The major thrust of our research is in systematic biodiversity conservation and restoration planning, in particular, the design of conservation area networks. However, we are interested in all areas of computational and mathematical biology, especially ecology and conservation biology. A major focus of our work is the production of software packages for conservation planning. Our software products include the ResNet, ResNet-GUI, Surrogacy, and MultCSync packages which can freely downloaded from this site.

Students in the laboratory come from a variety of disciplines including biology, computer science, geography, mathematics, operations research, and philosophy. Most students do projects which contain both a theoretical and an applied component. Recent and ongoing projects include:

  the development of multiple criterion synchronization algorithms and software for use in the context of conservation planning (Alex Moffett);

  place prioritization for biodiversity conservation in the Eastern Himalayas (Chris Kelley, along with personnel from the California Academy of Sciences);

  a study of the influence of representation targets on conservation plans from more than ten biogeographic regions (James Justus);

  a conservation assessment of Mexico (Trevon Fuller, in collaboration with faculty and students from UNAM);

  a new GIS interface for ResNet and ConsNet (Chris Kelley);

  a browser-based protocol for using ResNet and MultCSync with our laboratory computers (Alex Moffett).

In the past we have produced biodiversity conservation plans and priorities for Quebec and Texas. Our collaborators include scientists from the Redpath Museum of McGill University, the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO) of Australia, the Laboratorio de Sistemas de Información Geográfica, Departamento de Zoología, Instituto de Biología, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, and the California Academy of Sciences.