Workshop descriptions

12 SEPTEMBER | Held in The Boathouse [A22]

WIFI access instructions for workshop participants, click here.

Understanding the values in the Southern GBR 

Facilitator: Ian Walker GBRMPA
Date: Tuesday 12 September | JCU
Time: 9am-12.30pm
Capacity: 30-50

Workshop description:

This workshop will explore and capture opportunities, to harness knowledge of the Southern Great Barrier Reef Marine Park to inform development of a Plan of Management for the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park.
Understanding all values (socio economic, environmental, cultural other) and threats along with establishing key objectives and actions will form a key component of the management plan.

The plan of management will be codesigned and prepared with the Traditional Owners of the area.
The objectives of the plan of management are described in the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park legislation.

This workshop will explore the ways in which social science can inform the plan of management.

Participants requirements: n/a

Working with Traditional Owners

Facilitator: Jason Ramsamy - Director, TUMRA Section GBRMPA
Date: Tuesday 12 September | JCU
Time: 1.30pm - 5pm
Capacity: 20-70

Workshop description:

Traditional Owners are actively seeking to achieve a more ‘collaborative’ approach to sea country management across the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park. This includes increasing Traditional Owner participation in sea country management: acknowledging and respecting Traditional Owner Knowledge, building the capacity of Indigenous land and sea organisations; building effective partnership frameworks for engagement, monitoring and management for future generations and users. Researchers have a role to play.

In this workshop participants will engage in discussion with experts about doing research by, for and with Traditional Owners in a way that supports Traditional Owner groups to engage in effective co-management of their Sea Country in the Great Barrier Reef

Topics for discussion include:
1. Better understanding of what Sea Country is from a Traditional Owner perspective
2. Free Prior Informed Consent
3. Culturally based decision-making frameworks
4. Information sharing
5. How your research can contribute to Traditional Owner Sea Country management aspirations

The workshop is designed to be interactive with plenty of time for open small group discussions creating a safe space to learn. The workshop will have the fluidity to cater to different participant levels of understanding.

Participants requirement: Active participation

12 SEPTEMBER | Held in the Ideas Lab [D4.012]

Ensuring high quality online survey data amidst a sea of AI and survey fraud

Facilitator: Dr Vicki Martin - Senior Consultant, Mosaic Insights, Adjunct Senior Fellow, UQ
Date: Tuesday 12 September | JCU
Time: 8.30am - 10.30am
Capacity: 15-20 only

Workshop description:
Online surveys are facing growing challenges to the quality of data they collect. The rise of artificial intelligence (AI), along with increasing use of online survey panels in which some participants lack interest or care, are compromising data quality and validity. The situation can lead to biased or inaccurate results that misrepresent genuine participants’ perspectives, raising concerns about ethical standards, the protection of participant rights, and safeguards for the resources invested in the research process. 

Bots are a particular challenge as AI technology continues to advance at a phenomenal pace. Even when there is no apparent benefit, online surveys are being targeted by bots. This issue is escalating rapidly, to the point where it has become common for any survey distributed via a public link to encounter some form of fraudulent responses. For example, in a recent Australian survey of recreational game fishers, approximately 400 of 500 responses came from overseas bots. To ensure that researchers obtain reliable data from authentic participants, it is crucial for them to familiarise themselves with strategies to prevent, identify, and eliminate fraudulent responses.

This workshop will help attendees understand the steps they can take to reduce and identify survey fraud (i.e., bots, insincere respondents) in online surveys and build confidence in the quality and robustness of their survey data. The workshop will cover the current challenges to data quality, survey design techniques and data collection methods to reduce fraud, and data cleaning tips and tricks to identify untrustworthy responses. The workshop will combine a presentation (with slides made available to attendees) and an interactive, practical session in which attendees design their own protocols for developing online surveys appropriate to their work, and methods for cleaning the data they collect.

Participants requirement:
Laptops, Word or similar, no particular knowledge required.

All Great Barrier Reef data in one place - Hands-on training on RIMREP Data Management System

Facilitator: Eduardo Klein Salas, Michaela Miller and Denisse Fierro. IMOS. RIMReP Data Management System
Date: Tuesday 12 September | JCU
Time: 11am - 1pm
Capacity: 8-15 only

Workshop description:
In this workshop, the instructors will guide participants in discovering and collecting relevant socio-economic, physical, chemical, and biological data for the Great Barrier Reef using the RIMReP Data Management System. The instructors will provide analysis notebook examples to explore the DMS data collections and demonstrate how to use simple temporal and geographical filters to obtain data. Moreover, we will provide customizable recipes for specific research questions. By the end of the workshop, participants will be able to use DMS data and metadata services to extract data from multiple collections in standard formats. To participate in this workshop, a minimum level of expertise in data analysis is required. Additionally, knowledge of Python and/or R programming language is recommended. Participants must bring their own laptops with the necessary software already installed (we will inform them later about the required non-commercial software).

Participants requirements:
Own laptop. Preferably with some experience with R. We will send instructions about how to configure the laptops before the workshop

Revitalizing the Great Barrier Reef: Harnessing Tourism for Regeneration and Sustainability

Facilitators: A/Prof Laurie Murphy & Dr Denis Tolkach - College of Business, Law & Governance JCU
Date: Tuesday 12 September | JCU
Time: 1.30pm - 3.30pm
Capacity: 10-36

Workshop Description:
"Revitalizing the Great Barrier Reef: Harnessing Tourism for Regeneration and Sustainability" is an interactive workshop aimed at exploring the potential of tourism as a catalyst for the regeneration and long-term sustainability of the Great Barrier Reef. Participants will engage in a stakeholder mapping exercise, identify key organizations and their roles in the reef's restoration, and collaborate to propose innovative tourist experiences that contribute to the reef's sustainability. Additionally, the workshop will delve into the importance of data and discuss the necessary metrics and information required to ensure the continued preservation of the reef and its surrounding tourist destinations.

Workshop Objectives:
1. Identify stakeholders and their roles in the regeneration of the Great Barrier Reef.
2. Brainstorm and propose innovative and sustainable tourist experiences that contribute to the reef's regeneration.
3. Discuss the significance of data in monitoring and maintaining the sustainability of the reef and surrounding tourist destinations.
4. Foster collaboration and knowledge sharing among participants to develop actionable strategies for reef regeneration through tourism.
By combining stakeholder mapping, innovative idea generation, and data-driven discussions, this workshop will facilitate a comprehensive exploration of how tourism can play a vital role in the ongoing regeneration efforts of the Great Barrier Reef, ensuring its preservation for generations to come.

Participants requirements:
It would be beneficial if participants brought laptops so that we can use some digital tools to engage participants and collect responses and input.
We do not want to restrict to knowledge areas as we want diverse participation from the diverse stakeholders in the reef tourism ecosystem .