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| Southeastern Ecology and Evolution Conference | |
|---|---|
| Name | Southeastern Ecology and Evolution Conference |
| Status | Active |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Location | Rotating venues across the southeastern United States |
| First | 1990s |
| Discipline | Ecology; Evolutionary Biology; Conservation Biology |
| Organizer | Regional academic consortiums; professional societies |
Southeastern Ecology and Evolution Conference The Southeastern Ecology and Evolution Conference is an annual regional meeting that brings together researchers, educators, and students in ecology and evolutionary biology across the southeastern United States. The conference convenes participants from universities, museums, government agencies, and nonprofit organizations to present original research, foster collaborations, and mentor early-career scientists. Attendees represent a broad cross-section of institutions and programs and often proceed to present at national and international venues.
The conference serves as a nexus linking scholars from University of Florida, Duke University, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of Georgia, North Carolina State University, Auburn University, Clemson University, University of Tennessee, University of South Carolina, Florida State University, Vanderbilt University, University of Alabama, Mississippi State University, University of Mississippi, Louisiana State University, University of Kentucky, University of Louisville, Georgia Institute of Technology, Emory University, Wake Forest University, Temple University, University of Miami, University of Central Florida, University of Puerto Rico, East Carolina University, Western Carolina University, Appalachian State University, University of Richmond, College of William & Mary, Virginia Tech, Howard University, University of Virginia, Johns Hopkins University, George Washington University, American Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution, Florida Museum of Natural History, Coker Arboretum, Bok Tower Gardens, Everglades National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge and regional research stations. Featured topics often intersect the missions of National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, United States Geological Survey, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Smithsonian Institution, and state natural heritage programs.
Origins trace to collaborations among faculty at University of Georgia, University of Florida, Duke University, North Carolina State University, Clemson University, and Auburn University in the 1990s, catalyzed by graduate training initiatives funded by National Science Foundation grants and regional workshops hosted at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and University of South Carolina. Over time the meeting incorporated representatives from American Society of Naturalists, Ecological Society of America, Society for the Study of Evolution, Society for Conservation Biology, Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative, Long Term Ecological Research Network, and state chapters of The Wildlife Society and Botanical Society of America. The conference expanded geographically to include campuses such as University of Puerto Rico and research centers like Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution and Gulf Coast Research Laboratory.
Governance typically involves steering committees elected from participating institutions including representatives from University of Florida, Duke University, Emory University, Vanderbilt University, University of Georgia, Florida State University, North Carolina State University, Clemson University, and Louisiana State University. Administrative support often comes from academic units such as departments of ecology and evolutionary biology, organismal biology programs, and campus offices of research. Funding and sponsorship derive from agencies and organizations including National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Environmental Protection Agency, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Smithsonian Institution, National Geographic Society, Society for Conservation Biology, Ecological Society of America, American Society of Naturalists, Society for the Study of Evolution, Gulf Research Program, Pew Charitable Trusts, Ford Foundation, and regional foundations. Partnerships with journals like Ecology, Evolution, Molecular Ecology, Journal of Biogeography, Conservation Biology, American Naturalist, Journal of Ecology, Oikos, Methods in Ecology and Evolution, Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment enhance visibility.
Each annual meeting rotates among host institutions such as University of Georgia, Duke University, University of Florida, Clemson University, University of South Carolina, Florida State University, Louisiana State University, Vanderbilt University, North Carolina State University, Auburn University, and University of Tennessee. Themes have included biodiversity and biogeography, climate change and phenology, urban ecology, freshwater ecology, coastal and marine ecology, restoration ecology, evolutionary genomics, phylogeography, disease ecology, insect-plant interactions, mutualisms, behavioral ecology, and conservation policy. Invited plenaries have featured scholars affiliated with Harvard University, Princeton University, Yale University, Stanford University, University of California, Berkeley, University of Washington, Columbia University, University of Chicago, University of Michigan, Oxford University, Cambridge University, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Smithsonian Institution, and Scripps Institution of Oceanography.
The conference honors excellence with awards such as best student oral presentation, best student poster, early career researcher awards, and lifetime achievement recognitions coordinated with partners like Ecological Society of America, Society for the Study of Evolution, American Society of Naturalists, Society for Conservation Biology, National Science Foundation graduate fellowships, and named awards supported by alumni and donor families from institutions such as University of Florida, Duke University, University of Georgia, Clemson University, and Vanderbilt University. Winners often proceed to receive national honors including MacArthur Fellowship, National Medal of Science, Guggenheim Fellowship, Sloan Research Fellowship, and election to the National Academy of Sciences.
Participants encompass faculty, postdoctoral researchers, graduate students, undergraduate researchers, staff scientists from U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NOAA Fisheries, U.S. Geological Survey, Forest Service, and curators from Smithsonian Institution, Florida Museum of Natural History, American Museum of Natural History, Louisiana State University Museum of Natural Science, and regional natural history museums. Student chapters from Ecological Society of America, Society for the Study of Evolution, Society for Conservation Biology, Botanical Society of America, The Wildlife Society, Association for Tropical Biology and Conservation, and campus groups at University of Florida, Duke University, University of Georgia, Florida State University, Clemson University, North Carolina State University, Vanderbilt University, and Louisiana State University actively participate. Outreach activities often engage partners such as Nature Conservancy, Sierra Club, Audubon Society, Conservation International, World Wildlife Fund, and state departments of natural resources.
The meeting accelerates collaborations that lead to publications in journals like Ecology Letters, Proceedings of the Royal Society B, PNAS, Science Advances, Nature Ecology & Evolution, Molecular Ecology Resources, Journal of Animal Ecology, Global Change Biology, Biological Conservation, Landscape Ecology, and Evolution Letters. It contributes to training programs tied to grants from National Science Foundation, National Institutes of Health, Fulbright Program, Department of Energy, and fosters partnerships with regional initiatives such as Long Term Ecological Research Network, Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative, Emerging Infectious Diseases Program, and state biodiversity inventories. Alumni of the conference have advanced to faculty positions at Harvard University, Princeton University, Stanford University, University of California system, University of Michigan, Yale University, Oxford University, Cambridge University, Max Planck Institutes, and leadership roles in agencies including NOAA, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Geological Survey, National Park Service, and nonprofit organizations such as Nature Conservancy and World Wildlife Fund.