Conference
	Announcement of the International Symposium on [from 20/03/2007 00:00 to 23/03/2007 00:00]

Goal: Our ability to understand, predict and mitigate the effects of global change on marine ecosystems and their services is at present heavily dependent upon the application of coupled atmosphere ocean ecosystem models. These modeling approaches suffer from a number of problems many of which are a result of the parameterizations employed. With this as the background, this symposium strives to identify weaknesses in our approaches to parameterization of modeling tools, gaps in understanding and aid in the development of best practices for their future development and application. Furthermore, this symposium is intended to enhance productive interactions among researchers working on parameterization of vital rates and limits within and between trophic levels of the marine food webs for implementation in coupled modeling approaches. This symposium will provide a review, synthesis, and forum for lively discussion of the present understanding of trophic interactions at key interfaces in particular identifying key knowledge gaps and providing a vision for the development of future modeling strategies.

Description: From the 20th to the 23rd of March 2007 an international symposium on “Parameterization of Trophic Interactions in Ecosystem Modelling” will take place that is jointly organized by EUR-OCEANS WP4 and WP7. The symposium will be kindly hosted by Javier Ruiz (CSIC) in Cadiz, Spain. A list of the invited speakers and preliminary titles and abstracts of their presentations are attached. Eight sessions will be distributed over four days, and each session will start with a keynote speaker introducing the state of the art in the respective area. It is envisaged to publish manuscripts based on these presentations in a special issue of the Journal of Geophysical Research ­ Oceans.

Registration: Participants are requested to register in advance, by sending an e-mail to Christian Möllmann (christian.moellmann@uni-hamburg.de). Registration will commence October 15 and be terminated November 30, 2006. The number of participants is limited to 60 and the steering committee will, if the meeting is over subscribed select from applicants based on merit.

Steering Committee: Michael St. John; Patrick Montfray; Javier Ruiz; Icarus Allen; Philippe Cury; Frede Thingstad.
For more information please contact: Christian Möllmann (christian.moellmann@uni-hamburg.de)

Location: Hotel Monasterio, El Puerto de Santa Maria (Cadiz), Spain

Financial support: Financial support will be provided by EUR-OCEANS WP4 and WP7 who will jointly organize this symposium, as well as EUR-OCEANS Member Organisations via EUR-OCEANS support to these institutions. Financial support has also been made available by the IGBP programs IMBER and GLOBEC as well as the GODAE program.

Documents: author: Rabea DIEKMANN Contact: Mike St. John (michael.st.john@uni-hamburg.de)