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Announcements
New Synthesis on Ecosystem Management Available
The Sustainable Forest Management Network has recently published a new synthesis report entitled "Implementation of Ecosystem Management in Boreal Forests: Examples from Eastern Canada" authored by Marie- Andrée Vaillancourt, Sylvie Gauthier, Dan Kneeshaw and Yves Bergeron. This report introduces the concept of forest ecosystem management, its scientific basis and uses a hypothetical management unit to illustrate how an FEM strategy can be developed. It also includes case study examples of FEM implementation in the boreal forest in an adaptive management context.
Online Course on Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation (REDD)
The Nature Conservancy, Conservation International, the Climate, Community, and Biodiversity Alliance, GTZ, the Rainforest Alliance, and the World Wildlife Fund, have created a self-guided online course on REDD. The course features 14 fun and interactive lessons that provide a comprehensive overview of REDD.
New book – Maintaining Whole Systems on Earth’s Crown: Ecosystem-based Conservation Planning for the Boreal Forest
This new publication provides a practical system for forest protection and use that respects the characteristics and global importance of the boreal forest, while providing for the needs of peoples that inhabit the boreal forest. This system, called “ecosystem-based conservation planning”, is widely accepted by scientists and practitioners as the state-of-the-art approach to planning forest conservation. Written in a practical handbook format, this book is about solutions, and will be appealing to a broad audience from scientists, technical planners, and government policy makers to First Nations, environmental activists, and the general public. The book is organized in a way that not only provides a clear explanation of “how to” develop an ecosystem-based plan, but also provides an understandable, clear scientific basis for ecosystem-based conservation planning.
Stream Corridor Restoration Tools Now Available Online
During the last ten years, the USDA-Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) has developed and released a wealth of technical information on stream corridor restoration. Following release of this material, a team of NRCS experts from all of the technical centers skilled in stream restoration were tasked with making conservation easier for the field in applying stream restoration. Their efforts are still underway, but initial results are now available on the National Design, Construction, and Soil Mechanics (NDCSMC) web site. At this web site, one can find “one stop” resources of NRCS policy and guidance documents, useful links, publications, photographs, and drawings of various practices and treatments, workshop information, and spreadsheet tools.
Biology and Climate Change Special Issue
Current Biology has a special open access edition with a series of articles on biology and climate change. This timely special issue looks at the interactions between biology and climate which are going to be increasingly important across a spectrum of research agendas. There’s no doubt that almost any researcher working on organisms in the natural environment will now be including climate change as a key part of future plans. But what the reviews in this issue reveal is that climate is not just a contemporary problem, but one deeply entwined with evolution, species distributions and genetic diversity. Such insights are likely to be increasingly important as we tackle a warming world. Enormous policy decisions are looming and improved understanding of the consequences of climate change for organisms and ecosystems will be critical in informing this debate and defining thresholds of ‘dangerous’ climate change that must be avoided.
Mapping Cumulative Human Impacts to California Current Marine Ecosystems
Quantitative assessment of the spatial patterns of all human uses of the oceans and their cumulative effects is needed for implementing ecosystem-based management, marine protected areas, and ocean zoning. In this article, the authors apply methods developed to map cumulative impacts globally to the California Current using more comprehensive and higher-quality data for 25 human activities and 19 marine ecosystems. This analysis indicates where protection and threat mitigation are most needed in the California Current and reveals that coastal ecosystems near high human population density and the continental shelves off Oregon and Washington are the most heavily impacted, climate change is the top threat, and impacts from multiple threats are ubiquitous.
Ensuring Forest Sustainability in the Development of Wood Biofuels and Bioenergy
On February 9-10, 2009, the Heinz Center for Science, Economics and the Environment (Heinz Center) and the Pinchot Institute for Conservation (Pinchot Institute) convened a dialogue session focusing on the intersection of policies affecting biomass-based energy and those concerning forest policy and management. This meeting was convened as the first in a dialogue series intended to help ensure that, as the U.S. expands its capacity for production of forest-based energy sources, it will do so in a manner that promotes the use of biomass harvesting as a valuable conservation tool and minimizes negative unintended environmental, economic, and social consequences. The meeting brought together stakeholders from the energy and forest products industries, forest landowners, nongovernmental organizations, state and federal regulators and managers, and other experts. This paper resumes the discussions and outcomes of this dialogue session.
Respect for Grizzly Bears: an Aboriginal Approach for Co-existence and Resilience
Aboriginal peoples’ respect for grizzly bear (Ursus arctos) is widely acknowledged, but rarely explored, in wildlife management discourse in northern Canada. Practices of respect expressed toward bears were observed and grouped into four categories: terminology, stories, reciprocity, and ritual. In the southwest Yukon, practices in all four categories form a coherent qualitative resource management system that may enhance the resilience of the bear-human system as a whole. This system also demonstrates the possibility of a previously unrecognized human role in maintaining productive riparian ecosystems and salmon runs, potentially providing a range of valued social-ecological outcomes. Practices of respect hold promise for new strategies to manage bear-human interactions, but such successful systems may be irreducibly small scale and place based.
Evaluating Conservation Spending for Species Return: A Retrospective Analysis in California
Conservation spending in California, USA exceeds conservation expenditures in many countries. To date, there has b
een no objective method to assess the efficiency of such spending for achieving species conservation outcomes. We conducted the first such retrospective analysis of conservation spending, examining the distribution of $2.8 billion spent on land protection by the state of California and partners from 1990 to 2006. Using a return on investment algorithm with species protection as the sole objective, we describe a “cost-efficient” funding scenario that would have protected four times more distinct species and three times more threatened and endangered species compared to the observed allocation. Differences between the species-diversity spending and the observed spending patterns reflect the myriad funding objectives, beyond protecting species, of the state. Identifying cost-effective conservation strategies are essential given the need to maintain species diversity in the face of global change.
Societal Dynamics in Grizzly Bear Conservation: Vulnerabilities of the Ecosystem-based Management Approach
Conserving Grizzly bear populations is a significant challenge for wildlife managers throughout North America. Much fruitful research has been conducted on the biology of grizzlies, but how to craft policies that will surface to conserve grizzlies at biologically meaningful spatial scales remains poorly understood. This paper recently published in PARKScience explores this complex topic, using qualitative data analysis and case study methods and the policy sciences’ interdisciplinary problem analysis framework to analyze and compare four case studies of grizzly bear management in Canada.
Multidimensional Evaluation of Managed Relocation
Managed relocation (MR) has rapidly emerged as a potential intervention strategy in the toolbox of biodiversity management under climate change. Previous authors have suggested that MR (also referred to as assisted colonization, assisted migration, or assisted translocation) could be a last-alternative option after interrogating a linear decision tree. We argue that numerous interacting and value-laden considerations demand a more inclusive strategy for evaluating MR. The pace of modern climate change demands decision making with imperfect information, and tools that elucidate this uncertainty and integrate scientific information and social values are urgently needed. In this paper recently published in PNAS, the authors present a heuristic tool that incorporates both ecological and social criteria in a multidimensional decision-making framework. This framework offers a pragmatic approach for summarizing key dimensions of MR: capturing uncertainty in the evaluation criteria, creating transparency in the evaluation process, and recognizing the inherent tradeoffs that different stakeholders bring to evaluation of MR and its alternatives.
Wetland Ways: Interim Guidelines for Wetland Protection and Conservation in British Columbia
This document is written primarily for people who are planning some form of activity or development near wetlands, as well as those looking for guidance on ways to best maintain the high ecological values in these areas. A healthy natural environment is the foundation of British Columbia‘s economy and quality of life. Wetlands are among the most biologically diverse, productive, and important life support systems on earth. They are integral to the functioning of many important ecosystems and life forms in B.C. They also provide people with a wide range of beneficial services, from flood control and water supply to recreational opportunities. Often, these services are unrecognized and undervalued, leading to the loss or impairment of wetlands—and thus the services they had provided are either costly or impossible to replace. These interim guidelines were prepared with input from many experienced reviewers and will be updated using feedback and experience from pilot user groups over the next two years. Comments on these guidelines are encouraged and welcome at wsp@gov.bc.ca.
On the Tracks of the Elusive Wolverine
The wolverine is one of the rarest and least-known mammals in North America. A lack of understanding regarding its historical distribution and its broad-scale habitat needs has hampered conservation efforts. Read about the results of recent research conducted in the US to learn more about this species and how climate change may affect its distribution in a recent issue of Science Findings.
In Plantations or Natural Stands: Ponderosa is Programmed to Partner with Fire
Ponderosa pine plantation forests cover nearly 400,000 acres of California’s National Forests. Fire hazard is extreme both within and adjacent to many of these areas which has led to extensive fuel reduction plans for plantations and other forests on federal public lands. Although fuels treatments have been implemented on a limited basis in California’s plantations, the effectiveness of varying methods has only recently received scientific attention. This project analyzed the effectiveness of individual and combination treatments to provide science-based guidance for fi re hazard reduction in these areas. Prescribed understory fire, both alone and combined with pre-burn mastication, was most effective for reducing surface fuels and potential fire behavior. Likelihood of active crown fire was reduced in masticated stands because bulk density was decreased. Predicted torching, tree mortality and flame length were higher in masticated units than in prescribed burn units and controls.
Linking Social Norms to Efficient Conservation Investment in Payments for Ecosystem Services
An increasing amount of investment has been devoted to protecting and restoring ecosystem services worldwide. The efficiency of conservation investments, including payments for ecosystem services (PES), has been found to be affected by biological, political, economic, demographic, and social factors, but little is known about the effects of social norms at the neighborhood level. This study recently published in PNAS found that, in addition to conservation payment amounts and program duration, social norms at the neighborhood level had significant impacts on program re-enrollment, suggesting that social norms can be used to leverage participation to enhance the sustainability of conservation benefits from PES programs. Moreover, the results demonstrate that economic and demographic trends also have profound implications for sustainable conservation. Thus, social norms should be incorporated with economic and demographic trends for efficient conservation investments.
Science for Managing Ecosystem Services: Beyond the Millennium Ecosystem Assessment
The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) introduced a new framework for analyzing social–ecological systems that has had wide influence in the policy and scientific communities. Studies after the MA are taking up new challenges in the basic science needed to assess, project, and manage flows of ecosystem services and effects on human well-being. Yet, our ability to draw general conclusions remains limited by focus on discipline-bound sectors of the full social–ecological system. At the same time, some polices and practices intended to improve ecosystem ser
vices and human well-being are based on untested assumptions and sparse information. The people who are affected and those who provide resources are increasingly asking for evidence that interventions improve ecosystem services and human well-being. New research is needed that considers the full ensemble of processes and feedbacks, for a range of biophysical and social systems, to better understand and manage the dynamics of the relationship between humans and the ecosystems on which they rely. Such research will expand the capacity to address fundamental questions about complex social–ecological systems while evaluating assumptions of policies and practices intended to advance human well-being through improved ecosystem services.
Landscape Connectivity Promotes Plant Biodiversity Spillover into Non-target Habitats
Conservation efforts typically focus on maximizing biodiversity in protected areas. The space available for reserves is limited, however, and conservation efforts must increasingly consider how management of protected areas can promote biodiversity beyond reserve borders. Habitat corridors are considered an important feature of reserves because they facilitate movement of organisms between patches, thereby increasing species richness in those patches. This article, recently published in PNAS, demonstrates that by increasing species richness inside target patches, corridors additionally benefit biodiversity in surrounding non-target habitat, having a biodiversity "spillover" effect.
Yellowstone to Yukon Wildlife Corridor
A project to create a North American wildlife corridor has been slowly proceeding. Now, researchers are finding out if the animals are using it
Old Growth in a New World: A Pacific Northwest Icon Re-examined
Old-growth forests represent a lofty ideal as much as an ecosystem —an icon of unspoiled nature, ecological stability, and pristine habitat. These iconic notions have actively altered the way society relates to old-growth forests, catalyzing major changes in policy and management. But how appropriate are those changes and how well do they really serve in reaching conservation goals? The book “Old Growth in a New World” untangles the complexities of the old growth concept and the parallel complexity of old-growth policy and management. It brings together more than two dozen contributors—ecologists, economists, sociologists, managers, historians, silviculturists, environmentalists, timber producers, and philosophers—to offer a broad suite of perspectives on changes that have occurred in the valuing and management of old-growth forests in the Pacific Northwest over the past thirty years.
It’s is a Wild Life: Easing Conflict between People and Wildlife
When coyotes, bears, geese, and even turtles share space with humans, there can be trouble – for us and them. In this series of special features, CBC takes a look at easing conflict between people and wildlife.
"Conserving Wetlands" CMI conference summary
The summary of this conference on wetland conservation recently celebrated in Revesltoke is now available online.
News
July 29, 2009 – Old-growth conservation area expanded
“The province is adding more than 250,000 hectares in northern B.C. to be managed to conserve old-growth forest. […] Old-growth management areas create habitat for thousands of plant and animal species including mountain caribou, while allowing for the cultivation of non-timber forest products such as mushrooms, berries, and medicinal plants.”
August 5, 2009 – Parks Canada cuts science budget
“Parks Canada has cut its budget for scientific research and monitoring in Banff National Park – the flagship of the Canadian national park system.Officials say they are struggling to deal with a $1.2 million deficit and were forced to cut Banff’s research and monitoring budget from $529,000 last year to $465,000 this year.”
August 5, 2009 – Experts to ponder new caribou herd
“Parks Canada is convening a group of scientists and caribou experts next month to consider reintroducing caribou into Banff National Park. Banff’s tiny caribou herd was wiped out in a massive avalanche in the Molar Creek region of the national park at the end of April this year.”
August 10, 2009 – Pretty, poisonous invasive plant taking off
“It’s flowering season for giant hogweed, a pretty but poisonous plant to touch. Weed specialist Mike Cowbrough said reports of giant hogweed, an invasive and tenacious plant, have jumped this summer. “Typically between July and August we get three or four correspondences a week and we’re probably getting three of four a day,” said Cowbrough, who works for the Ontario government. The hollow-stemmed pest can grow more than five metres tall and has small, white flower clusters in an umbrella-shaped head.”
Also, watch the informative WorkSafeBC video about this invasive species here.
August 11, 2009 – Grizzly bears will never roam the Prairies again, report says
“Grizzly bears will likely never again inhabit their native range, which once stretched across Saskatchewan and as far east as Manitoba, according to a recent report from Environment Canada. Early settlers spotted grizzly bears near Medicine Hat, Alta., on the banks of the South Saskatchewan River, and in the Lloydminster area – and as far as the Pembina Mountains in southern Manitoba. But European exploration, the introduction of firearms, the eradication of the grizzly food source of wild bison and widespread agriculture meant that “by the late 1800s, grizzly bears were rarely seen east of the foothills.” The report said there is unlikely to be any recovery of the species much east of the Rocky Mountains.”
August 13, 2009 – Wolf makes incredible journey
“The incredible long-distance travel by wolves continues to be a marvel of nature. Through use of a GPS collar, national park researchers have been able to track the exact movements of a female wolf that made an incredible 450-kilometre journey once she left her pack.”
August 13, 2009 – Calls grow for summit on collapse of Fraser s
ockeye run
“Calls for a Canada-U.S. salmon summit are increasing in the wake of the near total collapse of the Fraser River sockeye run. Ujjal Dosanjh, a Liberal MP whose riding lies near the north arm of the Fraser, said Thursday the situation is grave enough that it deserves to be the focus of an intergovernmental conference involving federal, state and provincial representatives. The collapse of the Fraser run “is going to have an impact on the aboriginal community, the commercial fishery and potentially the ecosystem as well – and that’s pretty significant,” said Mr. Dosanjh.”
August 13, 2009 – Parks to de-water remote river
“Parks Canada proposes to partially de-water the upper reaches of a remote river to kill non-native fish as part of its ecological restoration program at Devon Lakes. The environmental screening report for the installation of temporary cofferdams at Middle and Upper Devon Lakes is out for review. The deadline for public input is Aug. 19. Basically, the project involves damming the upper and middle lakes, which would result in reduced flows into the Clearwater River.”
August 18, 2009 – What’s killing the killer whale?
“The killer whale is an iconic Canadian species that instills in many of us a sense of majestic wonder. However, these mammals are under serious pressure, from the quality of water they reside in to the impacts of climate change. It’s no wonder that the killer whale is a species at risk. Chinook salmon constitute a major component of the killer whale’s diet. But as west coast Chinook salmon stocks dropped in the 1990s, so did killer whale populations. Overfishing, dam construction and other habitat altering activities have threatened salmon populations for years with killer whales feeling the brunt of this decline. Now climate change is another issue that’s compounding problems for the killer whale.”
August 18, 2009 – The Majestic Monarch
“With its bold and bright orange wings speckled with white dots and lined in a thick black border, the monarch butterfly (Danaus plexippus) might just be the most recognizable butterfly in Canada. But do you know just how magnificent this creature really is? With an exhausting migration process, specific feeding needs and continual habitat degradation, the monarch continues to battle for space in a changing world.”
August 19, 2009 – Working group to study parkway
“The Bow Valley Parkway is one of those true treasures – a special place for both people and wildlife – but its future is at the centre of a highly charged and contentious debate.
Businesses are opposed to any restrictions of private vehicles along the parkway, while conservationists say the status quo is not doing enough to protect wildlife and their habitat.”
August 20, 2009 – Cutbacks threaten marmot recovery
“The loss of $133,000 in provincial funding for the Nanaimo-based Marmot Recovery Foundation could threaten the significant progress that’s already been made in restoring the Vancouver Island marmot to the wild. The Ministry of the Environment has announced that the annual funding has been dropped from the provincial budget, which will be announced in September. Marmot Recovery Foundation executive director Viki Jackson said the provincial withdrawal has left the agency scrambling to find alternate sources of funding.”
August 25, 2009 – Where have all the salmon gone?
“Approximately 130 million baby sockeye from the Chilko, Quesnel and other interior river systems — the largest producers of the most valuable commercial stocks on the Fraser system — appear to have vanished during their annual migration to the sea in 2007. This season’s shortfall in predicted returns of sockeye salmon — fewer than two million of the predicted 10.6 million are now expected to return — actually points to something really troubling, a possible ecological catastrophe on a vast scale somewhere in the lower Fraser or the Strait of Georgia. […] What happened? What might the disappearance signify for future sockeye runs? Is this a harbinger of a coming collapse for other wild salmon stocks? What might this mean for the survival of other species — bears, eagles, killer whales, small aquatic creatures that depend upon nutrients from decaying salmon carcasses and provide feed for trout, sturgeon, insects — that rely on these salmon returns?”
August 25, 2009 – Sensitive ecosystems
“On Wednesday, August 19, the Regional District of Okanagan-Similkameen hosted an open house on rural Princeton sensitive ecosystems. A SEI – Sensitive Ecosystem Inventory and mapping project was performed by the Timberline Resource Group, and results presented on Wednesday at the Riverside Centre. […] Project results show that 21 per cent of the study area in the Chain Lakes area is composed of sensitive ecosystems, showing both red and blue listed ecosystems. In the Otter Lake study area, showing both red and blue lists, 28 percent of the study area is composed of sensitive ecosystems. The highest study area showing 31 percent of sensitive ecosystems, with both red and blue lists is Eastgate.”
August 25, 2009 – World’s last great forest under threat: new study
“The world’s last remaining "pristine" forest – the boreal forest across large stretches of Russia, Canada and other northern countries – is under increasing threat, a team of international researchers has found. The researchers from the University of Adelaide in Australia, Memorial University of Newfoundland in Canada and the National University of Singapore have called for the urgent preservation of existing boreal forests in order to secure biodiversity and prevent the loss of this major global carbon sink.”
Events
Call For Papers; Call For Abstracts; New Additions
September 8-12, 2009. 5th International Martes Symposium. University of Washington, Seattle.
The theme of this symposium will be "Biology and Management of Martens and Fishers: a New Synthesis".
September 15-16, 2009. Skeena Salmon Habitat Conference. Smithers, BC.
Skeena salmon depend on a succession of habitats from headwaters spawning and rearing to their outer ocean feeding grounds. Human activities affect and change these habitats in simple, as well as complex and cumulative ways. Management of these activities is currently divided among numerous international, federal, provincial, aboriginal, community and stakeholder agencies and groups. While most of these organisations profess the need for integrated and collaborative habitat protection, it is yet to be achieved. This con
ference aims to initiate a discussion of the institutional changes needed to implement collaborative management of Skeena salmon habitat.
September 21-22, 2009. 11th Annual BIOECON Conference on Economic Instruments to Enhance the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Biodiversity. Venice, Italy.
This international conference is targeted at researchers, environmental professionals, international organisations and policy makers who are interested in working in the management and conservation of biodiversity. The Conference is focused on identifying the most effective and efficient instruments for biodiversity conservation, such as auctions of biodiversity conservation contracts, payment-for-services contracts, taxes, tradable permits, voluntary mechanisms and straightforward command and control. Special emphasis will be given to policy reforms aimed at increasing the commercial rewards for conserving biodiversity, increasing the penalties for biodiversity loss and circulating information on the biodiversity performance requirements of firms. An increasing number of businesses, which were responsible for biodiversity loss in the past, are now supporters of biodiversity conservation. Markets for organic agriculture and sustainably-harvested timber are developing at double-digit rates, while rapid growth is observed in the demand for climate mitigation services, such as the protection of forests and wetlands to absorb carbon dioxide. Bio-prospecting, the search for new compounds, genes and organisms in the wild, is another biodiversity business on the rise.
October 6-9, 2009. International Society for Ecological Modelling 2009 Conference. Quebec City, PQ.
The theme for this conference is "Ecological Models for Enhanced Sustainability in Management". In addition to workshops, there will be opportunities for oral presentations, as well as poster sessions. The deadline for submissions is May 1, 2009.
October 18-25, 2009. The XIII World Forestry Congress 2009. Buenos Aires, Argentina.
October 20-22, 2009. Western Forest Carnivore Committee 2009. Missoula, MT.
Every 2 years the Western Forest Carnivore Committee (WFCC) meets to bring together biologists, resource managers, naturalists and many others to discuss research, conservation, and management of forest carnivores. The meeting provides an opportunity for those working with or interested in forest carnivores to present their work and share ideas. Presentations focus on research and conservation of mesocarnivores (including lynx, wolverine, fisher, marten, and others) and related topics. The WFCC 2009 meeting will be held in Missoula, Montana. We will have 23 presentations (30 min each) during the meeting and invite those interested to submit an abstract by 14 September 2009. We will also have room for poster presentations, and invite those with posters to submit an abstract as well. Abstracts must include: Presentation title (indicate whether it is an “oral” or “poster” presentation), author names and affiliations, and text of the abstract, not exceeding 200 words. Send abstracts as plain text in an email to James Claar at jclaar@fs.fed.us. The Steering Committee will notify authors by September 30, 2009 if their abstract was accepted for presentation. Abstracts for oral presentations and posters will be printed in the meeting program. Attendees will register at the door; registration will be $35 (check or cash only). For more details, please contact James Claar.
October 21-22, 2009. Evaluating Plant Reintroductions as a Plant Conservation Strategy: Two Decades of Evidence. Saint Louis, MO.
In commemoration of 25 years of plant conservation experience, The Center for Plant Conservation is hosting its fourth symposium on plant conservation science on October 21-22, 2009. This event will comprehensively review the past and current state of knowledge about plant reintroductions and their role in improving endangered species conservation.
November 1-5, 2009. Estuaries and Coasts in a Changing World. Portland, OR.
The CERF 2009 Program Committee invites you to submit an abstract for an oral or poster presentation for CERF 2009. CERF is committed to bringing scientists and students from around the world together to exchange information and ideas about the science and management of coastal ecosystems.
November 4-7, 2009. Canadian Forest Communities Conference: Trends and Opportunities. Nanaimo, BC.
Connect with others from across Canada who share your commitment to building vibrant and innovative forest-based communities. Join municipal and Aboriginal leaders, government agencies, industry partners, economic development officers, community groups and researchers to hear their success stories and help chart the course for your forest-based community for the 21st century. Whether you’re interested in bioenergy, eco-tourism, new business models and markets, non-timber forest products, innovative forest tenures, environmental goods and services, economic infrastructure or community engagement and adaptation, you will have the opportunity to share experiences and explore new ideas and strategies with colleagues from across the country.
Nov 5-8, 2009. Shared Responsibility for a Sustainable Landscape. Naramata, BC.
This conference will bring together a wide range of land stewards who will share their experiences and methods of caring for our region. This conference acknowledges the positive role that people can play in the restoration, management, and protection of ecosystems. Major themes of this conference include: Enhancing biological diversity across the landscape and protecting species at risk through ecological restoration; Restoration of riparian forests and wetland habitat, and the relationship that water plays in surrounding ecosystems; Managing the threats of invasive exotic species; First Nations ecocultural restoration initiatives; Ecological restoration’s role on sustainable agriculture and the agro-industries.
November 6-13, 2009. World Wilderness Congress. Merida, Mexico.
Consider participating in and/or presenting at this major cross-disciplinary conservation event that will address the following six major theme areas: Freshwater, Climate Change, Fire, Transboundary and Connectivity Issues, Large Landscapes and Seascapes, and Human Communities in Transition.
November 13-15, 2009. 7th Annual "Genes in Ecology, Ecology in Genes" Symposium. Kansas City, MO.
This event is dedicated to the field of Ecological Genomics, an integrative field that combines genomic tools and ecological approaches to determine the functional significance of genes and genomes and their evolutionary and ecological context. The Symposium will feature lectures by scientists at the forefront of Ecological and Evolutionary Functional Genomics.
June 29 – July 2, 2010. 6th International Conference on the Biology of Butterflies. Edmonton, AB.
The long-standing theme of this conference series, The Biology of Butterflies, focuses
attention on recent developments in biology that rely on butterflies as research models, particularly in ecology and evolutionary biology. This meeting will immediately precede that of the Society for Conservation Biology, also to be held in Edmonton.
September 21-27, 2010. Forest Landscapes and Global Change – IUFRO Landscape Ecology International Conference. Bragança, Portugal.
This conference aims to bring together scientists, planners, and managers in order to share science and experiences on approaches, methods and tools to assess change, to forecast change in structures and processes, and to optimize goods and services provided at multiscale-multifunctional levels under a context of change. Topics addressed are: Scaling in landscape analysis, Patterns and processes in changing landscapes, Disturbances in changing landscapes, Biodiversity conservation and planning in changing landscapes, Monitoring landscape change, Tools of landscape assessment and management, Management and sustainability of changing landscapes, Urban Forestry in changing regions.
Workshops
September 2-3, 2009. Ecopath Specialized Workshops. Vancouver, BC.
Following the Ecopath 25 years Conference, this workshop provides training on the applications of the EwE 6 software, tentatively focusing on: Ecoseed (spatial optimizations), economic modeling, interoperability and plug-ins, and gaming. Limited to 120 participants.
September 10-11, 2009. Workshop on Whitebark Pine Science and Management. Nelson, BC.
Whitebark pine, the quintessential high-mountain tree in much of Canada and the USA is disappearing. Once a keystone species hosting a remarkable ecosystem, whitebark pine is suffering human-related attacks which show no sign of slowing. In 2008, the provinces of Alberta and British Columbia placed this species on their endangered and blue-list. Across most of it’s natural range the pine has declined from decades of non-native blister rust disease and the exclusion of natural fires. Most recently, a widespread eruption of mountain pine beetles has killed-off thousands of hectares of already denuded whitebark pine. This workshop will present the latest news, science, and management tips to public lands staff, nature enthusiasts, students, scientists, educators, and citizens.
September 21-22, 2009. Ecological Approaches to Invasive Plant Management. Revelstoke, BC.
This two day course will present an ecological approach to invasive plant management, where vegetation management systems are designed to work with natural successional processes. The first day is a classroom session, and the second is a field day with the participants evaluating and treating sites. A course manual is supplied. Topics to be addressed include: Identification and Ecology of Invasive Species; Strategies for Dealing with Invasive Species; Identification of the problem – mapping and sampling; Decision support tool for invasive species; Ecological Approach to Vegetation Management; Hand and power tools for dealing with invasive species; Herbicides; Management of crews; and Monitoring.
November 3-5, 2009. Introduction to Bayesian Methods for Ecologists. Revelstoke, BC.
This course will present an overview of the use of Bayesian methods in ecology. Bayesian methods supplement the standard analysis methods such as regression, ANOVA, and generalized linear models. They are helpful in two general situations: when information from a number of studies is to be merged together; and to handle certain problems that are “hard” to do using standard methods (for example, dealing with censored data in regression, or random effects in logistic regression). Instructed by: Dr. Carl Schwarz from Simon Fraser University.
January 13-15, 2010. Workshop on Wetlands Management, Economics and Policy, Victoria, BC.
The University of Victoria in conjunction with the University of Alberta and Ducks Unlimited will host this workshop. As wetland policy discussions and changes are ongoing across Canada, the U.S. and elsewhere, the timing of such a workshop is ripe for advancing the state of knowledge about the benefits of wetlands and fuelling policy discussions.
Other Events
September 22, 2009. Webinar: Presentation on an Integrated Land-Sea Planning Toolkit and its Use
In this free online webinar offered by the Ecosystem-Based Management Tools Network, an innovative project is presented: three decision-support tools (Placeways’ CommunityViz, NatureServe Vista, and NOAA’s Nonpoint-Source Pollution and Erosion Comparison Tool) were used in an integrated manner to develop alternative land use strategies that best meet ecological and socioeconomic sustainability objectives, including water quality and estuarine-marine resource objectives, for Aransas County, Texas, Aransas County is a coastal county that supports a healthy estuary with diverse and rare habitats. The county is experiencing rapid population growth, and the community is interested in protecting the quality of life, natural resources, and water quality. This presentation will describe the project context, how the local community is involved in use of the toolkit, and methods for using the tools in an integrated manner. A final product of the project is a toolkit that can be transferable to other locations and implementation guide.
September 30, 2009. Webinar: Overview of Science Communication Tools
In this free online webinar offered by the Ecosystem-Based Management Tools Network, Science Communication tools are overviewed. The Integration and Application Network (IAN) produces a variety of communication products including newsletters, posters, books, reports, brochures, and conceptual diagrams. These products synthesize scientific findings using effective science communication techniques. This webinar will give an overview of the scientific communication products that IAN produces with a focus on conceptual diagrams and conceptual diagramming tools. Conceptual diagrams or “thought drawings” depict essential attributes of the system and can evolve to capture increased understanding of the system. They can help clarify thinking and avoid ambiguity, provide a communication interface that combines current scientific understanding with community priorities and environmental values, and identify gaps and priorities. IAN provides a variety of resources, examples, tools and tutorials available along with a symbol library of over 1500 custom symbols to help you produce your own conceptual diagrams.
Fall 2009. FORREX – Science to Management Forums Research Chats (online).
A research chat is a short, virtual dialogue that will be set up by FORREX to showcase the research investment that has taken place in British Columbia over the past few years. We recognize that keeping up with the latest innovations in today’s environment has a few challenges and so we will be trying something new this year in the development of the Science to Management Forum entitled
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