Graduate/Professional Training Courses, Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation

[Chris Merkord]

Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation

Graduate/Professional Training Courses

FALL 2012/SPRING 2013

Front Royal, VA

 

For more information, visit http://conservationtraining.si.edu or e-mail SCBItraining@si.edu

 

Individual courses offer graduate credit or continuing education units. Visit our website for more details about each course, course costs, and credits earned.

 

Applied Climate Change

October 15-26, 2012

 

This course provides an overview of the knowledge, tools and resources needed to become more effective leaders and managers in adapting to climate change. Participants will develop practical skills through lectures, case studies, field assignments, study tours, and computer-based analyses. A field study tour of the Virginia Region provides an opportunity for viewing real-life climate change adaptation measures for water, biodiversity and the agricultural, tourism and wine industries.

 

Spatial Ecology, Geospatial Analysis & Remote Sensing

October 29-November 9, 2012

 

Learn to use GIS tools to address conservation research problems, quantifying effects of human-induced global changes on wildlife and biodiversity. Hands-on lab exercises (e.g. land cover mapping; home range analysis; modeling habitat selection; mapping species distributions) use remote sensing data and SCBI field surveys to monitor global changes, assess impacts on wildlife, and develop mitigating strategies.

 

Effective Conservation Leadership

November 4-10, 2012

 

This course provides an unparalleled professional development experience. Conservation practitioners, as well as students at the outset of their careers, become more effective leaders and managers through case studies and hands-on exploration of the leadership skills practiced in many professional fields. This course will apply effective leadership and communication skills and techniques to environmental and conservation issues.

 

Designing and Implementing a Biodiversity Action Plan for Conservation and Development

December 3-7, 2012

 

Learn strategies for developing and implementing a biodiversity action plan, particularly as they relate to companies involved in natural resource extraction or industrial development; international examples applied at the national and site specific levels to manage and conserve habitats and species will be a focus. Learn how BAPs relate to other development projects, such as the Environmental and Social Impact Assessments, how they improve biological knowledge and information, and the role of education and conservation programs.

 

Statistics for Ecology and Conservation Biology

March 3-14, 2013

 

Gain in-depth knowledge of analysis techniques for cutting-edge ecological research, employing R: classical regression models; mixed models; generalized linear models; generalized additive models; how to deal with the limitations of real datasets; and conservation-specific approaches.

 

Estimating Animal Abundance and Occupancy

April 1-12, 2013

 

The course is designed to provide a strong theoretical and analytical background to both graduate students and professionals in distance sampling, mark-recapture, and occupancy modeling techniques, with a strong focus on the practical use of field data in the programs DISTANCE, MARK and PRESENCE.

 

Species Monitoring & Conservation: Terrestrial Mammals

April 29-May 10, 2013

 

This course teaches current techniques in assessment and monitoring of wild mammal populations, including bats. Participants learn principles of study design; current field assessment methods; data analysis techniques including MARK and DISTANCE software; application of monitoring data to decision-making and population management; and collection and preparation of museum voucher specimens.