41st Annual Natural Areas Conference

About the Conference: Presented by the Natural Areas Association, with co-host Five Rivers MetroParks

The Natural Areas Conference will take on a slightly condensed format this year. Our conference will kick off on Wednesday morning with its plenary session, leading into an afternoon of concurrent sessions and an evening poster session. The following day will include a full day of concurrent sessions, our NAA membership meeting & lunch and our annual awards dinner.

Can’t attend the conference in person?
View the live webcast of the Natural Areas Conference Plenary & panel discussion:

Wednesday, October 15  9:00 a.m. (Eastern).

Registration is not required; simply click on this link to start watching the Plenary.

Exploring the Nature of Global Change and Its Effects on Natural Areas in North America.
Natural areas in North America face major challenges: expanding human populations and economies, changes in climate and precipitation patterns, air and water pollution, fires, floods, invasive species, and more. This year’s plenary session challenges us to consider whether current approaches to natural areas management can keep pace with the changes wrought by these environmental trends, or if something different is in order.
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Plenary Session Schedule:
Wednesday, October 15, 2014
Moderator: Ryan McEwan

9:00 am
Welcome by Lisa Smith, Executive Director
Natural Areas Association

9:15 am
Opening Talk
Reading the Ohio Landscape by Guy Denny

9:45 am
Keynote Address
Diversity, Wildness, Inspiration: The Value of Smaller, Fragmented Natural Areas by Emma Marris

10:30 am
Plenary Address
Deeply Rooted in Reality: Bringing Federal Lands Conservation and Restoration into the 21st Century by Hugh Safford

11:15 am
Panel Discussion with Emma Marris, Hugh Safford, Reed Noss and Keith Bowers

Keith Bowers, president and founder of Biohabitats and Ecological Restoration and Management, and Reed F. Noss, Provost’s Distinguished Research Professor at the University of Central Florida, join our speakers for a panel discussion that promises to engage the audience in a lively exchange of ideas about future directions for natural areas management.

Join the Live Plenary>> 

(This link will be live when the Plenary begins on Oct. 15th)