Details of Award
NERC Reference : NE/M006301/1
Species Distribution Modelling Workshop
Training Grant Award
- Lead Supervisor:
- Professor RG Pearson, University College London, Genetics Evolution and Environment
- Grant held at:
- University College London, Genetics Evolution and Environment
- Science Area:
- Atmospheric
- Earth
- Freshwater
- Marine
- Terrestrial
- Overall Classification:
- Terrestrial
- ENRIs:
- Biodiversity
- Environmental Risks and Hazards
- Global Change
- Natural Resource Management
- Science Topics:
- Climate & Climate Change
- Conservation Ecology
- Systematics & Taxonomy
- Abstract:
- Species Distribution Modelling (SDM; also termed Ecological Niche Modelling) has been extremely widely applied to address a diverse range of research questions that are highly relevant to the NERC remit. Applications include guiding field surveys to accelerate species discovery, projecting potential impacts of climate change, predicting species invasions, supporting reserve planning, investigating ecological niche evolution, and estimating potential disease spread. The rapid take-up of applications of these methods has led to the development of multiple modelling tools (e.g., Maxent, BIOMOD) that are relatively easy to use. These models are provided with training materials and tutorials that make it straightforward for PhD students and early career researchers to run models and produce outputs. However, the underlying theory behind the approach, including full appreciation of misuses as well as uses, is often not properly understood and there is a need to improve training in the conceptual framework within which the models are applied. Here we propose to convene a course that meets this need. We propose a two-day course that uses a combination of talks and group discussions to train PhD students and early career researchers in the theory and applications of SDM. The course will be taught by Dr. Richard Pearson. Richard has authored a number of the most cited articles in this field over the last decade and has been at the forefront of developing, testing and applying SDMs, as well as setting out the theoretical underpinnings of the field. Richard also has a great deal of experience teaching these methods. We propose to run the course at UCL's main Bloomsbury campus the week beginning November 3rd, 2014. An important element of our proposal is that the course sessions will be professionally filmed and edited. Videos of the talks and other materials (e.g., reading lists) will then be made freely available after the course for a global audience. This E-learning initiative will make use of UCL's new public e-learning platform UCLeXtend. This platform makes available for non-UCL people the university's online learning environment Moodle. Course materials, including videos edited to cover discrete topics (so that users can easily access topics of particular interest), will be made available through UCLeXtend. The online course will also include a discussion forum where participants can post questions and respond to questions posed by others. We aim to create a lively and self-sustaining online community of researchers working with SDMs through this forum. This will be particularly useful for students and early career researchers, who want to get community feedback on questions and engage in discussion related to SDMs. All facilities, including media equipment, are available at UCL, as is the technical expertise through UCL's E-Learning team that run UCLeXtend. The proposed course fits within the Modelling Headline Skills Gap, and fits the Priority Training Areas Introduction to modelling approaches in the environmental sciences, and Scientific computing for environmental sciences. We envision the following training outcomes for 25 in-person participants (who will gain most through personal interaction,discussion sessions, and networking) as well as potentially hundreds of participants in the online course: 1.Knowledge of the theory behind SDMs, including understanding of uses and misuses; 2. Understanding of the difficulties and statistical approaches for evaluating SDMs; 3. Introduction to the diverse potential applications of SDMs, from across the NERC science remit, and the potential pitfalls of each; 4. Networking both in-person (for 25 participants) and through online discussion forum (unlimited participants).
- NERC Reference:
- NE/M006301/1
- Grant Stage:
- Completed
- Scheme:
- Doctoral Training
- Grant Status:
- Closed
- Programme:
- Advanced Training
This training grant award has a total value of £20,006
FDAB - Financial Details (Award breakdown by headings)
| Total - Other Costs |
|---|
| £20,006 |
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