Boulder County Nature Association 2019 Ecosystem Symposium
The Changing Baseline for Front Range Ecosystems: Implications for Management and Restoration
Saturday, March 16, 2019
9 am – 3 pm
Please join BCNA for this year’s ecosystem symposium and help share this information with others who may be interested in attending.
Change is a constant in ecological systems, but in the Anthropocene age, human impacts are dramatically influencing the nature and pace of ecological change—literally and metaphorically changing the landscape around us. In the face of such long-term, irreversible changes, the very concept of a ‘baseline’ or ‘reference state’ of an ecosystem may be unsuitable as a basis for management decisions.
This symposium will explore what we know from recent research and monitoring studies about change over decades to Front Range plant, animal and microbial communities. We will consider the implications for managing these communities for resilience, not with the goal of returning them to some idealized and static past, but by bolstering their ability to adapt to the challenges of the future.
Speakers will describe research observations of change in local ecosystems from the mountains to the plains, highlight local observations, and raise questions for nature observers and land managers. When change is such a constant, how do we think about managing for resilience? What might it mean to “restore forward” in Boulder County?
University of Colorado Boulder
Sustainability, Energy and Environment Complex (SEEC)
4001 Discovery Drive, Boulder CO (off Colorado near Foothills)
For parking and program information, please visit http://bcna.org/2019es-schedule.html
Free parking is a short walk from the SEEC building. Please see the website for a map of your parking options, and plan your arrival time accordingly.
The symposium is free and open to all.
Please bring your own plate, cup and utensils for the complimentary lunch.
Donations will be accepted for the BCNA Research Grants Program.
BCNA is a private, non-profit, publicly funded organization committed to conserving and promoting resilient natural ecosystems in Boulder County and the Colorado Front Range. BCNA members are active in gathering information about Boulder County’s natural resources, in sharing information with the public through nature hikes, classes, and seminars, and in speaking out in support of our natural resources.
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