| AnnouncementsFull Worth of Wetlands Can Now be Revealed A new way to assess the real worth of wetlands has recently been released by the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. It is now possible to measure the economic value of a wetland at the same time as assessing species that live there and the importance of a wetland for people’s livelihoods. The new guide, An Integrated Wetland Assessment Toolkit, is designed for development agencies, industries and governments to make sure they properly assess what they will lose if they drain a wetland for development.For more details… 2008-2009 FORREX Annual Report – Now Available Online FORREX has just released its 2008-2009 Annual Report.View the PDF… Salvage Logging and Habitat Conservation Although a common practice, salvage logging raises concern among ecologists and forest managers. Disturbed ecosystems have important ecological functions that should be represented, at least in part, in forest landscapes. Many questions are associated with salvage logging: How much of a naturally disturbed stand should be harvested? Which disturbed stands make the best candidates for retention? How will salvage logging affect post-fire plant and wildlife habitat? The recently published Sustainable Forest Management Network Research Note Series No. 49 draws from research conducted across North America on the silvicultural and ecological impacts of salvage logging with a focus on wildlife habitat conservation in post-fire stands and landscapes. View the PDF… Wildlife Responses to Stand-Level Structural Retention Practices in the Boreal Forest This literature review recently produced by the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement examines our current state of knowledge of the short- and long-term responses of vertebrate wildlife (birds, mammals, and amphibians) to various stand-level management practices that manipulate the quantity and quality of live trees, snags, understorey vegetation, and coarse woody debris (CWD) available to wildlife post-harvest.For more details… New Report: Wildlife in a Changing World Wildlife in a Changing World presents an analysis of the 2008 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Beginning with an explanation of the IUCN Red List as a key conservation tool, it goes on to discuss the state of the worlds species and provides the latest information on the patterns of species facing extinction in some of the most important ecosystems in the world, highlighting the reasons behind their declining status. Areas of focus in the report include: freshwater biodiversity, the status of the worlds marine species, species susceptibility to climate change impacts, the Mediterranean biodiversity hotspot, and broadening the coverage of biodiversity assessments.View the PDF… LINK Volume 11, Issue 1 – Now Available Online The new issue of LINK is now available online and includes, among others, the following contents: – What’s new in conservation biology? – Examining CWD’s role in fungal biodiversity – Conserving wetlands in British Columbia – UVic Centre for Forest Biology at the forefront of new era in forest research – Speaking for the salmonFor more details… New Reports – Adaptation to Climate Change Team The Adaptation to Climate Change Team (ACT) is a policy planning initiative from Simon Fraser University designed to develop timely options for sustainable adaptation to climate change impacts. ACT has recently developed a series of documents of reference related to biodiversity, adaptation planning and extreme weather events that are available in their website.For more details… Effects and Mitigation of Road Impacts on Individual Movement Behavior of Wildcats Roads can affect the persistence of wildlife populations, through posing mortality risks and acting as barriers. In many countries, transportation agencies attempt to counterbalance these negative impacts. Recently published in the Journal of Wildlife Management, the findings of this article in terms of fencing design and crossing structures can be used by transportation agencies for an effective reduction of road mortality and barrier effect for carnivores.For more details… New Version of Marine Geospatial Ecology Tools Released Marine Geospatial Ecology Tools (MGET) is a free, open-source geoprocessing toolbox designed for coastal and marine researchers and GIS analysts who work with spatially-explicit ecological and oceanographic data in scientific or management workflows. MGET includes over 180 tools useful for a variety of tasks, such as converting oceanographic data to ArcGIS formats, identifying fronts in sea surface temperature images, building predictive species distribution models from environmental variables such as sea surface temperature and chlorophyll concentration, invoking the R statistics program from ArcGIS, analyzing coral reef connectivity by simulating hydrodynamic larval dispersal, and building grids that summarize fishing effort, CPUE and other statistics.For more details… Adaptation of Forests and People to Climate Change. A Global Assessment Report This report was coordinated by the International Union of Forest Research Organizations (IUFRO) through the Collaborative Partnership on Forests (CPF), an alliance of 14 international organizations that each has substantial forestry programs. Authored by 35 of the world’s top forestry scientists, it provides the first global assessment to date of the ability of forests to adapt to climate change. The report presents the state of scientific knowledge regarding the current and projected future impacts of climate change on forests and people along with options for adaptation.For more details… Forestry Extension: Implications for Forest Protection Recently published in the International Journal of Biodiversity and Conservation, this paper provides, from a tropical forestry perspective, an interesting view of the relevance of forestry extension, establishing that it has great implications for forest protection and conservation. It emphasizes that existing and emerging scientific information about biodiversity need to be communicated and new concepts and technologies in conservation need to be conveyed if sustainable forest management and development are achievable and if the present heightened loss of genetic diversity is to be curtailed.View the PDF… Human Impacts on Salt Marshes – New Book The recently published book Human Impacts on Salt Marshes establishes itself as a major contribution to the science and practice of North American tidal wetland conservation. The book presents an edited collection of 18 chapters written by leading wetland scientists, each exploring a particular impact or issue from a regional perspective. Most chapters conduct a thorough academic review to explore the topics in great depth. The chapters usually conclude with recommendations for future research and management action.For more details… From Government to Governance: A State-of-the-Art Review of Environmental Governance The purpose of this study, recently commissioned by Alberta Environment, is to develop a state-of-the-art literature review of current academic thinking regarding environmental governance, with a focus on considerations that are relevant to water management and water allocation. The overall perspective is broad, but concerns that are especially pertinent to water and environmental governance in Alberta are emphasized.View the PDF… Climate Disruption and Biodiversity In this article recently published in Current Biology, an alternative approach to studying the details of how climate change is affecting biodiversity is discussed. This approach concentrates on understanding the most significant ecological changes, the ones that are irreversible or so called ‘tipping points’. Once such a point has been passed, this paper argues that even if society managed to restore historical climatic conditions, it might not restore the historical ecological patterns.View the PDF…UNEP Releases 2009 Climate Change Science Compendium The UN Environment Programme (UNEP) has released a report entitled “Climate Change Science Compendium 2009”. The report, compiled in association with scientists around the world, reviews some 400 major scientific contributions to our understanding of Earth Systems and climate change that have been released through peer-reviewed literature, or from research institutions, over the last three years.View the PDF… News August 26, 2009 – Reducing bat mortality at wind farms: testing a new method “Between 1997 and 2006, wind energy increased tenfold in installed capacity worldwide to meet a growing demand for clean energy. Unfortunately, some wind farms kill bats in large numbers, especially facilities with newer, taller turbines. A new study has found that letting wind turbines idle at low wind speed can reduce bat mortality from turbines substantially.”Read the full story… September 9, 2009 – Grizzlies starve as salmon disappear “First the salmon vanished, now the bears may be gone too. Reports from conservationists, salmon-stream walkers and ecotourism guides all along British Columbia’s wild central coast indicate a collapse of salmon runs has triggered widespread death from starvation of black and grizzly bears. Those guides are on the front lines of what they say is an unfolding ecological disaster that is so new that it has not been documented by biologists. ”Read the full story… September 9, 2009 – Groups call for more coastal protection “Decades of overfishing and habitat destruction are threatening entire ocean ecosystems off the British Columbia coast and it’s time governments lived up to their promises to create a network of marine protected areas, says the Western Canada Wilderness Committee, which is spearheading a campaign for better ocean protection.”Read the full story… September 11, 2009 – Court ruling good news for endangered or at-risk species “A judge in B.C. has slammed the federal government for a shifty, illegal policy imposed to avoid protecting endangered species. The ruling has implications reaching far beyond the tiny fish at issue. It affects a host of species from blue whales to butterflies. Federal court Judge Douglas Campbell ruled that the federal fisheries ministry broke the law by subverting scientists’ efforts to prevent extinction of the Nooksack dace.”Read the full story… September 11, 2009 – CBD experts finalize report on biodiversity and climate change “The report of the Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group on Biodiversity and Climate Change, established under the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), has been finalized and will be published as CBD Technical Series no. 41, Connecting Biodiversity and Climate Change Mitigation and Adaptation – Report of the Second Ad Hoc Technical Expert Group on Biodiversity and Climate Change.”Read the full story… September 11, 2009 – BC Wildlife Federation believes that when it comes to wildlife, conservation is first and foremost “Anti-bear-hunting activists are using the low salmon returns and anecdotal perceptions that there are fewer bears this year in order to call for a stop to the bear hunt. According to BC Wildlife Federation, these claims are remiss of appropriate scientific-based research.”View the PDF… September 14, 2009 – Provincial grant provides ecosystem restoration jobs “The provincial government has awarded another Job Opportunities Program grant to the Rocky Mountain Trench Natural Resources Society. The Trench Society will use the $400,000 to employ 12 forestry workers on ecosystem restoration projects through the fall and winter.”Read the full story… September 15, 2009 – Conference looks to reduce roadkill “Roads, tunnels and bridges are some of the most glaring examples of humankind’s ingenuity; unfortunately transportation is also an example of how humans can drastically alter the environment. This week at the International Conference on Ecology and Transportation experts in the fields of transportation and ecology have gathered to discuss ways to mitigate impacts on the environment while at the same time providing safe and efficient transportation.”Read the full story… September 17, 2009 – Oceans face climate-change crisis “For more than two years, Canadian writer Alanna Mitchell travelled the world’s oceans, meeting scientists whose research was uncovering a crisis in the planet’s large bodies of water. Overfishing, coastal dead zones and rising water temperatures are just some of the problems plaguing the world’s oceans. Mitchell found the most serious challenge the oceans face is climate change.”Read the full story… September 17, 2009 – Researching the human impact on grizzly bears in Alberta “Between the Alberta Foothills and the Eastern Slopes of the Rocky Mountains, logging, open-pit mining and development of the oil and gas industries are booming. They are not, however, popular with the grizzly bears that live there.”Read the full story… September 22, 2009 – Yellowstone grizzlies back on endangered species list “A federal district court ruling in Montana today returned Endangered Species Act protections to the Yellowstone grizzly bear population. In the case, brought by the Greater Yellowstone Coalition, Judge Donald Molloy ruled that inadequate regulatory mechanisms were put in place to manage the bears after federal protections were dropped in early 2007, and that U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service failed to address the loss of an essential food source for the bears, whitebark pine seeds.”Read the full story… September 24, 2009 – Forest Service Web-based tool helps manage environmental risk “The U.S. Forest Service Eastern Forest Environmental Threat Assessment Center (EFETAC) recently launched the Comparative Risk Assessment Framework and Tools (CRAFT), a user-friendly, Web-based support system that helps natural resource managers address uncertainties inherent in land management decisions. CRAFT offers a structured, simplified approach to determine objectives and calculates risks and tradeoffs associated with different management scenarios. EFETAC soon will offer training workshops on CRAFT.”Read the full story… September 24, 2009 – Three of nine key ‘planetary boundaries” breached by human activity, report says “Three key ‘planetary boundaries’ have been crossed, according to an international research team that says human beings have collectively gone too far in pushing other species to extinction and upsetting global climate and nitrogen cycles. The scientists argue human activities must stay within defined boundaries for nine Earthly systems to avoid catastrophic environmental change.”Read the full story… Events Call For Papers; Call For Abstracts; New Additions ConferencesSeptember 29 – October 1, 2009. Smithsonian Education Online Conference on Climate Change The Smithsonian is addressing the global challenge of climate change with special exhibitions and ongoing research. You will be able to participate in these investigations and deepen your understanding through the Smithsonian Online Education Conference: Climate Change. Throughout the days of this free online conference, you’ll explore Smithsonian research and collections related to the evidence, impact, and response to climate change.For more details… 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.For more details… October 18-25, 2009. The XIII World Forestry Congress 2009. Buenos Aires, Argentina.For more details… 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.For more details… 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.For more details… 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.For more details… 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.For more details… 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.For more details… 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.For more details… February22-26, 2009. 2010 Ocean Sciences Meeting. Portland, OR. Stewardship of marine resources in the 21st Century demands the development of predictive tools based on models and field observations. The challenge of developing these tools forms the theme of the 2010 Ocean Sciences meeting. This overarching theme emphasizes efforts to link observations and models to form superior predictions across multiple space and time scales. It encompasses research focusing on some aspect of observations, models, and also field or laboratory experiments that ultimately seek to enhance our predictive ability, as well as efforts focusing on education, outreach, and marine policy.For more details… 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.For more details… Workshops October 29, 2010. How to Create a Local Conservation Fund in Your Region. Cranbrook, BC. Hear the success story of the East Kootenay and find out how a conservation fund is possible in your region. This workshop will provide an overview of the steps to create a conservation fund and some ideas to get you started.For more details… 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.For more details… 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.For more details… Other Events October 2009-March 2010. 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 “Management Questions – Science Answers. Science to Management Forum Series-Using the Pieces to Build and Transform the Future”. To augment the formal program and regional working sessions, we will be hosting virtual interactive forest science chats throughout the summer and fall of 2009. These virtual dialogues will allow research proponents to briefly describe the management problems their project is addressing and any information or lessons learned from their work. We are looking for researchers to contribute to a number of themes and topics that will be defined shortly.For more details… November, 2009. FORREX – Science to Management Forums. Kamloops, Nanaimo and Prince George, BC. FORREX, in partnership with the FIA?Forest Science Program (FSP), the BC Ministry of Forests and Range, the BC Ministry of Environment and other partners, invites you to participate in one of at least three regional information and strategy science forums. The forums will take place in September 2009, and are tentatively scheduled for Kamloops, Nanaimo, and Prince George. If you are a natural resource professional, policy manager, community leader, or research professional from the natural resource community, these forums are for you. The Science Forums will: – Create venues for communicating recent regional developments in natural resource management science and innovation (including FSP-funded research); – Bring the research and resource management communities together regionally to present, discuss, and problem-solve on issues related to the sustainable management of southern, coastal, and northern ecosystems; and – Identify gaps in our understanding of the management of our ecosystems, and initiate discussion on addressing these gaps through co-operative extension and research |
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