By Tim Penny
In the last week of May 2016, the BEEHAVE group had a great opportunity to display our models during the Environment and Sustainability Institute (ESI) showcase. This was a two-day review of representative projects conducted by ESI staff encompassing the range of high impact and locally relevant research engaging Cornish stakeholders. The event was both an important evaluation of ESI and a chance for everyone working at the institute to learn more about the projects of other research groups.
Juliet, Matthias, and Grace presented the models to the independent external reviewer, Professor Dame Georgina Mace of University College London, with a live demonstration of BEEHAVE and BEESCOUT and an impact video containing messages from the various stakeholders .
Additionally, a room was set aside for the group to demonstrate BEEHAVE, BEESCOUT, and BEEMAPP to other researchers in ESI. The models were displayed on large screens with the whole group on hand to run BEEHAVE through different scenarios of Varroa infestation (a disease carrying mite) and beekeeping interventions and to discuss the project and its applications to science and agriculture.
The showcase was a huge success and very enjoyable. The models are perfect for these occasions; they are easy to use and understand, as anyone can run their own scenarios through the options on the interface tab. Everybody had a lot of fun and asked some very interesting questions. It was an excellent opportunity for everyone to mingle and discuss their research with each other and for us to introduce the models to so many new people.
Photo of ESI Showcase © Matt Jessop
Tim Penny is a Research Assistant on the BBSRC funded project “An integrated model for Predicting bumblebee population success and pollination services in agro-Ecosystems”. He has an MSc in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation from Imperial College London and a BSc in Animal Behaviour from the University of Sheffield.