Workshops

Workshops are interactive sessions encouraging networking, skills development, and creative thinking.

Pre-Conference Workshops

Workshops taking place on Tuesday 10 December will be ticketed. You will be able to add these onto your booking when registration opens in July.

Early Careers Day
BES External Affairs Team
Registration: 09:00 – 10:00
Workshop: 10:00- 17:00
This one-day workshop will begin with an inspiring plenary on ‘unlocking your potential’ from Professor Jane Memmot. Following this you will take part in a number of sessions including an introduction to the policy-science interface, making the most of funding opportunities and building resilience when publishing your research. You’ll have the opportunity to meet fellow early career ecologists and you’ll leave the workshop feeling ready to make the most of networking opportunities during the Annual Meeting.

Graphic Recording: Communicating Research in an Engaging Way
Holly McKelvey (Illustrator and Visual Science Communicator)
Registration: 13:00 – 14:00
Workshop: 14:00- 18:00
How can we communicate our research in a visual format? In this workshop, participants will learn layout and design tools while developing their visual vocabularies, with the aim of creating a visual abstract or schematic. Participants should bring an idea or topic that they would like to work on.

Building data collection apps with Coreo
Dave Kilbey (CEO of Natural Apptitude)
Registration: 13:00 – 14:00
Workshop: 14:00- 18:00
If your organisation is considering the use of apps to improve field-based data collection this workshop will show you how you can build your own using Coreo. We will also explore the data management and visualisation features of the Coreo platform.

Using data provenance to create reproducible, transparent, and well-documented code for statistical analysis and modelling in R
Aaron M. Ellison (Harvard University)
Registration: 13:00 – 14:00
Workshop: 14:00- 18:00
Reproducibility engenders trust in and rapidly advances science, but it is hard to reproduce ecological analyses. Participants will work with software tools that use data provenance to help construct and debug R scripts, transparently document analytical workflows, and simplify re-use of the data and associated R code.

Cancellation

All pre-meeting workshop cancellations are subject to a 50% administration fee.

If cancellation is received before 17:00 (GMT), Friday 15 November, a 50% refund on the conference dinner, post conference tours and pre-pay workshops will be given.

No refunds will be given after 17:00 (GMT) Friday 15 November.

Lunchtime Workshops

Lunchtime workshops will take place for 1 hour over the long lunchtime breaks of the conference. These are free to attend and no pre-booking is required.

A gentle introduction to the COMADRE & COMPADRE databases for demographic analyses
Roberto Salguero-Gomez (Oxford University)
Owen Jones (University of Southern Denmark)
We will introduce the COMPADRE Plant Matrix Database and COMADRE Animal Matrix Database, which contain thousands of matrix population models for species across the tree of life, as well as two R packages that allow for comparative analyses and interpretation of demographic data: Rcompadre and Rage.

Tools of the Interdisciplinary Trade: how to make your interdisciplinary project a success
Lydia Cole (University of St Andrews)
Althea Davies (University of St Andrews)
Human-nature relationships lie at the heart of many ecological challenges. As a result, ecologists often find themselves working at the intersection between natural and social sciences – with little preparatory training. This workshop will identify common pitfalls and good practices for interdisciplinary research in ecology, from developing a funding proposal to project implementation and publication.

How to run the best fieldcourse to develop key graduate skills
Alice Mauchline (University of Reading)
Lesley Batty (Birmingham University)
The aim of this interactive, peer-peer workshop is to provide an informal but guided forum for experienced field educators to consider ways to enhance their teaching practice. We will focus on the attributes that employers require in ecology graduates and share best field-based teaching practice for developing key graduate skills.

Indigenous Knowledge: what is it, where do I find it, how can I use it?
Lydia Gibson (UCL)
Paul Barnes (UCL)
Incorporating Indigenous Knowledge in ecological research is an ethical commitment and a practical consideration in negotiating access. More than this, it is an essential component of robust and effective ecology, informing successful research design. This workshop uses practical examples to demonstrate anthropological methods useful in engaging with indigenous knowledge

Getting social for science communication
Mike Whitfield (New Phytologist Trust)
Dani Rabaiotti (Zoological Society of London)
Terrified by Twitter? Flummoxed by Facebook? Or seeking an extra push for your science via social? We’ll introduce different social media platforms and tips and tricks for getting the most from them. Participants will have the chance to build and enhance their social media profile, learn about communicating their science, and create some games. You’ll leave equipped with tools to communicate your science effectively on social media!

Ecologists Without Borders: Confronting Challenges in Cross-Border Biodiversity Management
George Smith (Blackthorn Ecology)
Elizabeth O’Reilly (CIEEM Project Officer)
Ecosystems do not respect political borders. Borders, however, frequently present challenges to managing biodiversity in cross-border sites, catchments and species populations. This workshop will take the island of Ireland as a case study and look at challenges and solutions in biodiversity management across jurisdictions that differ in policy and practice.

OURsoils:  developing citizen science and public engagement
BES Education Team and Nick Voulvoulis & Caroline Howe (Imperial College London)
The BES, Imperial College and OPAL are developing a nationwide programme of citizen science and public engagement.  OURsoils seeks to Observe, Understand and Research, Respect and Re-imagine Soils.  This workshop is an interactive chance to get involved, develop ideas, learn from each other and share experiences in taking this project forward.

How to be a good Associate Editor
BES Publications Team 
This workshop will provide training for Associate Editors handling manuscript for any ecology journal. It will cover: How to assess a manuscript on initial submission, finding reviewers, how to assess reviewer comments, handling revisions, and writing good recommendation letters to authors.

Publication ethics for researchers
BES Publications Team
This panel and Q&A will discuss publication ethics issues in research (including authorship and plagiarism). It look at how to avoid issues before they happen, but will also show the systems in place for dealing with problem and show that even post-publication problems can be fixable.

Work–Life Balance in Real Life
Andrea Baier & Rob Brooker
In this panel discussion, invited speakers share how they have juggled different challenging life situations throughout their academic careers and discuss the approaches they take that help them balance their work and personal lives.

Enabling Work–Life Balance in Your Research Group
Andrea Baier & Rob Brooker
There is a lot group leaders can do to allow all team members to reach a healthier work–life balance. This workshop explores the importance of role modelling and equips attendees with simple strategies that they can take back to their own institutions and start implementing right away.

Careers Outside of Academia
BES Education Team
Join us for this increasingly popular discussion, in which members of the panel will share their experiences of forming a career outside of academia. Representing a breadth of ecological careers, each panel member will give an overview of their respective role and provide advice on the transition from academia.

Education Alumni Network: Get involved
BES Education Team
Whether you have taken part in BES Education and Public Engagement activities, or are considering getting involved in the future, join us at this event in celebration of your successes. We will also be asking you to contribute your thoughts and ideas to help shape the future of the BES’ Education Strategy for 2020-23.

Engaging with schools, youth groups and home educators
Chris Jeffs (BES) & Francisca Sconce (Royal Entomological Society)
This workshop will provide a practical toolkit for organising STEM education activities for under-18 students. Lightning presentations from STEM educators will highlight the diverse range of communication methods and support networks available for communicating your research, and set up an interactive session to develop your own ideas.