Keynote SpeakerS
Abbas Taheri | Queen's University, Canada
Abbas Taheri is a Tenured Associate
Professor at the Robert M. Buchan Department of Mining at Queen’s
University in Kingston, Canada, where he holds the Chair in Mine
Design.
Abbas has over 20 years of industry, research, and teaching
experience in geotechnical engineering, rock mechanics, and mining
engineering. In 1999 he earned a BASc in Mining Engineering and in
2002 an MASc in Rock Mechanics from Amir Kabir University of
Technology, Iran. He worked for over four years in the industry in
civil and mining engineering projects before moving to Japan in 2005
to a PhD in geotechnical engineering at Yokohama National
University. His PhD thesis has been internationally acknowledged as
outstanding research work and has been awarded a runner-up
certificate (Proxime Accessit) of "ISRM Rocha Medal 2010" from the
International Society for Rock Mechanics and Rock Engineering
(ISRM). In 2008 he was awarded a postdoctoral fellowship from Japan
Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) and joined Tokyo
University of Science. In 2011 he was appointed as a lecturer and
then a senior lecturer at the University of Adelaide, Australia,
until 2021, when he moved to Queen’s University, Canada, as an
Associate Professor.
Abbas is the president of the Commission on Deep Mining of the ISRM.
Dr Taheri is/was a member of the Editorial Board of several
scientific journals, including “Soils and Foundations”, “Bulletin of
Engineering Geology and Environment”, “International Journal of
Mining Science and Technology,” “Minerals” etc. Abbas is/was the
chair, organizer, and member of the organization committee of many
international symposiums and workshops. He has produced more than
160 refereed publications. Dr Taheri has developed and toughed
several courses in geotechnical engineering and mining operation.
Speech title"New Innovations in Experimental Rock Mechanics"
Abstract-This keynote speech will
present cutting-edge in-situ and laboratory testing methods and
technologies, focusing on characterizing both rock masses and intact
rocks. A highlight of the presentation is introducing an in-situ
triaxial compression test method capable of measuring the
stress-strain relation of rock masses in deep ground conditions.
This method proves reliable and accurate, offering a single in-situ
test that mirrors the effectiveness of a laboratory triaxial
compression test.
The lecture will also showcase recent advancements in understanding
rock failure mechanisms under diverse stress conditions. Notably,
comprehensive stress-strain behavior analysis of rocks in uniaxial
compression will be explored through sophisticated laboratory
testing, incorporating the application of Digital Image Correlation
to investigate localized rock behavior under monotonic and cyclic
loading. Additionally, novel techniques for measuring post-failure
behavior under cyclic loading will be introduced. A groundbreaking
experimental advancement will be unveiled, allowing control over the
dynamics associated with the sudden cracking of disc samples under
diametrical compression. This innovation enables the accurate
determination of intrinsic fracture properties in a simple
compression test, effectively excluding or minimizing dynamic
effects.
The developed experimental methodology finds applications across
various domains, including Civil, Mining, and Petroleum engineering.
Eric Wolanski | James Cook University, Australia
Dr. Eric Wolanski is a coastal oceanographer and ecohydrologist. He
is linking physics and biology in estuarine, coastal, reef and
savannah ecosystems. He has 430 publications, including six recent
books:
Wolanski, E., Kingsford, M.J. (2024). Oceanographic Processes of
Coral Reef. Physical and Biological Links in the Great Barrier Reef.
CRC Press, Boca Raton, Fla., USA (in press).
Paris, C. B., Wolanski, E., eds. (2020). The Importance of Behavior
in the Recruitment of Marine Fauna and Flora. Lausanne: Frontiers
Media SA. doi: 10.3389/978-2-88963-501-6
Wolanski, E., Day, J., Elliott, M., Ramesh, Ramachandran (2019).
Coasts and Estuaries. The Future. Elsevier, Amsterdam. 701 pp.
Perillo, G.M.E., Wolanski, E., Cahoon, D.R., Hopkinson, C.S. (2019).
Coastal Wetlands. An Integrated Ecosystem Approach. Springer 2nd
ed., Dordrecht, 1097 pp.
E. Wolanski & M. Elliott (2015). Estuarine Ecohydrology - An
Introduction. Elsevier, Amsterdam, 310 pp.
E. Wolanski (2014). Estuaries of Australia in 2050 and Beyond.
Springer, Dordrecht, 292 pp.
Eric launched in 2020, in collaboration with Professors Michael
Elliott at the University of Hull (UK) and Ellen Wohl at the State
University of Colorado (USA), a new Elsevier book series
"Ecohydrology from catchment to coast" to provide an analysis for
key rivers worldwide of the next set of policy and institutional
reforms (environmental, social, cultural and economic) needed to
ensure that the river basin is managed as an integrated system
(including its land use, water resources and estuary) capable to
adapt to the human impact and future changes including climate
change. The first book has just been published,it is about the
Murray-Darling Basin in Australia.
https://www.elsevier.com/books/book-series/ecohydrology-from-catchment-to-coast
Being written now are books about the Mekong in SE Asia, the Nile in
Africa, and the Scheldt in Belgium/The Netherlands.
Eric is a member of the Scientific and Policy Committee of Japan's
EMECS (Environmental Management of Enclosed Seas, focusing on the
Seto Inland Sea) and of the European Union DANUBIUS-PP Scientific
and Technical Advisory Board (STAB; see www.danubius-ri.eu;
http://danubius-pp.eu), which will be a pan-European distributed
research infrastructure dedicated to interdisciplinary studies of
large river–sea systems throughout Europe.
Eric is a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Technological Sciences
and Engineering, the Institution of Engineers Australia (ret.), and
l'Academie Royale des Sciences d'Outre-Mer (Belgium). He was awarded
an Australian Centenary medal for services in estuarine and coastal
oceanography, a Doctorate Honoris Causa from the catholic University
of Louvain in Belgium, a 2nd Doctorate Honoris Causa by the
University of Hull in the UK, a Queensland Information Technology
and Telecommunication award for excellence, and the first LifeTime
Achievement Award of the Estuarine & Coastal Science Association
(ECSA).
Eric is Honourary Editor of Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science, a
Chief Editor of Wetlands Ecology and Management and of the Elsevier
book series Ecohydrology from catchment to coast.
Since 1994 he has been running in Tanzania for Tanzania National
Parks Authority yearly ecohydrology field training workshops with
ecologists of the Serengeti, Katavi, Arusha, Nkomazi, Ruaha,
Tarangire and Saadani National Parks, which are all either suffering
or threatened by a water crisis. This is summarised in the recent
paper: Mnaya, B., Elisa, M., Kihwele, E., Kiwango, H., Kiwango, Y.,
Ng’umbi, G., Wolanski, E. (2021). Are Tanzanian National Parks
affected by the water crisis? Findings and ecohydrology
solutions.Ecohydrology and Hydrobiology 21, 425-442.
James T. Anderson | Clemson University, USA
Dr. James T. (Jim) Anderson is a professor of wildlife ecology and management and the Davis-Michael Professor of Forestry and Natural Resources at West Virginia University. He earned a B.S. in wildlife from the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, an M.S. in range and wildlife management through the Caesar Kleberg Wildlife Research Institute at Texas A&M University-Kingsville, and a Ph.D. in wildlife science from Texas Tech University. Jim has published over 160 scientific research articles on wetland ecology and management, wildlife-habitat relationships, and restoration ecology. He has mentored more than 50 graduate students and has garnered more than $20 million in competitive external funding to support his research. He has been an invited keynote speaker at over 15 international conferences, serves on numerous committees, and has served on the editorial board of 6 international journals. He teaches over 1,000 students annually in a number of courses including Restoration Ecology, Applied Wetlands Ecology and Management, Introduction to Wildlife and Fisheries Resources, Big Game Ecology and Management, and Waterfowl Ecology.