The Atwood Colloquium in Ecology and Evolution will be held on April 8-9, 2011, at the Koffler House. The annual two-day event provides the opportunity for our students, postdocs, and faculty to showcase their own work and learn about other work in our department. Biologists from all three University of Toronto campuses as well as the Royal Ontario Museum (ROM) participate in this event.  2011 Program now posted!

The event is highlighted by the Atwood Lecture, which is given by an outstanding senior scientist who is selected by the graduate students. Two rising stars, one ecologist and one evolutionary biologist, are also invited to participate. This year’s speakers are:

2011 Keynote Junior Speaker in Ecology: Dr. Jennifer Rudgers, Rice University. Dr. Rudgers studies the frequency and strength of mutualistic interactions, the mechanisms underlying them, mutualisms, and the biotic and abiotic factors that mediate their prevalence in natural ecosystems. More information about Dr. Rudgers and her work can be found here.

2011 Keynote Junior Speaker in Evolution: Dr. Daniel Bolnick, University of Texas. Dr. Bolnick studies the reciprocal interaction between ecology and evolution-- namely, how predation, competition, and parasitism impose natural selection on species, and how microevolutionary changes in species can alter ecological interactions. More information about Dr. Bolnick and his work can be found here.

2011 Carl Atwood Memorial Lecturer: Dr. Ray Hilborn, University of Washington. Dr. Hilborn is a world authority on fisheries resource management and conservation. Major areas of current and past research interest include Bayesian analysis of decision making in natural resources, adaptive management of renewable resources, the dynamics of the Serengeti ecosystem in east Africa, the role of hatcheries in management of Pacific salmon, the ability of institutions to learn from experience, statistical methods in testing dynamic ecological hypotheses, the analysis of migration and dispersal from mark–recapture data, and the ecological dynamics of fishing fleets. He is a Fellow of The Royal Society of Canada and received the Volvo Environmental Prize in 2006. More information about his research, publications, and streaming video lectures can be found on his website.

The Colloquium provides a fantastic opportunity to learn about the most exciting research in ecology and evolution being done at UofT and abroad. At the various social events surrounding the seminars, students, postdocs, faculty, and guests interact, learn, and generally have a good time!