Save the Date! Growing Through Change: Sourcing Climate-Resilient Seed in Ecological Restoration

Join us on September 15, 2020 for a virtual conversation about the importance of sourcing seed for ecological restoration with climate resilience in mind.

All are welcome to join this virtual version of the Grassland Restoration Network annual meeting

Short presentations by researchers in restoration ecology and regional seed producers will be followed by breakout sessions for discussions on strategies and steps for moving forward.

Registration opens August 31, 2020! You will receive a follow-up email when the registration link goes live.

 

Presentations by:

Anna Bucharova at the Institute of Landscape Ecology, Münster, Germany. Anna’s work is focused on challenges in using seeds for ecological restoration under changing environments and the rapid evolution of climate change.

Julie Etterson at the University of Minnesota, Duluth. Julie studies how native plant species respond to human impacts on the environment, such as climate change. She is also the principal scientist behind Project Baseline, a research seed bank that studies the evolution of wild plant populations over time and space.

Jennifer Ogle, the coordinator of the Arkansas Native Seed Program. Jennifer is working hard to provide locally sourced native seed for large-scale habitat enhancement, habitat restoration and revegetation projects in Arkansas.

There will also be lightning talks from regional native seed producers including Cardno, Inc. and The Prairie State Nursery, as well as from representatives of Forest Preserve and Conservation Districts and NGOs on their seed sourcing strategies and protocols used for their restoration projects.

Would you like to share your seed sourcing policy and experiences in a lightning talk?

We invite workshop participants to engage with each other by presenting a very brief talk regarding their seed sourcing policy and experience.

We will have two focal topics: “Seed Sourcing—What’s YOUR Policy?” and “Seed Sourcing Strategies—On the Ground Implementation.” If you are interested, please email Pati Vitt at pvitt@LCFPD.org by September 5.

Join us on September 15, 2020, 9 am-12:30 pm (CDT) as we discuss how seed sourcing may provide the foundation for climate-resilient restorations in what we hope will be the first of many conversations.

One anticipated outcome of this workshop will be the formation of a working group to continue studying and developing best practices for sourcing seed now and into the future.

Organizers include:

Pati Vitt, Lake County Forest Preserve District

Sponsored in part by the Wildlife Conservation Society’s Climate Adaptation Fund.

About Grassland Restoration Network blog

Bill Kleiman publishes this blog. Bill's daytime job is manager of Nachusa Grasslands. We are looking for guest authors on various topics of grassland habitat restoration. Contact me with your ideas or drafts.
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