Workshops och sociala evenemang

AI tools

Workshop title: Responsible use of AI tools for academic information searching

Description:
AI is transforming the way students, researchers, and other academic information users discover, search for, and explore scholarly information. In this workshop, university library experts will introduce the responsible use of AI in academic information searching and provide hands-on experience with three AI-powered tools that support literature discovery and information retrieval: Scopus AI, Web of Science Research Assistant, and Keenious. Through practical exercises, participants will learn how to use these tools effectively while considering their strengths, limitations, and ethical implications. Participants will have the opportunity to apply the tools to their own topics and information needs. Please bring your own laptop for the hands-on exercises.

Max. participants: 25

Prerequisites / additional information:
Hands-on exercises will be conducted using Scopus AI, Web of Science Research Assistant, and Keenious. Access to these tools requires institutional credentials from an organisation that subscribes to the services, such as the University of Turku. If your institution does not provide access to these tools, you will not be able to use them during the workshop exercises.

Venue: Quantum XVIII (3dr floor)

Past ecosystems

Workshop title: Reconstructing Past Ecosystems: Integrating Multi-Proxy Approaches

Description: Understanding long-term ecosystem change — and disentangling climate, natural variability, and human influence — requires more than any single method can offer. Traditional ecological methods such as eDNA and ecosystem modeling can be combined to knowledge from other disciplines such as zooarchaeology, geology, and research on past human populations. Each of them captures different facets of past, yet these fields rarely combine systematically, and their practitioners often work in separate communities.

This workshop aims to bring researchers from these fields together to explore how integrating multiple lines of evidence, including the human dimension (land use, subsistence, socioeconomic context), can sharpen our understanding of past ecosystem dynamics. Short lightning talks introduce key methods and their strengths and limitations. Participants then join multidisciplinary discussion groups on terrestrial, lake, and coastal ecosystems, exploring how combined approaches could address shared questions such as establishing pre-disturbance baselines and revealing human-ecosystem coupling. A closing synthesis session draws out common challenges and priorities for future collaboration.

Max. participants: 40

Prerequisites / additional information: Though rooted in paleoecological and archaeological methods, the workshop is designed for ecologists broadly: long-term baselines and human-ecosystem feedbacks are increasingly central to conservation and management. No prior experience with these methods is required.

Venue: TBA

Gender biases

Workshop title: Gender Biases in Academia – Raising Awareness

Description: The gender disparity in career paths is a prevailing issue in academia, especially in the field of natural sciences – including ecology and evolutionary biology. Positive strides have been made toward a more equal work culture, but structural obstacles and prejudice still hinder career development and worry young researchers. Academia still struggles to retain women at the permanent/senior-position stage, and a research career is often seen as inflexible and unpredictable for raising a family. To continue a positive change, each of us has the power to influence small things, and together, these actions build up to organizational-level change.

In this workshop, we aim to bring together researchers from different backgrounds and career stages to foster awareness of gender biases in academia. We will begin with an evidence-based overview of the current situation, followed by themed discussions in small groups, and finish with a summary of our insights. Our goal is for the final report to be taken by PIs and future group leaders to encourage a feeling of safety and a working culture where all voices are heard.

Max. participants: 66

Prerequisites / additional information: We encourage students and researchers of all backgrounds and career stages to join the discussion on ways to promote equity in academia. No prior knowledge of the subject is required – everyone is welcome!

Venue: TBA

Excursions to Ruissalo

Monday February 15^th, 2027, 9.30-12.20

Indoor activity: Botanical Garden

A guided tour (about 60 min.) in the greenhouses of the Turku University Botanical Garden in Ruissalo, includes an entrance fee to the greenhouses after the tour.

Costs: 20 €

How to get there: The chartered bus to the Botanical Garden departs from the campus (Henrikinkatu 1) at 9:30 and returns to the campus from the Botanical Garden at 12:00. The travel time is approximately 20 min.

Outdoor activity: Ruissalo nature reserve

A nature walk (approximately 2 hours, led by a local guide) in the Ruissalo nature reserve.

Costs: free, but registration is required

How to get there: The chartered bus to Ruissalo departs from the campus (Henrikinkatu 1) at 9:30 and returns to the campus from Ruissalo (Botanical Garden) at 12:00. The travel time is approximately 20 min.