The Announcement of The 17th Advanced Fieldcourse in Ecology and Conservation – XTBG (AFEC-X 2025)

Registration deadline: until 18:00 on July31, 2025  

The loss of biodiversity and its impacts on human society have raised global concerns. As fundamental disciplines for understanding and conserving biodiversity, ecology and conservation biology have achieved remarkable advancements in recent years. Concurrently, enhancing the professional capacity of research institutions, conservation organizations and sustainable development agencies—while cultivating high-caliber conservation and research talents—has become a critical long-term mechanism for addressing environmental challenges.

Since 2009, Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences (XTBG) has held the annual training course Advanced Fieldcourse in Ecology and Conservation–XTBG (AFEC-X), offering modules in theory and practice of ecology and conservation. The course is open to postgraduate students, early-career researchers and relevant practitioners from China, South and Southeast Asian countries, and further afield. Through systematic theoretical instruction and field-based practical training, AFEC-X aims to (1) Enhance participants' professional competencies in ecology and conservation; (2) Foster academic collaboration among young researchers and institutions; (3) Develop human resources for global biodiversity conservation; and (4) Promote regional sustainable development and international cooperation.

Over the past 16 years, AFEC-X has received a total of 1,868 applications from more than 600 institutions across 65 countries, with 443 participants from 33 countries having successfully completed the full curriculum. 

This year, the 17th Advanced Fieldcourse in Ecology and Conservation - XTBG (AFEC-X 2025) will be held at XTBG from October to December.

01

About the Training

■ Target students

Training objectives 

(1) Improving research capability and confidence systematically in young scientists, and cultivate international talents and young conservation leaders in fields of the biodiversity conservation; 

(2) Fostering a regional network of young scientists, promoting the cooperation with international tropical biology researchers and ecological researchers, and building a platform for cooperation and communication on biodiversity conservation in the Asia Pacific region; 

(3) Promote China's influence in the World tropical biology research and ecological conservation. 

02 Training Content 

AFEC-X will be mainly instructed by professors and visiting professors from XTBG in the field of Ecology and Conservation Biology. Theoretical lectures and field working are adopted for teaching. 

Module 1: Frontier studies about ecology and Conservation Biology  

Tropical Environments, Threats to Biodiversity in Tropical Areas, Biodiversity Science, Climate Change Biology, Conservation Biology, Plant-Animal Interactions, Insect Ecology, Community Ecology, Environmental Education, etc. 

Module 2: Research technologies 

Experimental Design and R Statistics, Open / Reproducible Sciences, Species Distribution Modelling, Animal Movement Modelling, Thermal Camera Application, Drone Monitoring, Presentation and Scientific Writing Skills, Ecological Stations and Field-plots Sites Visit, etc. 

Module 3: Independent projects 

The independent projects will be completed independently in groups, including experimental design, data collection and analysis, report writing and defense. 

03 Core Instructors 

CHEN Jin

Professor CHEN Jin,the Director of the Academic Committee，Chief Scientist of Environmental Education Center and PI at the Ecology & Evolution of Plant-Animal Interaction at XTBG. He has served as the director of XTBG from 2005 to 2021. The main research directions of him are the ecology and evolution of the plant-animal interaction, environmental/scientific education and conservation biology. He has published more than 100 papers in international journals such as Cell, Nature Communications, Ecological Monographs, Ecology, and Environmental Education Research. 

Ricahrd Corlett

Professor Richard Corlett, Honorary Professor of XTBG, the chief scientist of the Asian chapter of the fifth assessment report (AR5) of the second working group (WGII) of Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), principal author of Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services for the Asia-Pacific for the Asia Pacific, and the editor in chief of Global Ecology and Conservation, the deputy editor in chief of Biological Conservation, and Tropical Conservation Science, and the editorial board member of Ecological Monographs. He has written books such as Tropical Rain Forests: An Ecological and Biogeographical Comparison, and has published more than 180 academic papers so far. 

Ahimsa Campos-Arceiz 

Professor Ahimsa Campos-Arceiz, PI at the Megafauna Ecology and Conservation Group of XTBG. His research expertise is on the ecology and conservation of large mammals, specifically on understanding their roles in ecosystem processes (e.g. seed dispersal) and promoting human-wildlife coexistence with animals that are prone to conflicts, such as elephants. He is also interested in capacity building and evidence-based approaches to conservation decision-making and practice. He served as a member of the editorial board of international academic journals such as Global Ecology and Conservation, Integrated Zoology, and Current Conservation, and has published about 70 SCI papers and one monograph in international journals. 

Akihiro Nakamura 

Professor Akihiro Nakamura, PI at the Forest Canopy Ecology Group of XTBG, an internationally renowned tropical forest insect ecologist, and the editorial board member of Biodiversity and Conservation and Frontiers in Forests and Global Change. His research fields are mainly in Community Ecology, Entomology, Biodiversity protection, etc. and the key research direction is the response and adaptation mechanism of forest canopy biodiversity to different habitats and climate change. About 70 academic papers have been published in international academic journals such as Science, Trends in Ecology and Evolution, Ecology Letters, Journal of Biogeography Ecological Entomology, etc. 

Kyle W. Tomlinson 

Professor Kyle W. Tomlinson, PI at Community Ecology and Conservation Group of XTBG, working on landscape conservation, forest ecology, savanna ecology, and functional trait diversity，such as understanding plant function and growth in response to disturbances and resources, and how this affects species distribution within and across landscapes. Since 2020 he has been the associate editor of Ecology.  

Gbadamassi G. O. Dossa 

Associate professor Gbadamassi G. O. Dossa, from Forest Canopy Ecology Group of XTBG, working on biodiversity, forest ecosystem functioning, plant functional traits effect on carbon and nutrient cycling. 

04Training Venues

Venue  1: Xishuangbanna Tropical Botanical Garden, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China 

XTBG, an institution directly under the CAS, was founded in 1959. XTBG is a comprehensive botanical garden involved in scientific research, plant diversity conservation, and public science education. XTBG promotes science development and environmental conservation through implementing scientific research on ecology and plant diversity conservation, horticultural exhibition, and public education. XTBG envisions to be a base for plant diversity conservation and ecological studies, and Noah’s Ark for tropical plants.

Venue 2.Xishuangbanna tropical rain forest ecosystem positioning research station，XTBG

Founded in 1959, the station is located in Menglun Town, Mengla County, Xishuangbanna Dai Autonomous Prefecture, Yunnan Province, China, at an altitude of 570 m above sea level. It is the only tropical rainforest ecosystem research station in the Chinese Ecosystem Research Network (CERN) and one of the national key field scientific observation networks (CNERN) test stations. The station is mainly engaged in long-term comprehensive observation and research on the structure, function and dynamics of tropical rainforest ecosystem. 

Course fee: No course fee will be charged 

2.Financial Responsibilities

(1) Participant-Covered Costs

Trainees are responsible for: Round-trip travel expenses to XTBG (including but not limited to transportation, accommodations, and visa fees)；Personal expenditures (e.g., personal life supplies, medications)

(2) Organizer-Covered Costs

The host will provide: Lodging and meals during the training period; All course-related local transportation.

Course credits: AFEC-X has obtained accreditation from the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS). Graduate students from UCAS and institutions affiliated to Chinese Academy of Sciences will receive 6 course credits towards their degree program upon completion of the AFEC-X full-time study. Other participants may be able to arrange recognition of these credits by their home institutions. 

Registration deadline: until 18:00 on July31, 2025

To apply, please scan the QR code 

Contact 

XIA Xue (xiaxue@xtbg.org.cn,  0691-8716600)