On June 19, 2018, ESA and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) held a Capitol Hill roundtable discussion hosted by Congressmen Rob Wittman (R-VA) and John Sarbanes (D-MD) highlighting science used to inform Chesapeake Bay restoration and management. Bipartisan staffers and policymakers crowded into a conference room on the Capitol Hill to hear scientists talk about the USGS’s role in providing…
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On Dec. 4, 2014 the Ecological Society of America co-organized a congressional briefing: “Climate Engineering: Future Guiding Principles and Ethics.” The briefing was presented by the Ecological Society of America and American Society of Agronomy, Crop Science Society of America , Soil Science Society of America. Over fifty Hill staff attended the briefing held in the Cannon House Office Building….
Read MoreOn April 23, 2013, the Ecological Society of America sponsored a congressional briefing on the ecology of zoonotic diseases. The briefing highlighted the various environmental factors that can contribute to the spread of several prominent animal to human diseases.Presentations were given by Robert Parmenter, Director of the USDA Valles Caldera National Reserve Scientific Services Division and Gregory Glass, Professor at…
Read MoreOn November 2, 2011, ESA sponsored a congressional briefing: “Using Science to Improve Flood Management.” Emily Stanley (University of Wisconsin, Madison) and Jeff Opperman (The Nature Conservancy, Ohio Field Office) addressed the function of floodplains and managing rivers as systems and for multiple benefits. Emily Stanley’s presentation focused on the work of rivers and the function of floodplains. Industry, transportation,…
Climate Change Impacts and AdaptationJanuary 8, 2010 ESA co-sponsored a congressional briefing that provided a scientific perspective on options for adapting to climate change in the United States. Featured speakers: Michael MacCracken, Chief Scientist for Climate Change Programs, the Climate Institute Kristie L. Ebi, Executive Director, Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) Working Group 2 Technical Support Unit – Impacts,…
On July 13, 2009, ESA hosted House and Senate briefings, “Water Resources in the West: Assessing Tradeoffs in a Changing Climate,” featuring Society members: Jill Baron of the US Geological Survey and Colorado State University; Darrel Jenerette of the University of California, Riverside; and Diane Pataki of the University of California, Irvine. The ecological scientists provided information on the current…
Climate Change: Intersections of Climate and Policy January 9, 2009 ESA co-sponsored a congressional briefing to address the scientific and public policy-related aspects of climate change. Featured speakers: Timothy Wirth, former US Representative and Senator and lead US negotiator at the Kyoto Climate Conference Susan Solomon, a senior scientist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who co-chaired Working Group…
From Agricultural to Urban Ecosystems: Nature’s Services to Humankind December 2, 2008 ESA co-sponsored a webinar on ecosystem services featuring presentations from both ecologists and economists:Featured speakers: Jim Gosz, Associate Dean for Research and Graduate Education at the University of Idaho’s College of Natural Resources Rich Pouyat, former Vice President of ESA Public Affairs and research forester with the US…
After the Fire: Approaches to Revitalizing Ecosystem ResourcesJuly 9, 2008 ESA co-sponsored a congressional briefing on land management following forest fires. Featured speakers: Norm Christensen, former ESA President (2007-2008) and a forest ecologist at Duke University Dan Neary, a soil scientist with the U.S. Forest Service at the Rocky Mountain Research Station Stephen Swallow, a resource economist with the University…
The Sustainability of Cellulosic Biofuels June 11, 2008 ESA hosted a congressional briefing on the ecological and economic impacts of producing biofuels from cellulosic sources—the leaves, stems, and other fibrous parts of plants.Featured speakers: Phil Robertson, who specializes in crop and soil science at the Kellogg Biological Station at Michigan State University Doug Landis, an entomologist from Michigan State University…