We are looking for a highly motivated PhD student to undertake research on evolutionary rates in flowering plants. This project will be jointly supervised by Prof. Simon Ho (University of Sydney) and Dr Hervé Sauquet (Royal Botanic Garden Sydney).

A smaller version of the project, focusing on a single lineage of Australian flowering plants, would also be suitable for an Honours student at the University of Sydney.
 
Project supervisors
Simon Ho jointly leads the Molecular Ecology, Evolution, and Phylogenetics research group in the School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney. He is an ARC Future Fellow and oversees a research programme with a focus on evolutionary rates and molecular dating. Information about his research group can be found here: https://sydney.edu.au/science/biology/meep/
Hervé Sauquet is a research scientist at the Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney, where he leads a research group focusing on diversification of angiosperms using phylogenetic and macroevolutionary approaches. He is the coordinator of the international eFLOWER project. Information about the group is available here: http://www.sauquetlab.org/
 
Applications
We seek a PhD candidate with an undergraduate degree in biology, molecular systematics, or computational biology. The candidate must be eligible for a Research Training Program Scholarship from the Australian Government. The University of Sydney accepts PhD applications throughout the year. To express your interest, please contact Simon Ho ([email protected]) and Hervé Sauquet ([email protected]). For further information about studying at the University of Sydney, visit https://sydney.edu.au/study/how-to-apply/postgraduate-research.html

Last week, I flew across the Pacific and North America to attend a short meeting on floral evolution at the Oak Spring Garden Foundation in Upperville, Virginia. Although I spent as much time on the planes as in the meeting, this was well worth the very long trip!

The Oak Spring Garden Foundation (OGSF) was established to perpetuate the passions and legacy of Rachel Lambert Mellon, a very wealthy woman who spent her life growing plants in her garden and estate and researching the history of gardening and landscape. Sir Peter Crane, former Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and a World leader in research on plant evolution, was recently (2016) named President of the Foundation. Based at the main residence of the Mellons in the countryside of upstate Virginia, on the foothills of the Appalachians (ca. one-hour drive from Washington, D.C.), the Foundation is currently investing heavily on restoration and renovations of the estate, which is progressively being set as an ideal venue for small conferences, workshops, and retreats.

​The aim of the Foundation under Peter Crane’s leadership is to become a new center of stimulation of all things botanical, from fundamental research in plant evolution and conservation to historical landscaping and gardening, similar to the role that NESCent (Durham) and NCEAS (Santa Barbara) have played in general evolution and ecology, respectively. The Oak Spring Garden Foundation will soon start funding various actions on a grant call basis, including on-site and off-site workshops and training actions as well as a small number of PhD and postdoc fellowships.

​The workshop on floral evolution was organized by Adam Roddy, a postdoc at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies. The aim was to foster cross-disciplinary discussions on the topic of floral evolution. The choice of participants drew from all ends of the spectrum of floral evolution, from paleobotany and macroevolution to pollination biology, the population genetics of sex, and floral physiology. The twelve invited participants came mostly from the U.S., but also Austria, the U.K., and Australia (myself). The small group size and friendly atmosphere were ideally suited for quality interactions among all the participants. All expenses were kindly supported by the Foundation and the quality of organization and service was outstanding, in addition to the exceptional setting of the location. This was definitely a fascinating and very enjoyable meeting and I already look forward to come back to Oak Spring!