Sciences, identified 96 freshwater non-native species in the River Thames catchment.

Invasion rates have increased significantly since 1800 and 53 per cent of the species were discovered in the last 50 years.

Her research, with Jon Grey from Queen Mary University in London, has been published in journal Biological Invasions, and suggests that globalisation and increased shipping activity could have contributed to the increased rates of species invasion.

Michelle said: “Invasive species are major drivers of biodiversity and ecosystem service loss and multiple invaders have the potential to amplify one another’s impact.

“Shipping activity and population size in the catchment were positively correlated with non-native species discovery, suggesting that globalisation has facilitated species invasions.”

She added: “Modern invasion rates reveal that one non-native species is discovered every 50 weeks, despite legislation aiming to prevent introductions, making the Thames catchment among the most highly invaded freshwater systems in the world.”

Post-Olympic tourism: a golden opportunity?

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Optimising post-Olympic tourism from the London 2012 Games will be the focus of an event at Bournemouth University.

Going For Gold: Leveraging Post Olympic Tourism Legacies, takes place on Friday 9th November, and will be led by Dr Richard Shipway, senior lecturer in sports studies and associate dean of the School of Tourism at Bournemouth University.

Professor Dimitrios Buhalis, from BU’s School of Tourism, will chair a debate on national and regional perspectives on Olympic Tourism.

Guests in the debate will include Chris Foy, head of the 2012 Games Unit at Visit Britain, and Phil Evans, Head of Strategy at Visit England.

This will be followed by a Critical Reflections on the Impacts and Legacies of Olympic Tourism session, which will be chaired by Professor Stephen Page, from BU’s School of Tourism.

Going For Gold is one of four events being held by Bournemouth University as part of the tenth annual Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Festival of Social Science, which celebrates the best of British social science research.

Other events being run by BU will look at the challenges facing older, gay people and how changes to copyright law will impact on the creative industry.

Around 200 school-children will also have the opportunity to debate the London 2012 legacy, at an event on 5 November.

Dr Rebecca Edwards, Research Development Officer in Public Engagement for BU, said: “Bournemouth University is delighted to have been awarded sponsorship to run four events during the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Festival of Social Science.

“Inclusion in this prestigious national event demonstrates Bournemouth University’s commitment to public engagement and research excellence.”

Going For Gold will run from 12 noon to 5pm at BU’s Executive Business Centre, and will finish with an afternoon tea and drinks reception.

It is free to attend and open to members of the public.

If you would like to attend, or wish to find out more about the event, contact Dr Rebecca Edwards on redwards@bournemouth.ac.uk or 01202 961206.

Seen But Seldom Heard returns for local festival

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Seen But Seldom Heard returned this week as a part of the Bridport Open Book Festival.

Students Hugo Lucas-Rowe and David Young, from the Victoria Education Centre in Poole, performed a selection of poems to the audience, with the help of professional poet Liv Torc and their teacher Annie Caldwell. The poems talk about the emotions that these students face when dealing with their disabilities and David’s poems are performed using his electronic voice box.

Compered by performance poet Chris Redmond, the evening also saw the screening of an eight minute documentary of the project, and how far the students have come through it. After the interval, main act John Hegley took to the stage to round off the evening.

The Victoria Education Centre students have been involved in a series of poetry workshops alongside Liv Torc and poet Johnny Fluffypunk to create poems about their experiences of being disabled. The project was created in conjunction with Bournemouth University, with the help of BU academics Wendy Cutts and Carrie Hodges.

Dr Carrie Hodges, senior lecturer in Communication and Culture at Bournemouth University, said: “We have been using poetry as a way of encouraging the students to engage with their own experiences and feelings about living with a physical disability.”

The teenagers have already performed their work in the ICCI 360 Dome, as part of the Cultural Olympiad in Weymouth, and at Bournemouth University – where Bournemouth East MP Tobias Ellwood was in the audience.

Another performance of Seen But Seldom Heard will take place at Bournemouth University on 7 December 2012.

EXCERPT FROM A POEM WRITTEN BY VICTORIA EDUCATION CENTRE STUDENT DAVID YOUNG:

Some people think disability is a vegetable
Sitting in a vegetable box.
But I am not a vegetable.
I am an actor at the West End, doing the thing I love.
Or an F1 driver, driving the Grand Prixes around the Globe.
A football player, playing in the Premier League
Or just on my Playstation, just chillin’ out.
The truth is I can do anything I want
It is you that is disabled
I am not disabled
I am just me.

David Young, Victoria Education Centre

Fire FM presenters battle it out at BU gym

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Fire FM presenters Dave Taylor and Niall Moloney competed in a series of fitness challenges at Bournemouth University’s newly refurbished gym this weekend.

Dave, who presents the breakfast show, and Niall, who presents the drive-time show, have been competing against each other in a number of challenges – including karting and landing a simulated Boeing 747.

On Sunday, they were put through their paces by Barry Squires, Head of Sports Development at Bournemouth University and Ian Wood, Duty Manager at SportBU, in a number of fitness challenges.

These included seeing how many baskets they could score in a minute, how fast they could run a mile, and a game of table tennis.

http://youtu.be/JFIL3OrtHLg

Barry announced that Dave was overall winner of the fitness challenges live on Fire FM on Tuesday morning.

Dave, who competed in the challenges with an injured wrist said: “Me and Niall are quite competitive and it was good fun.”

Niall added: “I felt a bit like the underdog because, while me and Dave both go to the gym, he’s a bit more consistent with the gym than I am, so I thought he’ll be alright – until he phoned up with an excuse about his wrist.

“I seemed to be ok on the running, but I think Dave might have beat me on the table tennis.”

The gym, at Bournemouth University’s Talbot Campus, has undergone a £1.3 million refurbishment for the start of term – with state-of-the-art cardiovascular equipment, a bigger free weights space, and extended opening hours and fitness classes on offer.

SportBU has been running a range of promotions and marketing with Fire FM to launch the new facilities, and make the public aware that they can join, as well as students and BU staff members.

Dave and Niall said they were impressed with the new gym.

Dave said: “I didn’t know what to expect, but the facilities are great. It is all brand new and you can watch TV on screens in the machines while you’re working out.”

Niall added: “It is nice to see the place we have talking about on the radio. Now we can go back and tell people that they need to come up and have a look.”

Barry Squires said that the DJ duo did well in the gruelling fitness challenges they were set.

“They did really well,” he said.

“Dave had his wrist strapped up so we had to alter the challenges slightly, but the guys put a lot of effort into it.”

He added that the response to the new gym facilities had been “incredible.”

“The feedback has been great. We are on over 1,000 members already in two weeks so it has been fantastic.”

For more information about the new gym facilities at Bournemouth University, visit: www.bournemouth.ac.uk/getactive.

Dozens brave rain for Mental Health Awareness beach walk

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Around 50 people braved the rain for a beach walk to raise awareness of mental health issues.

The walk, which went from Bournemouth Pier to the Branksome Dene Beach Hut, is the first of a series of events which will run to mark Mental Health Awareness Week.

Among those who took part in the walk was Mayor of Bournemouth, Councillor Phil Stanley–Watts, who said members of his family have experienced mental health issues.

He said: “I think it is very important for everybody to understand mental health issues and to change people’s attitudes.

“I feel it is a priority to improve people’s wellbeing, and it is good for people to exercise to do that.”

Bournemouth University has joined with a number of organisations to hold talks and events throughout the week.

Tomorrow, there will be a talk on anxiety disorders, in Talbot House, on BU’s Talbot Campus, from 2.30pm to 3.30pm, which is open to staff, students and the public.

Dr James Palfreman–Kay, equality and diversity advisor at Bournemouth University, said: “Events like this are putting the university’s vision and commitments into practice and building on the relationship we have with Dorset HealthCare to promote awareness of mental health issues.”

The beach walk was led by the Poole Community Mental Health Team, who BU is working with alongside Dorset HealthCare, Dorset Mental Health Forum and the East Dorset Mental Health Carers’ Forum during Mental Health Awareness Week.

Dave Humphriss, STR worker for the Poole Community Mental Health Team, said: “It has been a lovely day and we are really pleased with the turnout, with the weather conditions against us. It is wonderful to promote the awareness of mental health issues.”

For details of further events taking place at Bournemouth University as part of Mental Health Awareness Week 2012 visit www.bournemouth.ac.uk/news.

BU placement student wins Undergraduate of the Year award

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A Bournemouth University student has been given an Undergraduate of the Year award by the company he worked for while on a placement year.

Matt Parsons, who is now in his fourth year of a BA (Hons) Business Studies degree, received the award from company AgustaWestland, which manufactures and sells helicopters.

He beat other undergraduates on placement with the company, which is based in Matthew’s hometown of Yeovil, to be given the Undergraduate of the Year award.

Matt, 23, who lives in Winton, said: “I didnt think that I was going to win.

“Everybody there is really clever, and I knew I had been working really hard but so had everybody else.

“When they said my name, I couldn’t believe it.”

He spent six months of his placement working in the company’s operations department – making sure deliveries were on time and there weren’t any parts shortages – and six months in the sales team, pitching for new business and trying to win contracts.

He was also part of the company’s charity committee and led a project selling t-shirts with helicopters on to raise money for charity.

The t-shirts made around £6,000 and he also helped co-ordinate fundraisers including cake sales, a beer festival and ladies pampering night to raise money for charities including Breast Cancer Research and a special care baby unit.

“I think I won because of the amount of work that I put into working in the operations,” said Matthew.

“Sometimes I was working until 8pm and I was combining it with all the extra things that I did and the fact that I was willing to get involved with as much as possible on top.”

Matt received the award from Alan Chambers MBE, who led the first British team from Canada to the North Pole, at an awards ceremony last weekend.

He is now working with the company for his dissertation and hopes to go into business operations when he finishes his degree.

He said that receiving the award has boosted his confidence.

“I think the award will be the most impressive part of my CV and I believe it will give employers real confidence in interviewing or hiring me, if a high profile company such as AgustaWestland think highly enough of me to give me this prestigious award,” he said.

“I have come back to university with much more confidence than before as it taught me that the more you put into something the more you get out of it, and hard work is recognised.”

Julie Girling MEP visits Bournemouth University

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Research must continue to be a priority despite the economic downturn, the MEP for the South West said while on a visit to Bournemouth University.

Julie Girling, MEP for the South West and Gibraltar, heard about some of the cutting edge research taking place at Bournemouth University on her visit to Talbot Campus.

She attended presentations by the National Centre for Computer Animation, which is based in BU’s Media School and received the Queen’s Anniversary Prize in February for its contribution to the industry, and heard about Google Under The Earth – a collaboration between archaeologists in the School of Applied Sciences and Google Earth which allows anyone to access files and photos gathered on university digs.

She also toured new sports facilities on campus and discussed research into invasive fish species which is being done by Professor Rudy Gozlan at the university.

http://youtu.be/MtfzPM76vPc

Mrs Girling, who sits on the Environment, Public Health and Food Safety Committee within the European Parliament and is also a member on the Fisheries Committee, said: “Clearly, Bournemouth University is going places so I wanted to find out what was happening.

“It has a lot to offer to me. We talked a little bit about research that is being done into invasive species, which is a very hot topic in the European Parliament and I have been working on it, so that has been really interesting.”

She added: “I really just want to try and add to all the work that Bournemouth University is doing and show people really how important it is, how important research is and how important it is that we keep funding research.

“We may be having some economic difficulties but we need to think of the future and we need to keep funding and keep moving forward.”

Mrs Girling also spoke to the Pro-VE Conference, which is taking place over three days at AFC Bournemouth and has been organised by academics from BU’s School of Design, Engineering and Computing.

The conference is on the theme of the internet and collaborative networks, and has attracted delegates from as far afield as Australia and Paris.

Mrs Girling said: “In the time that it has been with us, Bournemouth University has really forged an excellent reputation in a number of areas and the virtual enterprise issue is one which they have done a huge amount of work on and they are going to be taking forward in a big way.

“I can see a number of synergies with companies here in the South West that Bournemouth University has been really fostering good relationships with.”

Director of Spooks and Life on Mars comes to Bournemouth University

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Top director Bharat Nalluri told students at Bournemouth University to network and “be bold” if they want to break into the film and TV industry.

Bharat, who directed the first episodes of Spooks, Life on Mars and helped to create BBC conman drama Hustle, gave a guest lecture to students from across the university’s Media School on Wednesday.

He admitted he had done things “backwards” – completing a Master’s degree in film after setting up his own production company – but said that doing a degree was increasingly important.

“I didn’t know that you could do a degree but I do think it is really important, especially with the way degrees are structured now,” he said.

“Things like people from the industry coming in to talk to students really helps, as the more you know the better.”

He added: “The courses here at Bournemouth are great.

“I have had a few ex-students coming to work with me at production companies like Kudos and I have seen the quality of the people coming out.

“I wanted to see if I could come and help and I find it really exciting as well – they are all so enthusiastic.”

Bharat made his first film, Killing Time, in 1996 and then went to the US to direct horror film The Crow: Salvation.

He then returned to the UK to direct the first episodes of BBC drama Spooks – introducing concepts like split-screens and fast paced editing.

“At that point it was a very low-key project and what I brought into it was an American element,” he said.

“We added much more speed and energy than there was originally going to be.

“It was very glossy and cinematic. It linked this glamorous lifestyle with stories that were always in the headlines.”

Other high-profile projects Bharat has directed include HBO drama Tsunami: The Aftermath – which starred Tim Roth and Sophie Okonado – and feature film Miss Pettigrew Lives For A Day.

He is currently working on US TV show Emily Owens, M.D. which stars Meryl Streep’s daughter Mamie Gummer in the title role.

Bharat said: “There is a bit of luck, but you need to be bold.

“The harder you work, the luckier you get. You can be creative and, if you really want to do well, then it helps to understand all the different areas – but especially writing and editing.”

He added that networking was key, and friends he had when first starting out in the business had helped and supported him along the way.

“I look back at my closest friends and all of us started in the industry together and we all helped each other along the way,” he said.

“It is incredibly important to build those relationships, because this industry is all about networking.”

Follow funny Sophie!

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A Bournemouth University graduate has been named as one of the top 50 funniest women on Twitter.

News website The Huffington Post said BA (Hons) Scriptwriting For Film and Television graduate Sophie Johnson was one of the top 50 funny British and Irish women to follow on the social networking site.

Sophie, who graduated from BU in 2009, has been on Twitter for the past four years and her followers include Richard Osman, from BBC quiz show Pointless, and This Morning presenter Phillip Schofield.

“When I was first alerted to the accolade by one of my faithful followers, I was surprised and honoured,” said Sophie, 27, who is from Staplehurst, in Kent, but now lives in London.

“A couple of times this year, a tweet of mine was chosen for their ‘jokes of the week’ format, so the Huffington Post starting following me. I guess they thought I was funny.”

Favourite recent tweets of Sophie – who tweets from @thesophie – include ‘I won this joke in a ROFL’ and ‘If Ashley and Cheryl had had kids, they would’ve been Cole minors.’

Sophie, who has been working in editorial roles including scriptwriting and copywriting since graduating, said that she hoped the accolade would help her to impress potential employers.

“I would describe my Twitter style as lots of puns, wordplay and jokes, and I love a good hashtag game,” she said.

“I’ve just started doing stand-up comedy this summer, so I’ll definitely be putting it in my email to potential promoters.

“It’s actually been very useful for impressing in interviews for writing jobs recently, even though they’re not in comedy.”

Bournemouth University triumphs at 2012 CIPR PRide Awards

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Bournemouth University has been named Gold Award winner for Internal Communications at the 2012 Chartered Institute of Public Relations (CIPR) Awards, for a campaign which encouraged students to fill out the National Student Survey.

A team from Bournemouth University picked up the award for the Wessex and Channel Islands region for their campaign featuring NeSSa the Camel – who encouraged final-year students to fill out the survey about their student experience.

As part of the campaign a life-sized stuffed camel was taken around the university’s campuses, there was a Moroccan tent where students could have a drink and fill out the survey and a video campaign showed NeSSa being kidnapped – with students being warned that she would only be returned if they completed the survey.

Scott Bellamy, Student Communications Manager at Bournemouth University, said: “It was a really wide-ranging campaign and it was really successful, with a much improved response rate for the survey.

“It was great to win the award for something that was a really innovative and different way to promote the survey and a really collaborative effort from staff across the university.”

The awards ceremony took place on September 26 in the Ageas Bowl in Southampton.

The CIPR Pride awards, which are sponsored nationally by Precise, PRWeek and RedBrand, receive over 1,000 entries across twelve UK regions.

CIPR CEO, Jane Wilson MCIPR, said: “The CIPR PRide Awards represent the best, most creative and most effective public relations work across the UK and to win an award is a great achievement.”