The Joel and Ellen Fedder Lecture Series of the TREE Foundation presents: “Charles Darwin at 200: The Concise Story of An Extraordinary Man” by Tim Berra

On Wednesday, February 4, 2009, New College will host the third lecture in the New Topics series. Professor Tim Berra, professor emeritus of Evolution, Ecology and Organismal Biology at the Ohio State University, will discuss the life and legacy of Charles Darwin. The event will take place at the Mildred Sainer Pavilion and begins at 7:00 pm. (Address: 5313 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota, FL, 34243 – Campus Map)

Berra is the author of over 75 scientific papers and six books, including Evolution and the Myth of Creationism and A Natural History of Australia. His latest book, Charles Darwin: The Concise Story of an Extraordinary Man, will be published by Johns Hopkins University Press in November 2008 and features 60 black and white illustrations and 16 color plates.

Sponsored by New College of Florida and Joel and Ellen Fedder Lecture Series of the TREE Foundation, the series pairs prominent national speakers with New College faculty for stimulating discussions on relevant topics of our time. The final program is entitled Crystal Balling the Economy” and will be held on March 11.

New Topics New College is the successor to the New College Foundation’s successful Hot Topics series, which started on campus in 2004. The series sponsor for this year’s programming is once again U.S. Trust, Bank of America Private Wealth Management. The Fedder Lecture Series of the TREE Foundation is also underwriting the lecture on Charles Darwin.

You may view the complete program at http://www.ncf.edu/new-topics-new-college/2008-2009-program.

Tickets are $15. The event is free for New College faculty, students and staff. The For more information and to reserve tickets, contact Greg Hite, special events coordinator, at (941) 487-4155 or events@ncf.edu

Links:

• New College Lecture series schedule
• Dr. Tim Berra
• Dr. Meg Lowman
• Mildred Sainer Pavilion

Source: http://www.ncf.edu/news/?p=1091

Darwin cake at the event:

Discover the wonders of Florida’s forest canopy on Friday, December 26 during a nature walk at Myakka River State Park. Professor of Biology and Environmental Studies Dr. Meg Lowman and her family will teach you about the work of an ecologist and the study of living organisms and their interaction with the environment both high and low from 1 p.m. – 2:30 p.m. Walkers will then enjoy a guided tour of canopy methods.

Myakka is one of the state’s oldest and largest parks, protecting 58 square miles of wetlands, prairies, hammocks and pinelands, as well as the officially designated “Wild and Scenic” Myakka River.

Space for this walk is unlimited. Participants should wear comfortable walking shoes that can get wet, and bring a light jacket, hat, sun screen, insect repellent, and drinking water. Camera, hand lens or binoculars are suggested but all optional.

Participants should meet in the parking lot of Myakka’s canopy walkway. Myakka River State Park is located approximately six miles east of I-75 off Clark Road (S.R. 72). Myakka State Park rangers at the front gate can direct cars to the walkway parking lot. There is a park entry fee.

For more information about this or other nature walks, contact the Sarasota County Call Center at 941-861-5000 and ask for Natural Resources.

Dr. Meg Lowman is scheduled to speak at the 33rd ESA Annual Conference in Sydney, Australia on December 2nd.  Additional information can be found at the ESA 08 website:
http://www.ecolsoc.org.au/conference/esa08/

Please save the date of February 4 for the Fedder Lecture series, co-sponsored by TREE Foundation and New College Foundation as part of their Hot Topics series.

“Charles Darwin at 200: Evolution & Evidence”

Wednesday, February 4, 2009
7 PM at Sainer Art and Music Pavilion, New College Campus
5313 Bay Shore Road, Sarasota, FL, 34243 (Campus Map)

Tim Berra, Professor Emeritus, Department of Evolution, Ecology & Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University
Meg Lowman, Ph.D., Professor of Biology and Environment Studies

Ticket price: $15
NCF students, faculty & staff: Free
Reservations: (941) 487-4155 or email events@ncf.edu

A special Chuck Darwin birthday cake and a toast to evolution afterward! Bring your friends.

Links:

• New College Lecture series schedule
• Dr. Tim Berra
• Dr. Meg Lowman
• Mildred Sainer Pavilion

TREE Foundaton / New College of Florida sponsored lecture:

Natural Sciences Seminar: Dr. Soubadra Devy Lecture on The Ecology of the Western Ghats Biodiversity Hotspot in India on Friday, November 14th, 2008

Friday, November 14th, 2008
3:30 PM Chae Auditorium, Heiser Bldg., New College – Western Campus (Campus Map)

Everyone is warmly invited to attend (Free and open to the public)
Refreshments available at 3:25 PM

Contact Person:
Trish Allman
Office Assistant
Division Natural Science
HNS 111A
941-487-4370

• New College Announcement page
• PDF Flyer
• More info on Dr. Soubadra Devy

COUNTDOWN TO THE RENDEZVOUS!

DATES: Starts Thursday, September 25; ends after breakfast on Monday, September 29th.
LOCATION: Simpsonwood Conference Center in Norcross, Georgia, about 45 minutes northwest of Atlanta’s Hartfield-Jackson Airport.

Climbers are gearing up for the 7th Annual Tree Climbing Rendezvous! In just about 4 weeks, we’ll be having the time of our lives climbing, playing, and sleeping in the treetops, and learning together in some great workshops. It’s truly going to be an unforgettable event!

Here are some recent updates in ‘Vous-related activity:

• To date ninety people have registered, and many more have promised to sign up. What a great opportunity to meet and climb with so many new folks!
• A second team went to Simpsonwood (site of the Rendezvous) in late July, this time to scout along the river for additional climbable trees. We found lots of nice trees, but the best was actually in the woods. It’s a 48-52″ DBH pine with gorgeous branch structure, about 130 feet tall with a good view of the river. Along with many beautiful oaks, beech, poplars and hickory trees, there will be no shortage of great climbing trees.
• The “Tree Golf Competition,” being organized by Tree Tramp, is coming along great. We’ve located a good area for it, and we are even receiving donations of prizes from various companies, including Petzl (a Sequoia saddle and Elios helmet), AllGear, and New Tribe.

If you haven’t registered yet and need just a little more inspiration to push you over the edge, here is “Canopymeg” Lowman’s description of the keynote lecture she will give on Saturday night, “Life in the Treetops – Exploration of the World’s Forests”:

“What have we learned from the treetops? And why are forest canopies important to every citizen in the world? Globally, forests are one of the most mysterious, complex and exciting areas of exploration and research. Like SCUBA gear was to coral reef research in the 1950s, single rope techniques facilitated the first studies of the treetops in the 1970s. Since then, canopy biologists have creatively expanded their took kit to include walkways, hot air balloons, cherry pickers, scaffolds, towers, and even construction cranes. With these innovative methods to access tall trees, scientists have discovered that the canopy is home to almost half of the world’s biodiversity, and that the treetops is an important global machine affecting our climate, health, and atmosphere. In short, the canopy “rocks”!

As a veteran with thirty years’ investigation of forest canopies, I will share some of my favorite forests, methods, and adventures and also discuss future challenges for forest conservation. My family has lived and worked in the trees, and hopefully our stories will inspire conservation and education outreach for scientists and citizens alike. The talk will be followed by a book-signing of my new book, It’s a Jungle Up There, co-authored with my children, that aims to inspire a family conservation ethic for any readers who love trees.” [Copies will be available for purchase--psj]

Dr. Lowman’s presentation, along with evening talks by Robert Fulghum and John Gathright, would be worth coming to Atlanta for–even if you weren’t a tree climber!

More information

From the Herald-Tribune:

Meg Lowman, a noted ecologist, has studied jungle canopies for years and will share her stories at the Women’s Equity Day luncheon on Aug. 23. Lowman will speak about how gender inequality still affects science, and how she overcame challenges.

Read the full article.

Event details:

Date: Aug. 23; registration 11 a.m., lunch starts at noon.

Place: Bradenton Municipal Auditorium at City Centre, 1005 Barcarrota Blvd. in Bradenton.

Tickets: $30; call Vicki Waters at 753-9741. For exhibit information, call Gini Hyman at 961-7982. More info / buy tickets online

Contact: Yvette Kimm at yvettekimm@aol.com

Update (8/24):

• Check out the Bradenton Herald article about the event.
• Photos and video from the event will be posted here.

TREE Foundation Annual Public Lecture 2008

Come and hear about the greatest biological mystery of the last few decades: the search for the ivory-billed woodpecker. Dr. Mike Collins has been on the front lines of the elusive search for this famous “Lord God Bird”. Mike will present data, photos, and the latest information about his discoveries in the swamps of Louisiana, Mississippi and Florida.

SPEAKER: Dr. Mike Collins
TOPIC: Ivory-billed Woodpeckers in the Pearl River Basin
DATE: Thursday, February, 28th 2008
TIME: Talk at 7 PM (Reception at 8 PM)
PLACE: Sainer Art & Music Pavilion – South campus of New College in Sarasota,FL along Bay Shore Road, just south of Ringling Museum of Art grounds. 5313 Bay Shore Rd., Sarasota, FL (New College Campus Map)

This lecture is co-sponsored with TREE Foundation, New College Center for Canopy Ecology, and New College Environmental Programs.

Download the PDF flyer.

Imagine yourself overlooking the canopy of the Rainforest!

AMAZON RAINFOREST WORKSHOP
Specially Designed for Travelers Interested in Natural History, Canopy Research, and Ethnobotany
DEPARTURE DATE: JUNE 24 – JULY 2, 2008
Group Leader – DR. MEG LOWMAN

Unique, active, and fun! This expedition is an eye-opening introduction to the environmental and cultural aspects of the Amazon
Rainforest and River System. The program is a third world experience that is safe, comfortable, and accessible. The itinerary
offers travelers a window on scientific discovery. Intercultural interactions are coordinated to be engaging and meaningful.

PROGRAM FEATURES
“This is a non-stop workshop full of once-in-a-lifetime experiences.”
You’ll be immersed in field experiences at four rainforest lodge facilities in the Amazon basin of Northern Peru:

• Ascend over 115 feet on a 1/4-mile Rainforest Canopy Walkway, one of the few of its kind in the New World.
• Visit indigenous communities and contribute to the well being of people who live on the Amazon River.
• Identify the many ecosystem partnerships of one of the most biologically diverse environments on our earth
• Engage all of your senses to observe the unique flora and fauna of the Amazon Rainforest.
• Use hand lenses, binoculars, maps, taxonomic keys for identification, and simple field equipment with the help of Dr. Lowman and our experienced Naturalist Guides to learn about:
  • Insect Camouflage & Mimicry
  • Neotropical Butterflies
  • Rainforest Canopy Research
  • Rainforest Conservation
  • Neotropical Birds & Migration
  • Ethnobotany
  • Rainforest Ecosystem Comparisons
  • Amazon River System, Geology and Soils
  • Medicinal Plants
  • Orchids & Bromeliads

The 2008 land cost for this workshop is $1898 and the international flight roundtrip Lima ~ $950- $1050.
Space is limited, so reserve your place early! Contact: Dr. Frances Gatz,
Environmental Expeditions, 9335 Fraser Avenue, Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
Phone: 301-585-7027 or toll free at 1-800-669-6806 FAX 301-585-4899 Email: frances@ee-link.net
For general information see the website http://www.travel2learn.com/4students.htm

For more information view the printable PDF Flyer

UPDATE: Photos from the workshop are here.

Dr. Margaret Lowman, International Canopy Researcher, to speak at

Garrett College
McHenry, MD
Saturday, May 19th, 2007
7:00 pm

Dr. Lowman will be at the Discovery Center at Deep Creek Lake State Park from 3:00 – 4:30 pm for a book signing and community social.

Please come join us for this unique opportunity!

For directions to the book signing at the Discovery Center at Deep Creek Lake State Park, see:

http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/western/deepcreeklake.html

For directions to Garrett College visit:
http://www.garrettcollege.edu/about/directions.html

The Forest Canopy Walkway is a project by the Western Garrett County State Park Volunteers in partnership with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources Park Service and Forest Service.To find out more about the project, visit:
http://www.dnr.state.md.us/publiclands/western/dcldcbrochure.pdf

Additional info on Dr. Lowman:

Meg Lowman (aka Canopymeg) is the Director of Environmental Initiatives at New College, the premier honors college for the State of Florida, with professorships in biology and environmental studies. Meg has developed an expertise for the use of different canopy access techniques, including ropes, walkways, hot air balloons, construction cranes, and combinations of these methods. She frequently speaks about her jungle adventures and about rain forest conservation to educational groups, ranging from elementary classes to corporate executives to international conferences. She received the Margaret Douglas Medal for Achievement in Conservation Education from the Garden Club of America (1999), The Eugene Odum Prize for Excellence in Ecology Education from the Ecological Society of America (2002), election to Leadership Florida (1997), serves on Board of Directors for the Explorers Club, and is part of the senior management team of NEON for the National Science Foundation. Carolyn Shoemaker of the US Dept of the Interior named an asteroid after her (2003). She co-chaired the First and Second International Conferences on Forest Canopies (1994, 1998), and was chief scientist for the Jason Project in Education (1995,1999, 2004).

Dr. Lowman has authored several books about her research and experiences including “Forest Canopies”, “Life in the Treetops” and “It’s a Jungle Up There: More Tales from the Treetops”.