We've been running these workshops for more than a decade and although they've changed over time and depending on the venue, they've all been a real success. People have enjoyed them, learnt a fair bit about isotopes and learned to incorporate stable isotopes in their work. I keep meeting researchers who have attended these teaching workshops and stayed in the field. By imprisoning a tight group of students and teachers together for a week, the maximum amount of knowledge has diffused between them, as well as them all having a fair bit of fun.
by Hilary Stuart-Williams, Organiser
EucFACE Expedition
Visiting EucFACE during SIBS 2023 was unforgettable — the world’s only mature forest CO2 enrichment site! Our hosts from Western Sydney University showed how isotopes reveal how rising CO2 affects soils, plants, and microbes.
SIBS was such an important learning experience! Building a background in isotopes science is something I have wanted and needed for my career, but it's not something that's widely taught in Ecology; there just aren't any courses in most undergraduate or Master's degrees. What makes SIBS so unique is having over a week where everyone - attendees, instructors, organizers - are entirely focused on isotopes, so you can make those big knowledge gains and come up with new ideas in such a short time. As an added bonus, the people are all amazing and are building such a robust professional community!
by Lauren Hitt, Attendee — SIBS 2026 Camden
We have run this course since 2013 and every time it is a lot of fun delving deep into the world of stable isotopes. The presentations on the last day are always very impressive and a testimony of how much can be achieved in a week!
by Claudia Keitel, Organiser
Delta Team
In this photo from the 2020 SIBS workshop in Canberra, students and mentors teamed up to form the iconic delta symbol – the classic mark of isotopic ratios. A perfect snapshot of the creativity and camaraderie that define SIBS!