A field course in digital forest monitoring techniques is currently being held at Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden (XTBG) from July 26 to August 26. The course is being led by Charles Cannon (Texas Tech Univ. and XTBG) and David Lohman (City College of New York) and is supported by the Program for Field Studies office at XTBG. The course is jointly funded by the U.S. National Science Foundation and the Natural Science Foundation of China. The participants include 12 students from universities in China, 12 graduate students from US universities and 6 from developing Asian countries.

The course focuses on the major issues surrounding tropical Asian forest management and the use of modern and widespread digital technology in biotic surveys to monitor forest change on a human scale. A second but equally important objective is the exploration of novel means of global collaboration and communication, including making and editing videos.

 The course is composed of three main portions: 1) a series of lectures given by leading scientists, 2) discussion groups of important publications and critical topics; and 3) field exercises and experiments to determine the best and most effective protocols for gathering digital rapidly and meaningfully.

 The course is still going on. Guest lecturers cover current issues and hot topics while small group discussions explore their implications.

  A lecturer is explaining sth to two students. 

Group photo of the participants and the lecturers.