Professional Development from ESA

Get your professional development from your professional society! These scientific, technical and professional virtual events are a benefit to members and certified ecologists, and a resource for the community. While we ramp up to full capacity and resource, keep note of this page and our webinar schedule — and your email inbox — for opportunities to gain valuable skills at a fraction of the cost you’ll find elsewhere. And as always, ESA members save the most!

Contact webinars@esa.org with questions about sessions. Stay subscribed to ESA communications to ensure you receive the event recording and follow-up materials.

We are offering fee waivers for those affected by reductions in the federal workforce and research funding. Please contact esahq@esa.org

Please be aware that registration will be closed 1 hour before the event.

Upcoming Sessions

Communicating Science to Decision-makers

Facilitated by: Gina Errico

The purpose of this workshop is to help attendees identify target audiences that are vital to supporting their work and discussing how to effectively reach these groups. We will cover how to properly engage and connect with different decision-making groups, including government officials, institutional administration and community members. Attendees will work on developing a framework to address decision-makers by highlighting key aspects of their work and integrating skills learned throughout the workshop.

• • Key takeaways include:
    • • Identify target decision making audiences.
      • Discuss appropriate communication and engagement tactics
      • Develop a framework to effectively approach and connect with decision makers
      • Utilize peer feedback to enhance our communication strategies

• • Who is this for? Anyone interested in approaching decision making groups more effectively.

• • Career Level: All levels.

• • Prerequisite Education or Experience: No prior experience necessary, just an interest in the material discussed.

April 29, 2025 2:00 PM-3:30 PM ET

REGISTER

Student Members $5 Regular Members $10 Certified Ecologists $20 Non-Members $40

Participation worth 0.38 CEUs toward ESA recertification Category I(a)

Quantitative Methods in Ecology Workshop Series by the Black Ecologists Section

This five-part series, led by ESA’s Black Ecologists Section, covers key quantitative methods used in ecological research, from foundational statistics to machine learning. Sessions run monthly from March to July 2025. consisting of 5 sessions March through July.

Starts March 13, 2025 2:00-3:30 PM ET

• Foundations of Frequentist Statistics, March 13
• Meta-analysis in Ecology, (new date TBD)
• Ecological Spatial Statistics, May 22
• Introduction to Individual-based Modeling in Ecology, June 26
• Machine-learning Methods for Ecologists, July 17

Meta-analysis in Ecology

Facilitated by: Dr. Matt McCary

This workshop offers a comprehensive introduction to the principles and practical applications of meta-analyses in ecology. Participants will learn how to determine when a meta-analysis is appropriate, how to initiate one effectively, and the key steps involved, including data extraction and selecting the right model designs for analysis. Through a structured approach, this workshop will equip researchers with the essential ingredients to conduct a rigorous and insightful meta-analysis tailored to their specific research questions.

• Who is this for? The primary audience includes students and early-career researchers interested in quantitative methods in ecology.
• Career Level: Useful to all career levels, but most applicable to graduate students and early-career professionals.
• Prerequisite Education or Experience: No prerequisites.

(new date TBD)

REGISTER

Student Members $0 Regular Members $10 Certified Ecologists $20 Non-Members $40

Participation worth 0.38 CEUs toward ESA recertification Category I(a)

Ecological Spatial Statistics

Facilitated by: Dr. Maria Miriti

This workshop offers an introduction to spatial statistics in ecology. I will present an overview of point-pattern analyses, transect methods, and tools for assessing spatial nonrandomness. Participants will gain appreciation of the utility of spatial approaches and basic knowledge of determining when spatial approaches aid in ecological inference.

• Who is this for? The primary audience includes students and early-career researchers interested in quantitative methods in ecology.
• Career Level: Useful to all career levels, but most applicable to graduate students and early-career professionals.

May 22, 2025 2:00-3:30 PM ET

REGISTER

Student Members $0 Regular Members $10 Certified Ecologists $20 Non-Members $40

Participation worth 0.38 CEUs toward ESA recertification Category I(a)

Introduction to Individual-based Modeling in Ecology

Facilitated by: Dr. Senay Yitbarek

• Who is this for? The primary audience includes students and early-career researchers interested in quantitative methods in ecology.
• Career Level: Useful to all career levels, but most applicable to graduate students and early-career professionals.

June 26, 2025 2:00-3:30 PM ET

REGISTER

Student Members $0 Regular Members $10 Certified Ecologists $20 Non-Members $40

Participation worth 0.38 CEUs toward ESA recertification Category I(a)

Machine-learning Methods for Ecologists

Facilitated by: Dr. Gabby Nunez-Mir

This workshop explores machine learning applications in ecological research using R, with a focus on the mlr3 ecosystem. Participants will learn about the different types of machine-learning models, cross-validation techniques, hyperparameter tuning, and best practices for applying machine-learning models to ecological data.

• Who is this for? The primary audience includes students and early-career researchers interested in quantitative methods in ecology.
• Career Level: Useful to all career levels, but most applicable to graduate students and early-career professionals.

July 17, 2025 2:00-3:30 PM ET

REGISTER

Student Members $0 Regular Members $10 Certified Ecologists $20 Non-Members $40

Participation worth 0.38 CEUs toward ESA recertification Category I(a)

Tell Us What You Want to See!

We want this program to meet our members’ needs, so if there are particular topics you’d like to see us offer virtually, fill out this form.