Frogs, parakeets and the search for the elusive 'net zero'.

The last few decades have seen alarming declines in amphibian populations across the globe. Driven by a toxic cocktail of factors including, climate change, habitat loss and disease many species have been pushed to the brink of extinction. The amphibians of Central America have been severely impacted, with many iconic species missing and thought to be extinct. However, in recent years some rare frogs have been found clinging on in remote regions in small numbers. My PhD project is focused on addressing the urgent need to discover, identify and protect these rare animals.

How do you go about decarbonising the UK’s (second) biggest university campus? What do you count or not count? What tools and toys are available to help do the job? What are the challenges , opportunities and pitfalls? Richard Smith, the University of Manchester’s Head of Environmental Sustainability, talks about the work done so far on planning for a zero carbon estate and his hopes for future progress.

What kind of contraception can you use in a giraffe? Can you castrate an axolotl? How do you know if an animal is pregnant, or just needs to shed a little weight? These are all questions I deal with on a day to day basis as a zoo-based reproductive biologist. In this talk I’ll share how I work together with the global zoo community in our quest to have healthy, sustainable zoo-based animal populations. I’ll cover the basics of limiting and enhancing reproduction, and I’ll give you a very honest glimpse of what it’s like working in a faecal lab.