ModSim 2011

Dr Hazel Parry attended ModSim 2011 in Perth, Western Australia, as a local (Australian) session chair during December 2011.  

Dr Parry promoted the activities of the CRCNPB by giving a five minute introduction to the audience on the activities of the CRCNPB and how it had supported the session. She also promoted the activities of the CRC network B-DEMoN: Biosecurity Dispersal Ecology Modelling Network.

Prior to the meeting, Dr Parry encouraged attendance of CRCNPB members at this conference to give papers in this session.

The networking opportunities that were established by Dr Parry (an informal discussion session and a dinner) allowed plenty of time to discuss what was learnt from the presentations and to develop ideas. Much discussion focused on the relative merits of different dispersal modelling approaches, given particular research questions or hypotheses.

Specific methods with which to simulate dispersal, such as the application of dispersal kernals versus individual-based approaches was also discussed.

From this several ideas emerged to collaborate, both within the CRC and more widely. One example is to develop a proposal for a thematic issue of Environmental Modelling and Software journal on the subject of Spatial Population Modelling.

International collaboration opportunities for a number of participants in the CRCNPB were facilitated by the attendance of several international speakers and an international session chair. The session also fostered collaboration amongst existing CRCNPB participants interested in dispersal modelling for invasion ecology both with one another and with others outside the CRCNPB.