Call for Applications: Stoichiometric Ecotoxicology, a NIMBioS Investigative Workshop

[Catherine Crawley]

The National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) is now accepting applications for its Investigative Workshop, "Stoichiometric Ecotoxicology," to be held January 17-19, 2018, at NIMBioS.

Objectives: Accurately assessing the risks of contaminants requires more than an understanding of the effects of contaminants on individual organisms, but requires further understanding of complex ecological interactions, elemental cycling, and interactive effects of natural and contaminant stressors. There is increasing evidence that organisms experience interactive effects of contaminant stressors and food conditions, such as resource stoichiometry and nutrient availability. The development of ecotoxicological models over the last few decades have significantly contributed to interpreting how contaminants impact organisms and cycle through food webs. Existing modeling efforts take a variety of approaches to predict the effects of diverse chemical contaminants on organismal growth and survival; however, current models do not consider dynamical interactive effects of contaminant stressors and stoichiometric constraints, such as nutrient/light availability and food quality. This investigative workshop will provide a forum for discussions of incorporating multiple essential elements and contaminants in ecotoxicological models. The discussions and breakout sessions throughout the workshop will shed light on nutrient and chemical contaminant cycling and can ultimately help improve toxicological risk assessment protocols. The objectives for the workshop include:

• Discussing the importance of linking Ecological Stoichiometry with Ecotoxicology and summarizing the current state of the synthesis of these two theories
• Formulating a series of empirically testable and robust models of individual and population dynamics subject to stoichiometric constraints and contaminant stressors
• Identifying future directions for models to be used in practice for ecological risk assessments and determining areas where empirical data are lacking in order to parameterize, test, and improve the models

Location: NIMBioS at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville;

Co-Organizers: Angela Peace, Mathematics and Statistics, Texas Tech Univ. and Paul Frost, Biology, Trent Univ.

For more information about the workshop and a link to the online application form, go to http://www.nimbios.org/workshops/WS_ecotox

Participation in NIMBioS workshops is by application only. Individuals with a strong interest in the topic are encouraged to apply, and successful applicants will be notified within two weeks after the application deadline. If needed, financial support for travel, meals, and lodging is available for workshop attendees.

Application deadline: September 25, 2017

The National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) (http://www.nimbios.org) brings together researchers from around the world to collaborate across disciplinary boundaries to investigate solutions to basic and applied problems in the life sciences. NIMBioS is sponsored by the National Science Foundation, with additional support from The University of Tennessee, Knoxville.

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