SHORT NOTICE! Second Annual Environmental DNA Technical Exchange Workshop (Virtual)
24-25 August 2017 Sponsored by the Government eDNA Working Group Venue: On-line webinars and web discussion groups Purpose Last year the inaugural Environmental DNA Training and Technical Exchange Workshop was held in Denver, CO, USA and met with terrific success. The organizers of the workshop and many of the 2016 participants decided to experiment with a virtual workshop for 2017, to be followed by another "live" workshop in 2018. This technical exchange workshop focuses on the use of aquatic environmental DNA (eDNA) for the surveying and monitoring of macrofauna and wetland and aquatic macrofaunal communities. In particular, the workshop seeks to provide an opportunity for practitioners to come together to discuss new developments or challenges with the “nuts and bolts” of eDNA applications and to learn from each other. As of now, the workshop is intended have a “highly applied” flavor and, at least for primary presentation slots, is not intended to be a forum for describing basic research, early-stage technical advances, new theoretical developments, or mere descriptions of past and on-going eDNA monitoring projects. A virtual poster/blitz presentation session will be provided that is more appropriate for these types of information. Also, for now, the core audience is expected to be comprised of individuals that are part of government eDNA surveys and monitoring programs, whether members of government agencies or private contractors/academicians working for or directly supporting government eDNA programs. Government agencies could include, among others, federal, provincial, state, county, or municipal organizations. There is NO COST to register for the workshop. If you would like to attend, please e-mail your name, contact information, and affiliation, along with a 1-sentence description of your eDNA work or duties (e.g., “I lead the State of Maine’s new eDNA program”) to: Richard Lance at [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Please cc Denise Lindsay at [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]> Please submit your registration request no later than 23 August 2017 (earlier if you would like to give a presentation; see below). Registration numbers will be important in order to verify that available webcast and teleconference capabilities are adequate for the workshop. Please register even if you will only be able to join part of the workshop. If you would like to speak during one of the sessions (see below), please include, at least initially, a draft title in your registration e-mail to Dr. Lance and Ms. Lindsay, WHICH MUST BE RECEIVED BY 02 August. The workshop organizing committee will review proposed presentations and select those that best fit the workshop aims. The workshop organizing committee retains the right to accept or reject any proposed presentation. Full abstracts for selected presentations will be due by 11 August 2016. The abstract should include a title, authorship, and affiliations, with a main text that is between 100 and 500 words in length. We will attempt to host a “virtual poster” session or blitz presentation session, which will be comprised of no more than three slides and a maximum of five minutes to present materials, followed by at least five minutes for questions from the audience (total time slot to not exceed 10 minutes). Slides will be provided to all registered attendees for viewing prior to the start of the workshop. If you’d like to present in the virtual poster session, please note that desire in your registration e-mail and provide a draft title. Slides must be submitted to the conference organizers no later than 17 August. As above, please provide a draft title in your registration e-mail to Dr. Lance and Ms. Lindsay BY 02 August. All presenters will be required to make themselves available for a practice webinar 10-14 days prior to the workshop in order to work out any issues with available webcast and teleconference capabilities. PLEASE pass the word to any potentially interested parties! ************************************************************* Preliminary Program Session Topics and Other Agenda Items THURSDAY, Aug 24, 10:00 am CDT (UTC-5) Platform Talk 1: TBD Session 1: eDNA Survey Design and Execution Session 2: eDNA Sample Collection and DNA Isolation Session 3: eDNA Marker Design, Testing, and Quality Metrics Session 4: Managing, Interpreting and Using eDNA Data Web-Chat 1: Starter Topic: eDNA Survey Standards, Methods and Marker Reliability, and Inter-lab Transferability FRIDAY, Aug 25, 9:30 am CDT (UTC-5) Platform Talk 2: TBD Session 5: Aquatic DNA Metabarcoding Protocols and Analysis Web-Chat 2: Starter Topic: What is coming up, the future of eDNA application. Virtual Poster/Blitz Talk Session Key Dates 2017 02 August: Registration for potential presenters 11 August: Full abstracts due from selected presenters 17 August: Slides for virtual poster session due 23 August: Last day to register for workshop 24-25 August: Workshop Richard Lance, PhD Leader, Conservation & Ecological Genetics Team US Army ERDC Environmental Laboratory CEERD-EPP 3909 Halls Ferry Road Vicksburg, MS 39180 office: 601-634-3971 mobile:601-831-2909 [email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>
