M4S/E: Modeling for Sustainability with Exemplars MODELS 2019 conference Munich, Germany, September 15, 2019 |
Conference website | https://models4sustainability.blogs.bristol.ac.uk |
Submission link | https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=m4se |
Abstract registration deadline | July 18, 2019 |
Submission deadline | July 25, 2019 |
International Workshop on Modelling for Sustainability with Exemplars
15 September 2019 at MODELS 2019 ConferenceCall for Papers
Modeling is an essential approach for understanding the complexities, interdependencies, and impacts of decisions made with regards sustainability in complex ecosystems. This workshop builds on the long culture of scientific modeling for sustainability (starting from the models used by `The Limit To Growth’ movement in 1972, up to the highly-complex, planetary-scale climate and ocean dynamics modeling of today). There is also a rich culture of modeling in software engineering, as exemplified by the many intellectual results and modeling tools and artefacts developed by the MODELS conference and associated community. However, these two perspectives of modeling are rarely combined. This new and exciting workshop will seek a synthesis of such scientific and engineering models, bringing them together for the purpose of engineering systems that nurture improved societal, environmental and economic sustainability. In particular, we aim to lower the barrier of engagement in this area through exemplars and benchmarks. We thus provide a direct avenue for the MODELS community to engage with modeling for sustainability and hence aim to improve our capacity in building and using such models.
Aims:
The workshop aims to provide a direct avenue for the MODELS community to engage with modeling for sustainability. To initiate the process, the organisers provide four open source reference examples (i.e., exemplar) models that tackle various issues of sustainability. Using these exemplars as a reference, the workshop invites participants to:
- submit their own exemplars, or
- apply alternative modeling strategies or paradigms to one or more given exemplars.
The longer-term goal of the workshop is to build a series of fully documented and accessible benchmarks as a key resource in the area of modeling for sustainability.
Submission:
In order to establish a set of exemplars and benchmarks as a resource for the modelling community, we solicit three kinds of submissions:
- papers that build on and improve the sample exemplars;
- papers that propose new exemplars;
- position papers that offer insights, principles or techniques that directly inform our exemplars.
In the first two cases, the prime interest is in the underlying modelling artefacts and these should be fully documented in the papers in terms of the modelling strategy adopted including:
- a description of the underlying sustainability challenge,
- the rationale for the modelling approach (including justification for heterogeneous modelling strategies as appropriate),
- sufficient details of the models to understand the approach, and reflections on the benefits and drawbacks of the strategy.
- We strongly support open access to model artefacts (as appropriate) and hence the associated models and associated data (if applicable) together with documentation should be provided through an appropriate open source repository, with a link provided in the paper (e.g., via GitHub, or Jupyter or equivalent notebooks, or via other model execution environments (e.g., the Anylogic Cloud)).
All papers should be a maximum of 6 pages and must conform to the workshop format adopted by MODELS 2019 (available here). At least three PC members will review each submission. The authors will be notified about acceptance before the MODELS 2019 early registration deadline.
To submit a paper, please use EasyChair (https://easychair.org/conferences/?conf=m4se).
Key Dates:
- Abstract submission 18 July 2019 (this is optional, but requested for administrative purposes)
- Paper submission 25 July 2019
- Paper Notification 1 August 2019
- Additional supplementary material (models and data sets) for accepted papers: 1 Sept. 2019
Topics of interest (not limited to below):
- The role of models to represent, analyse, and support decision-making related to sustainability of systems and their situated environments, such as for the exemplar areas mentioned above and also to other areas of sustainability, e.g. related to any of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals;
- The use of different modeling techniques to represent and analyse sustainability phenomena, e.g., simulation models, domain specific modeling languages, machine learning and other AI techniques, environmental process models, agent-based modelling, and metamodeling;
- The use of combinations of modeling approaches in analysing such phenomena, e.g., discrete and analogue models, or process and data models – participants may want to draw on GEMOC as a resource to facilitate this (GEMOC develops techniques, frameworks, and environments to facilitate the creation, integration, and automated processing of heterogeneous modeling languages – see gemoc.org).
Exemplars:
The workshop suggests to use these open source models as reference examples in preparing own submissions:
- Fostering green energy generation through peer-to-peer energy trading: Today’s electricity grid must undergo substantial changes in order to keep pace with the rising demand for energy. One way to meet the rising demand, is through fostering small-scale generation at consumers premises (e.g., via solar PVs or community hydrostations, etc.). This exemplar shows one solution of an excess energy trading over flock-free ledger and invites improvements to the presented suggestions as well as extensions to it. An agent-based simulation model for such trading is implemented in this exemplar. The model and all its accompanying materials area available form Anylogic Cloud. The model description is given here.
- Flood risk assessment and prediction: Natural Flood Management (NFM) is proposed as a way of mitigating the damages of significant floods by distributed land management and storage of water in upstream catchment areas so as to reduce peak flows in areas at risk of flooding. This implies some decisions about investment in NFM measures, with assessment of resulting benefits (and potential dis-benefits). This represents a specific example of Modelling for sustainable for an environmental problem.
- Minimizing waste in industrial processes: A chemical production factory changes its production several times during a day from one product to the next. As products are changed, there is a period of producing something which is not a proper product, i.e., a waste. This exemplar focuses on how to reduce such waste.
- Farming system modeling and analysis: rapid changes in the agricultural context driven by continuously arising challenges (climate change,
environmental issues, food self sufficiency. . . ) require complex models that take into account different elements: crop, farm organisation, environment, biodiversity, etc.
This example focuses on integration of components from across various sciences thorough a dedicated modelling language, as detailed here: https://github.com/gemoc/farmingmodeling .
Publication:
All papers will be published in the joint workshop pre-proceedings of all MODELS 2019 workshops.
Additionally, a plan for a special issue on ‘Exemplars for Modeling Sustainability’ will be discussed at the workshop.
Organizers
- Ruzanna Chitchyan, University of Bristol, UK (main contact)
- Øystein Haugen, Østfold University College, Norway
- Benoit Combemale, University of Toulouse/INRIA, France
- Gordon Blair, Lancaster University, UK
Programme Committee (to be expanded)
- Lucy Bastin (Aston University, UK)
- Olivier Barais (University of Rennes, France)
- Jean-Michel Bruel (University of Toulouse, France)
- Leticia Duboc ( La Salle, Ramom Llull University, Spain)
- Lorenz M. Hilty (University of Zurich, Switzerland)
- Gunter Mussbacher (McGill University, Canada)
- Richard F. Paige (McMaster University)
- Eugene Syriani (Universite de Montreal, Canada)
- Colin Venters (University of Huddersfield, UK)