APSAF 2024 Winter Meeting

January 23-25, 2024
Roanoke, Virginia

~ Healthy Forests – Healthy Communities ~

All communities depend on forests. Healthy forests are vital for social, environmental, and economic health – the three pillars of society. The APSAF 2024 Winter Meeting, “Healthy Forests – Healthy Communities”, will explore the diverse ways in which forests impact the health and vitality of communities, from human physical and mental well-being, to wildlife habitat, to economic and ecological impacts. 

Speakers and panelists will paint broad pictures and share success stories of what it takes to preserve and ensure forest health for human and wildlife objectives. 

Join us to help answer:  > What is a healthy forest?  > How is it achieved?  > What is my role? > Why does it matter?

Meeting Location and Lodging Information

• Address: The Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center
• Room rate:  $122/night plus tax (or prevailing government per diem rate), for single and double occupancy. $20 per additional person per night. Hotel room rate is subject to applicable state and local taxes (currently 13.3%). 
• Reservations: Click here to book your reservations online over the meeting dates.  If you need to book rooms outside the meeting dates, we recommend calling the hotel directly at 866-594-4722 and request the "Appalachian Society of American Foresters" group rate.
• Reservation deadline: Friday, January 5, 2024, or until rooms are no longer available (whichever is sooner). 
• Hotel Cancelation policy: Individual guest room cancelations will be accepted until 24 hours prior to arrival without penalty.  Within 24 hours of arrival, you'll be charged one-nights' stay plus tax.
• Parking: Overnight parking is available for $15/night for self-parking or $21/night for valet parking. For daily meeting commuters, self-parking ranges from $5-10, based on number of hours.

Agenda
Below for a general overview of our time together. All times are subject to change. The agenda will be evaluated for CFE credits.

• Tuesday, January 23 - Pre-Conference Workshops and Tours (12:30-5:00 pm)
• Wednesday, January 24 - General Sessions, State Division Meetings, Silent Auction and Exhibitors (8:00am-3:30pm); Alumni Socials and ApSAF Reception and Social (5:00-7:30pm)
• Thursday, January 25 - General Sessions (8:00am-12:00pm); Silent Auction and Exhibitors (8:00-10:30am)

Click here to view the full agenda for the Winter Meeting. 

Pre-Conference Workshops and Tours
Join us on Tuesday, January 23, from 12:30 - 5:00 pm, for our pre-conference workshops and tours. See below for more details on the pre-conference workshop and tour options. Sign-up for a workshop or tour when registering for the meeting.

• Hardwood Silviculture Update and Refresher workshop: $55 
  The APSAF region boasts an abundance and variety of hardwoods. This large and important forest resource deserves our best. The future supply of valuable wood needs our innovative applications of the science. Join us for an in-depth Silviculture refresher and exploration of Virginia’s Hardwood Assessment Tool (HAT) to make the application of the science easier and more consistent. We grow better together.
  

• Catawba Sustainability Tour: (Limited to first 27 registrants) $70 
  Farming & Forestry together?  In the same place at the same time?  The Virginia Tech Catawba Sustainability Center (CSC) is a 377 acre living laboratory for sustainable land management research & demonstration including various agroforestry (to include forest farming) practices relevant for the Appalachian region. Join us for a walk around the CSC looking at multifunctional riparian buffers, swales, forest farming, silvopasture and alley cropping experiments.

Registration Rates and Deadlines
Below are registration fees for the ApSAF 2024 Winter Meeting. Early registration ends December 20, 2023 and the last day to register online is January 16, 2024.  

• Members - $290 (thru 12/20/2023); $350 (12/21/2023 thru 01/16/2024)
• Non-Member - $365 (thru 12/20/2023); $450 (12/21/2023 thru 01/16/2024)
• Students -  $100 - Learn more about scholarships via the K.P. Funderburke Jr. Educational Endowment Fund.
• Golden Members - $200
• Spouses and Family fees vary from $95 (Wednesday night social only) to $200(early)/$275(late) for all meals (including the social) when added onto a member or non-member registration.

Meeting Cancellation and Refund Policy
Notice of cancellation and refund requests may result in a full or partial refund as described below. Send an email to Michael Downey, Planning Committee Chair, michael.downey@dof.virginia.gov to request a cancellation or substitute participant.

• 100% Refund is available: On or before December 20, 2023
• 80% Refund Available: On or before January 16, 2024
• No Refund is Available: Starting January 17, 2024, meeting and workshop registrants may notify Michael Downey (michael.downey@dof.virginia.gov) of the need to cancel. Please consider sending a substitute. Refunds only for extenuating circumstances, handled on a case by case basis. Refund checks are mailed after the meeting.

Silent Auction and Raffle Information
Don't forget the silent auction and raffle are looking for quaint, unusual, ordinary, old, new, eclectic, and/or weird forestry and non-forestry items and donations. Silent auction and raffle tickets will raise funds for The Kenney P. Funderburke Fund and Foresters Fund, both important APSAF educational initiatives. Please consider donating items to help raise funds. Complete this form to provide details regarding your donation. Questions?  Contact Mike Skinner (confluencefstry@comcast.net).  

Health and Safety Protocols
The health and safety of our meeting participants, committee members and partners is a top priority.  We will comply with federal, state, and locally mandated laws, orders, requirements and protocols, and will require all participants to comply with any measures set in place. We ask that you do not attend the meeting if you are unwell. Please feel free to contact Ed Zimmer, ApSAF Chair with questions: ed.zimmer@dof.virginia.gov.  

Volunteers
Various volunteer opportunities are available during the winter meeting. If you're interested in lending a hand during the event, check out the opportunities and sign up here.