2023 Natural Areas Conference

2023 Natural Areas Virtual Conference. The Power of LTER. Thursday, November 2, 2023 11 A.M. - 4:30 P.M.

2023 Natural Areas Virtual Conference (NAC23)

The Power of Long Term Ecological Research (LTER): Informing natural areas management

Thursday, November 2, 2023 11 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. EST

This conference has concluded. NAA thanks all who attended and made this conference so special. We'll see you next year!

The National Science Foundation (NSF) Long Term Ecological Research Program (LTER) was established in 1980 to address ecological questions that cannot be resolved with short-term observations or experiments; emphasizing the study of ecological phenomena over long periods of time.

Long-term studies are essential to achieve an integrated understanding of how populations, natural communities and other components of ecosystems interact and are affected by management techniques and climate change. Getting this valuable science and research findings into the hands of those that can positively affect the conservation of critically important landscapes with an eye towards climate resilience are mutual goals of the National Science Foundation and the Natural Areas Association.

NAA, in partnership with the LTER Network, will highlight the important research being done within the LTER network that informs the practices of our land-management audience from around North America. LTER researchers will convey the findings of their studies that inform on-the-ground management decisions that affect biodiversity conservation and ecological health in the systems in which natural areas practitioners work.

The conference will feature LTER representatives from the following ecosystems:

Prairies & Grasslands
Forests
Coastal Regions
Lacustrine/Riverine
Drylands

The 2023 Natural Areas Conference - A One-day Virtual Event!

Agenda

Time	Session
11:00 – 11:05 a.m.	Welcome
11:05 – 11:20 a.m.	2023 Annual Awards - Presentation Ceremony Lisa Smith, Executive Director, Natural Areas Association
11:20 – 11:35 a.m.	Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER): Informing ecosystem management Lisa Smith, Executive Director, Natural Areas Association
11:35 - 12:05 p.m.	An Overview of the Long-Term Ecological Research Network Evelyn Gaiser, Ph.D., Distinguished University Professor of Biological Sciences, Florida International University
12:05 - 12:45 p.m.	Why Does the National Science Foundation (NSF) Invest in the LTER Program? Allen J. Moore, Ph.D., Division Director, Division of Environmental Biology, National Science Foundation
12:45 - 1:05 p.m.	Why Do LTERs Matter to Natural Areas Practitioners Glenn Patrick Juday, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus of Forest Ecology, University of Alaska Fairbanks
1:05 - 1:15 p.m.	Break & Transition to Breakout Sessions
	*Prairies & Grasslands* Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve Unearthing Old Fields' Potentials: Biodiversity, carbon capture, and stability Maowei Liang, Research Scientist, University of Minnesota Kellogg Biological Station Hidden in Plain Site: Long Term Research Reveals 20 Million Acres of US Midwest Croplands Ripe for Biodiversity Conservation Nick Haddad, Professor, Michigan State University Konza Prairie Biological Station Ecohydrological Consequences of Woody Plant Encroachment in Tallgrass Prairie Jesse Nippert, University Distinguished Professor, Kansas State University Niwot Ridge Rugged Terrain Shapes Alpine Responses to Climate Change: Long-term Trends and Experimental Insights from the Niwot Ridge LTER Nancy C. Emery, Principal Investigator & Associate Professor, University of Colorado
	*Forest* Andrews Forest Forest Management and Conservation as a Bulwark Against Climate Change Matt Betts, Oregon State University Bonanza Creek Changing Disturbances, Ecological Legacies, and the Future of the Alaskan Boreal Forest Michelle C. Mack, Regents Professor, Northern Arizona State University Harvard Forest Long-term forest carbon dynamics: How site scale research informs regional climate mitigation policy Jonathan Thompson, Harvard University Hubbard Brook Forests Don't Read Scientific Papers: Surprising Results from Long-term Ecological Research in Northern Hardwood Forests Peter Groffman, Professor, City University of New York
	*Coastal* Beaufort Lagoon Ecosystems Linkages Between LTER Research and Land/Water Management Along Alaska's Northern-most Coastline James W. McClelland, Senior Scientist, The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory Florida Coastal Everglades Restoring the Florida Coastal Everglades: Insights from Long-term Ecological Research and Management John Kominoski, Professor, Florida International University Plum Island Ecosystems Will Marshes Keep Up with Sea-level Rise? Anne Giblin, Senior Scientist, The Ecosystems Center, Marine Biological Laboratory Virginia Coast Reserve Long-term Impacts of Seagrass and Oyster Restoration on Ecosystem Services Along Coastal Virginia Matthew Reidenback, Professor, University of Virginia
	*Lacustrine/Riverine* Andrews Forest Short and Long-term Perspectives of Forest Management Effects on Stream Biota Dana Warren, Associate Professor, Oregon State University Andrews Forest Shrinking Sizes of Unexploited Fish and Salamanders Over the Past 60 Years Ivan Arismendi, Associate Professor, Oregon State University Luquillo On the impacts of multiple disturbances on the resiliency of tropical freshwater food webs and ecosystem services in the Luquillo Experimental Forest, Puerto Rico Alan Covich, Professor Emeritus, University of Georgia Northern Temperate Lakes Taking a Long Look at Lakes: Perspectives from the North Temperate Lakes Long-Term Ecological Research Program Emily Stanley, Professor University of Wisconsin
	*Drylands* Central Arizona - Phoenix Urban Ecological Infrastructure and Human-Environment Interactions in the Sonoran Desert Becky Ball, Professor, Arizona State University Jornada Basin Connectivity and Feedbacks Driving Vegetation Change in Drylands Niall Hanan, Professor, New Mexico State University Sevilleta Climate variability at dryland ecotones - how will increasing variance influence ecosystems? Jennifer Rudgers, University of New Mexico
3:15 - 3:30 p.m.	Break & Transition back to Plenary Session
3:30 - 4:00 p.m.	Plenary Session - Reconvene Learning Highlights/Group Discussion
4:00 - 4:30 p.m.	Plenary Session: A Horizon of Opportunity: Preparing for collaboration as sustainability initiatives take root Sunny Fleming, Industry Lead, Public Sector Environment, Esri
4:30 p.m.	Conclusion

Thank You to our Partners!

Why is the 2023 Natural Areas Conference going to be virtual?

It was such a joy to gather our community of natural areas practitioners in Duluth, MN during September 2022. That said, sometimes an organization needs to take some time to calibrate - and that is what NAA will do in connection to the Natural Areas Conference.

NAA’s goal is to be indispensable for those who steward natural areas. To create a single source where you can conveniently and affordably access reliable science and quality programming wherever you are located, wherever you are in your career, and wherever you are in your practice.

Following an in-depth strategic planning effort, NAA determined that the needs of the natural areas stakeholder community are changing, and so are the economics of large in person events. As such, it was time to develop an updated conference business and program delivery model to better serve all of you and our organization.

The in-person Natural Areas Conference will be back - better than ever - during Fall 2024!

More details will be posted about both the 2023 Natural Areas Conference One-Day Virtual Event & the 2024 Natural Areas Conference - In person!