Canadian EFI

Canadian Chapter of Ecological Forecasting

CEFI Mission: The ultimate aim is to help mitigate human-mediated impacts through improved ecological forecasting by creating and maintaining a network of scientists across academia, industry, NGOs and government who have the common goals to advance basic science, increase data sharing, and improve how we model in an uncertain future. Learn more and connect with CEFI community at: https://canadianefi.weebly.com/

CEFI Publication

Bodner, K., C.R Firkowski, J.R. Bennett, C. Brookson, M. Dietze, S. Green, J. Hughes, J. Kerr, M. Kunegel-Lion, S.J. Leroux, E. McIntire, P.K. Molnár, C. Simpkins, E. Tekwa, A. Watts, M-J. Fortin (2021) Bridging the Divide between Ecological Forecasts and Environmental Decision Making. Ecosphere 12 (12): e03869. https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.3869.

Announcement!

The Canadian Chapter is hosting a week-long short course July 24-28, 2023 titled “FORECASTING FOR DECISION-MAKING: ​AN EPIDEMIOLOGICAL & ECOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVE”
Applications are now closed

Details:

See the full description of the course here.

This 5-day Summer School is designed to help participants build decision-relevant forecasts. Course materials will draw from general best forecasting practices as well as forecasting examples from different systems. Each day will consist of interactive lectures, practical exercises and time to work on a group project. Lectures will cover topics including producing reproducible forecasts, forecasting with static vs. dynamic models, understanding and propagating uncertainties, incorporating decision-making priorities into forecasts, engaging with a lens of data sovereignty and data justice, and strategies for effective communication. Practical exercises will complement the lectures of the day. For the group project, participants will work together to either build or refine a forecasting model for one of three case studies related to infectious disease control, fisheries management or water quality monitoring using data collected by different institutions (e.g., Ontario Ministry of Health, Department of Fisheries and Ocean, National Ecological Observatory Network). Participants will learn to troubleshoot, iterate, and refine their forecasts with support from instructors. The course will conclude with group presentations on the models and forecasts developed during the week. 

Participating organizations and institutions: This course has been developed by the Canadian Chapter of the Ecological Forecasting Initiative in partnership with the Canadian Network for Modelling Infectious Diseases, the Mathematics for Public Health at the Fields Institute for Research in Mathematical Sciences, the Ecological Forecasting Initiative in the United States, and Apex Resource Management Solutions.