life on the edge
Graduate students: Apply to participate in the CIEE Living Data Project working group “Life on the Edge”
Group Leaders: Karen Harper (St. Mary’s University / Dalhousie University), Anna Dabros (Natural Resources Canada-Canadian Forest Service), and Phil Burton (University of Northern BC)
Date of Working Group: November 10th-14th, 2025 (full time)
In person location: Loon Lake Lodge, Maple Ridge, BC
Deadline: May 27, 2025
Apply here : https://ubc.ca1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_5vwIaOZCPp2n8Cq
It is estimated that more than 70% of the world’s forests are within 1 km of an edge as a result of anthropogenic disturbances such as forestry and agriculture. Such ‘forest edges’ - the interface between forested and unforested areas - can have large influences on vegetation. But we still don’t understand what determines the extent of these edge effects, for example, how these effects differ between types of forests and edges or across geographic regions. This is compounded by differences in observational methods and analyses between researchers. During this week-long working group, you will collaborate with researchers and graduate students from across Canada to conduct an in-depth analysis of the CanFERN (Canadian Forest Edge Research Network) database. We are hopeful that this analysis will help forest practitioners quantify the effective width of edge vegetation, a key determinant for assessing the real footprint of various disturbances in forest ecosystems. Understanding the extent of forest edge influence and thus the amount of interior forest habitat for native biodiversity is crucial for forest management and conservation practices.
The working group will be held 10-14th November in Maple Ridge, BC, and all expenses (including travel, accommodation, meals) will be covered. Graduate students will work with peers and experts to answer key questions in forest ecology and have the opportunity to co-author publications. Students may also be eligible for two course credits. This is a great way to learn new skills and add to your CV!
Students must be currently registered in a graduate program in ecology, environmental science, evolution or a related discipline in a Canadian university. Students should be enrolled in a CIEE (Canadian Institute of Ecology and Evolution) institution or they or their supervisor must be a current CSEE (Canadian Society for Ecology and Evolution) member. The highest priority will go to students who have already taken the Living Data project courses “Synthesis statistics for ecology and evolution” and “Scientific collaboration in ecology and evolution” OR who are registered or commit to register to take these courses in fall 2025. Together with these two courses, participation in this working group will fulfill most of the requirements for a CIEE Certificate in Synthetic and Collaborative Science. Students who have participated in a previous Living Data Project working group are ineligible.