Conference: Tropical Forest Futures

The tropics are home to the largest diversity of species on Earth, and the future of the tropics has significant implications for the planet. Scientists predict that the most serious impacts of environmental change will likely be in the tropics, where almost half of the planet’s human population resides. Understanding how tropical ecosystems will change requires a long-term perspective, scientific expertise, and a strategic approach. Over the past 100 years, generations of scientists have conducted field studies on Panama’s Barro Colorado Island, today considered the world’s best-studied tropical forest. Contributions from these studies have greatly advanced our current knowledge of tropical ecosystems, but there is much more to understand about these complex environments. Our ability to anticipate the future of the tropics plays a critical role in the predictive capacity of Earth System Models (ESM). The Tropical Forest Future workshop will convene specialists in tropical studies to build on the last century of research and develop new methods for understanding and predicting changes to these important ecosystems. A series of three parallel working groups will draw upon diverse experts and next-generation leaders to build the basis for future directions in tropical forest studies. Each working group will explore promising new technologies, approaches, and strategic opportunities to advance future directions in research. A group on Tropical Plant Community Dynamics will aim to determine the combination of theory, modeling, analyses, and data needed to assess the various forces responsible for maintenance of tree diversity. A group on Tropical Arthropod Monitoring for Global Change will examine next generation monitoring technologies, including metabarcoding, bioacoustics, and systems for Automated Monitoring of Insects (AMI). A group on Integrating Metabolomics, Functional Traits, and Life History in Forest Ecology will synthesize pre-existing metabolomic, morphological, physiological, and demographic trait datasets to inform models of species interactions and predict plant responses to anthropogenic change. An additional, nonconcurrent plenary workshop entitled “Building Equitable and Inclusive Forest Research Programs in the Tropics” will bring together scientists of all career levels and explore the challenges and opportunities around developing greater equity and inclusivity in tropical research. Outputs from these three workshops will define the big questions and the future of the frontier of tropical science, as well as identifying key pathways and multidisciplinary opportunities for future research in a way that is inclusive and collaborative. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.