Organizers invite applications for the 4th TraitTrain International Plant Functional Traits Course (TraitTrain4).
This course is intended for graduate students, M.Sc. and PhD, and will offer hands-on experience with collecting and exploring plant functional traits data in a real-life field research project setting. The course will also include an introduction to the use of plant trait data in climate-change research and ecosystem ecology.
TraitTrain4 will address several core scientific questions with an emphasis on key skills, including:
- Collecting original data in the field,
- Developing data management skills,
- Developing computational and statistical skills, and
- Generating data summaries and basic hypothesis tests.
Participants will be introduced to the environmental, ecological, and taxonomic diversity of the region, and will be involved in one of the following projects:
- Assessing the role of climate and biotic factors in determining plant community leaf trait composition,
- Assessing how temperature variation and leaf functional traits influence leaf ecophysiology,
- Using a trait-based approach to assess how local plant communities and populations respond to experimental climate and grazing treatments, and
- Measuring how functional trait composition influences ecosystem functioning by measuring carbon dioxide (CO2)-flux within and across plant communities.
The course fee covers costs for accommodation, food, and transport in Svalbard. For students at the University of Bergen, the University of Arizona, and UNIS, funding is available to help offset cost of travel to Svalbard. Some external participants may also be offered funding to support travel to Svalbard.
Applications must include a short personal statement describing how the course fits into the applicant's goals and aspirations and a curriculum vitae. Applicants should also rank the four projects listed above in order of interest.
Applications should be send to Vigdis Vandvik or Brian Enquist by 1 April 2018.
For questions, contact:
Vigdis Vandvik
Email: vigdis.vandvik [at] uib.no
Phone: +47 4730 1794
Brian J. Enquist
Email: benquist [at] email.arizona.edu