[Coral-List] Solicitation for Participant Applications to Attend the Second Coral Bleaching Research Coordination Network Workshop July 1-3 in Bremen Germany

[Rebecca Vega Thurber]

The NSF funded Coral Bleaching Research Coordination Network (Coral
Bleaching RCN) will be hosting a *second* workshop to develop
recommendations for how coral researchers can best *archive* and *preserve*
bleaching samples for a variety of downstream analyses (e.g., omics,
physiology, geochemistry, paleontology) and collaborative research efforts.
The workshop will be held* July 1-3 2020 at the Center for Marine
Environmental Sciences (MARUM) in Bremen, Germany (*
*https://www.marum.de/en/index.html)* <https://www.marum.de/en/index.html)>*
just prior to the ICRS meeting*.

We seek input and participation from researchers across a broad range of
disciplines (i.e., biology, physiology, geology, ecology, biogeochemistry,
physical oceanography, data analytics etc.) and at various career stages.
Applicants must hold a Ph.D. or equivalent to be eligible to apply.
Applicants need not be US citizens or residents of the USA. Hotel
accommodation and lunches will be provided (airfare is not included).

Temperature stress is the single largest threat to coral reefs globally and
is the focal topic of the newly established Coral Bleaching RCN. In July
2016, coral scientists from across the US participated in a workshop and
recognized that to most effectively improve the rate of coral bleaching
discovery, we would need to explore ways to increase efficiencies in how we
conduct research, bring together researchers that do not traditionally work
together, and create an interdisciplinary collaborative network.

To increase efficiency, we aim to develop recommendations in *sample
preservation, archiving,* and *sharing*. Our ability to determine how
corals may or may not survive this century will be enhanced by implementing
systematic methods for sample archiving, making those archives known to the
broader community for collaboration, and coordinating and integrating
interdisciplinary research efforts. These activities alone should help
increase the rate of discovery in the field of coral bleaching.

To this end, the goals of the second Coral Bleaching RCN workshop are as
follows:

i. Develop recommendations for the preservation and archiving of coral
bleaching experiment specimens, so that they can be shared effectively for
a wide variety of downstream analyses.

ii. Collate a list of ongoing experiments and archived specimens, so new
researchers can propose collaborations to make additional measurements
within, or contributions to, existing studies.

iii. Provide a platform for the formation of multi-PI interdisciplinary
teams to address the most pressing themes in coral bleaching research
(bleaching mechanisms, bleaching recovery processes, and bleaching
resistance and refugia.

Note: Workshop participants must agree to fully attend all three days of
the workshop in Bremen, complete all of the pre- and post-workshop
activities, and potentially host an Early Career Trainee through the Coral
Bleaching RCN program. Workshop participants will be provided with
shared-room hotel accommodations and lunches during the workshop.

To apply, please visit
https://u.osu.edu/grottoli.1/coral-bleaching-rcn/workshop-2-sample-archiving-1-3-july-2020/
and download the application forms and submit your application  to Dr.
Rebecca Vega Thurber (rvegathurber at gmail.com)* by 13 December 2019 *with*
Coral Bleaching RCN Workshop in the subject line*.

For questions, contact Dr. Vega Thurber directly.


-- 
Dr. Rebecca Vega Thurber (she/her)
Associate Professor of Microbiology
Oregon State University
454 Nash Hall
Corvallis OR  97331-3804, U.S.A
541-737-1851 (office) 541-737-0496 (FAX)
rvegathurber at gmail.com;Rebecca.Vega-Thurber at oregonstate.edu
<Rebecca.Vega.Thurber at oregonstate.edu>