Bayesian modeling workshop with Dr. Kiona Ogle
Paris, 30 & 31 January, 2017

Summary: This workshop will provide a brief introduction to Bayesian and hierarchical Bayesian modeling. It includes presentation and discussion of basic concepts, including important elements of Bayesian statistics and hierarchical Bayesian modeling. Participants will have the opportunity to develop and implement a Bayesian model in OpenBUGS (in R).

Description: Ecologists are often faced with analyzing relatively complicated data. For example, ecological data sets can be spatially, temporally, or hierarchically structured; they may be missing relevant information; and they likely arise from nonlinear and/or non-Gaussian processes. Additionally, many contemporary problems in ecology require the synthesis of multiple sources and types of data. To accommodate this complexity, Bayesian and hierarchical Bayesian statistical methods are emerging as powerful tools for analyzing such data. This two-daylong workshop will provide an overview of Bayesian modeling at a relatively introductory level. This includes presentation and discussion of basic concepts, including important elements of Bayesian statistics and hierarchical Bayesian modeling.

We will also provide an OpenBUGS (Bayesian software package) demonstration. During the workshop, participants will have the opportunity to develop and implement a Bayesian model based on a selection of ecological problems and data. By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to understand the fundamentals of Bayesian modeling and develop basic hierarchical models. We will provide reference materials so participants can explore the topics in greater depth. These materials should serve as a jumping-off point for those interested in employing the methods in their own research, or for those who simply want to familiarize themselves with the topic.

Dr. Kiona Ogle