​In December, Dr. Nelson gave an invited presentation on vulnerability assessment at the Seminário de Avaliação da Seca de 2010-2016 no Nordeste do Brasil (Workshop for the Evaluation of the Northeast Brazil Drought 2010 – 2016), hosted by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation, the World Bank, and the Northeast Development Bank, in Fortaleza, Brazil. The workshop brought together climatologists, hydrologists, policy makers, water managers, and one or two social scientists to talk about drought impacts and the ways in which different state bureaucracies responded. The objective was to identify best practices across the states, to identify ongoing challenges, and to develop a research agenda to respond to these challenges.

Workshop information can be found here. 

Michael Lonneman attended a workshop on spatial agent-based modeling that was organized by the National Socio-Environmental Synthesis Center (SESYNC). Agent-based models simulate how heterogeneous agents interact with each other and the environment, adapt to changing conditions, ultimately producing emergent outcomes and patterns. The 5-day intensive workshop was designed to introduce participants to the theory, creation, and evaluation of spatially explicit agent-based models, particularly those focused on exploring the dynamics and interconnections between social and ecological systems. Michael is building on the skills and knowledge learned at the workshop to build an agent-based model that explores how the interaction between landowners and laborers to specify the terms of agricultural production influences land use and environmental change.