PHYS-FEST 1

During June 5-9 in 2016, a meeting for plant eco-physiologists (the very first Phys-Fest!) took place at Konza Prairie Biological Station, a tallgrass prairie site in northeastern Kansas. Phys-Fest was specifically focused on promoting collaboration, interactions, and networking among plant eco-physiologists. Phys-Fest varies from the traditional scientific meeting format of short research presentations organized by focus areas. Rather, participants engaged in data collection to address a pre-defined scientific question (i.e., What is the physiological variability within common growth forms of the tallgrass prairie?) and developed short video presentations on ecophysiological subjects for contribution to a video library for classroom teaching. Each night, “networking sessions” occurred to mentor junior scientists and facilitate interactions among faculty / research labs.

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Phys-Fest 1 was organized to accomplish 3 distinct goals:

1. Characterizing the diurnal physiological variability within tallgrass prairie
   plant species

2. Compilation/ creation of a plant eco-physiology video teaching library

3. Strategic planning for the future of the field of eco-physiology

 

The meeting aimed to initiate discussion addressing research frontiers within plant ecophysiology, promote collegiality among participants, and allow for vision development for our field. This was the meeting that started it all! The Phys-Fest community has only grown and expanded since it's initiation in 2016.