Seminars and Workshops
Academic Year 2019-20
The department organised two workshops and one national seminar in this year.
National Seminar
Botany Department and National Society of the Friends of the Trees under the aegis of RUSA organised a National seminar on 'Tree Ecology and Urban Forest Management' on 13 February 2020. Dr Rajendra Shinde and Dr Ashok Kothari (President, The National Society of the Friends of the Trees) inaugurated the seminar.
Dr B. Nagarajan, Scientist G, Institute of Forest Genetics & Tree Breeding, Coimbatore gave the keynote address on 'Making Trees in India|: Addressing Conservation Solutions and Industrial Needs'. Other renowned speakers included Professor Amit Lahiri, Chief Sustainability Officer, O. P. Jindal Global University, Delhi, who spoke on 'Ecologies, Communities & Markets: A Tale of Two Trees in the Western Ghats' through his presentation. Dr Mandar Datar, Scientist C, Agharkar Research Institute, Pune, spoke on 'Forests of Northern Western Ghats: New Insights from Old Habitat'. Dr H. S. Singh, Ex- Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, Gujarat State, gave an illustrated talk on 'Urban Forestry'. Dr Advait Edgaonkar, Assistant Professor, Indian Institute of Forest Management, Bhopal gave a talk on 'Valuation of Ecosystem Services'.
The First Botany Department student's association called as 'Botany Association of Xavier's' was inaugurated during the occasion. The Committee members included General Secretary Mr Harsh Pant of Msc-I, Assistant General Secretary Ms Anushka Agarwal of SYBsc, Treasurer Ms Aditi Nimbalkar of Msc-I and Events Head Ms Shirin Khan.
Under the guidance of Dr Vijaya Lobo around a theme of 'reuse, recycle and innovate', two MSc-I students Ms Shirin Khan and Ms Saloni Kothari put up a small exhibition of fabric and cloth bags coloured with natural dyes. Also, Ms Jidnyasa Tare assisted by Ms. Aditi Nimbalkar exhibited 'Biojewellary' made from waste things aimed at keeping touch with nature, reuse and redecorate things. Mr. Praveen Kale, Asst. Curator, Blatter Herbarium also exhibited herbarium specimens and publications of Blatter Herbarium.
About than 200 participants from various colleges, institutes, and NGOs, including students, teachers, researchers, laypersons and activists attended and made the seminar a successful event.
Workshop
The department organised a one-day workshop on Plant Identification Methods: Current and Future Trends' on 5 October 2019, in which Dr. Manek Mistry, Mr. Kevin D'cruz and Ms. Rene Vyas were the key speakers. Dr. Manek Mistry Ms. Rene Vyas also took a short field visit of participants in college campus explaining the plants. The teaching faculty of various disciplines from diverse colleges attended the workshop as it was intended for college teachers.
Workshop
The department organised a half-day workshop on 'Plant nomenclature' on 22 January 2020, in which the resource person Dr. Kanchi Gandhi, Senior Nomenclatural Registrar, Harvard University Herbaria, USA, explained the basic and important rules of plant nomenclature. Our MSc and PhD students and faculty from other colleges attended the workshop.
Academic Year 2018-19
The department organised two workshops and one national seminar in this year.
National Seminar
Botany Department and National Society of the Friends of the Trees organised a National seminar on 'Climate, Rivers and Vegetation' on 14 February 2019. Mr. Bittu Sahgal, Founding editor, Sanctuary Asia, gave the keynote address on 'Climate Change'. Other renowned speakers included Dr. Pradeep Srivastava, (retd) Senior Scientist, Medicinal and Process Chemistry Division, CSIR- CDRI, Lucknow, who spoke on 'Unique Biodiversity of south-east Asia and Bionics: A promising Future Ahead' through his scientoons. Dr. Milind Sardesai, Professor, Department of Botany, Pune University, spoke on 'Whether our forefathers knew the technique of sex alteration in plants?'. Mr. Murari Ratnam, Ex-Director, Central Soil and Materials Research Station, Ministry of Water Resource, New Delhi gave an illustrated talk on 'Effect of climate on water resources'. Dr. Ajit Sonakia, IFS (Retd) Principal Chief Conservator of Forest, Bhopal gave a talk on 'Global warming and Climate change'. Dr. Pravish Pandya, Director, Science and Conservator, Sanctuary Asia led the panel discussion to answer all the queries. Some SYBSc students and all MSc-I Botany Students under the guidance of Dr. Vijaya Lobo also put up a small exhibition of plants and herbal cosmetics products, around a theme of 'reuse, recycle and innovate'. More than 180 participants from various colleges, institutes, and NGOs, including students, teachers, researchers, laypersons and activists attended and made the seminar a successful event. The First Botany Department Magazine' Acta Botanica' designed and made by TYBSc Botany students was released during the inaugural session. The BSc and MSc students volunteered and helped in various ways to carry out the huge task of seminar organisation.
Workshop
The department organised one day workshop on 24 August 2018 in collaboration with on Ramnarain Ruia Autonomous College, Mumbai and IISER, Pune on an important topic 'Preparation of lesson plans on climate change'. The teaching faculty of various disciplines from diverse colleges attended the workshop as it was intended for college teachers.
Workshop
A day-long workshop on 'Plant nomenclature' was organised by the department which was held on 22 March 2019, in which the resource person Dr. Kanchi Gandhi, Senior Nomenclatural Registrar, Harvard University Herbaria, USA, explained the basic and important rules of plant nomenclature. The workshop was attended by MSc and PhD students, and faculty of our college, Ramnarain Ruia College, Mithibai College, National College, of Mumbai; Sonopant Dandekar College, Palghar, and Dapoli Urban Bank Science college, Dapoli.
Academic Year 2017-18
National Seminar
The Blatter Herbarium, Botany Department and National Society of the Friends of the Trees organised a day-long seminar on 'Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP): A living Treasure amidst Concrete Jungle & Sustainable Urban Forest Management'. Eminent Scientist and Director of the Bombay Natural History Society, Dr. Deepak Apte gave the keynote address on 'Development and Conservation: A new paradigm'. Other renowned speakers included Dr. Renee Borges, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore on 'The Forgotten Pollinators: Urban Forests as their Refugia' warned about the environment as well as economic consequences of the reducing populations of well-known and not so well-known insect pollinators; Dr. Vidya Atreya (IISER, Pune) and her student Mr. Nikit Surve (alumni of SXC) delivered two separate talks on 'Leopards in Maharashtra' and 'Leopards and Human Conflict with reference to SGNP' respectively; Dr. Mayur Nandikar, Scientist and Head, Navroji Godrej Centre for Plant Research, Shirwal, Satara spoke on Endemic Flora of SGNP; Mr. Issac Kehimkar, Naturalist, gave an illustrated talk on 'Butterflies of SGNP' and Mrs. Mugdha Karnik, Director of Extra Mural Studies of the University of Mumbai spoke on a much-debated topic, 'SGNP – The Warli and Other Tribal Settlements, Problems and New Approaches to solve them'. MSc Botany Students also put up a small exhibition of Plants and Cosmetic products.
Seminar
An Interdisciplinary Seminar "Confluence", on Biostatistics, organised by Department of Botany, Statistics and Zoology, St. Xavier's College, (Autonomous), held on 12 January 2018.
Workshop
A two-day workshop on "Introductory Course on Geographic Information System (GIS) in Plant Science Research" was held on 16 and 17 March 2018 by Dr. Rajasri Ray, Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore. Faculty, M.Sc. and Ph.D. students of Botany department attended the workshop.