Workshop on new aspects of niche modelling The ecological niche as a window to biodiversity 26 July – 30 July 2010
We are organising a series of two workshops on niche modelling. The central aim is to revisit the concept of the niche from demographic, eco-physiological and evolutionary perspectives. The first workshop is planned for 26-30 July 2010. The first day is devoted to a public seminar in Frankfurt. Subsequent days will be spent in a smaller group at a conference centre which is located outside of the city. (Arnoldshain, http://www.evangelische-akademie.de/index.html). For the public seminar, the following keynote speakers have been confirmed: Peter Linder, Thomas Hickler, Kathrin Böhning-Gaese, Lee Hannah, Frank Schurr and Mike Cramer. We are now inviting people to apply to join us at the first workshop. The aim of the first workshop is to develop a more mechanistic theory of the niche that can be used in modelling plant distributions. This theory aims to combine recent advances in our understanding of the demographic, competitive and evolutionary dynamics of plants with insights of how climate influences the eco-physiological performance of plants. On a technical level we propose to use developments in ecological modelling and in statistical methods to implement these new models. The workshop will bring together leading researchers in these different fields, and together we aim to make rapid progress. We realise that these are ambitious goals and that a workshop cannot conjure a new theory in 4 days. For this reason we will run a second workshop in April 2011 to follow up on the discussions initiated at the first one. We aim to summarise our findings in the form of a book. The first meeting will be used to develop a blueprint for a new theory of niche modelling. In the time between the two meetings the contributors will be able to develop the ideas discussed at the first meeting and draft the various book chapters. The second meeting will provide a chance to revise these book chapters with the input from the other contributors. We will be able to pay for accommodation, and there may be some money available for travel. The workshop is limited to 50 participants. If you wish to attend please send a brief email motivating your attendance (you may include your CV if you feel it is appropriate). Please outline how the workshop theme relates to your previous and current research (and theme of your dissertation, if appropriate). To help us with planning, please send your application by 15 June 2010. We will inform you by 21 June 2010 if we can accommodate you. Applications should be sent to [email protected]. If you have queries about the aims of the workshop or the logistics please contact one of the organisers. The organisers Steven Higgins, Bob O`Hara and Christine Römermann Biodiversity and Climate Research Centre Frankfurt a.M. and Goethe-University Frankfurt a.M., Germany [email protected], [email protected], [email protected] The venue: Martin-Niemöller Haus in the Taunus near Frankfurt am Main, Germany Bob O'Hara Tel: +49 69 798 40216 (in Germany) Mobile: +49 1515 888 5440 WWW: http://www.bik-f.de/root/index.php?page_id=219 Blog: http://blogs.nature.com/boboh/ Journal of Negative Results - EEB: www.jnr-eeb.org
