Early registration is $45 per person. After March 15th, registration is $50 per person. Course registration includes a copy of Attracting Native Pollinators.
A limited number of scholarships are available to farmers of bee-pollinated crops to cover the fee of the course. To apply for a scholarship, please contact the Cheshire County Conservation District at 603-756-2988 ext.116 or amanda@cheshireconservation.org.
Lunch is not included. Please plan on bringing a sack lunch with you to the course.
Canceled registrations can be refunded until March 18th, 2014.
This Pollinator Conservation Short Course is made possible with the support of the Northeast Sustainable Agriculture Research and Education (SARE) program and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). Additional support for this training is provided by the following: CS Fund; Disney Worldwide Conservation Fund; USDA Specialty Crop Block Grant through the NH Department of Agriculture; Markets, and Food; Whole Foods Market and its vendors; and Xerces Society members.
Special thank you to Cheshire County Conservation District and Hillsborough County Conservation District for supporting this course.
Pollinator habitat planting on New Hampshire blue berry farm by Don Keirstead, New Hampshire NRCS.
Pollinator Conservation Short Course
Jaffrey, New Hampshire
March 25, 2014
9:00 am - 4:00 pm EDT
Pollinators are essential to our environment. The ecological service they provide is necessary for the reproduction of more than 85 percent of the world's flowering plants and is fundamental to agriculture and natural ecosystems. More than two-thirds of the world's crop species are dependent on pollination, with an annual estimated value of $18 to $27 billion in the United States alone. Beyond agriculture, pollinators are keystone species in most terrestrial ecosystems, since their activities are ultimately responsible for the seeds and fruits that feed everything from songbirds to black bears. Conservation of pollinating insects is critically important to preserving both wider biodiversity, as well as agriculture.
In many places, however, this essential service is at risk. In 2006, the National Academy of Sciences released the report Status of Pollinators in North America, which called attention to the decline of pollinators. The report urged agencies and organizations to increase awareness and protect pollinator habitat. The Pollinator Conservation Planning Short Course was developed to address this need.
Introductory topics include the principles of pollinator biology, the economics of insect pollination, basic bee field identification, and evaluating pollinator habitat. Advanced modules will cover land management practices for pollinator protection, pollinator habitat restoration, incorporating pollinator conservation into federal conservation programs, selection of plants for pollinator enhancement sites, management of natural landscapes, and financial and technical resources to support these efforts. Throughout the short course these training modules are illustrated by case studies of pollinator conservation efforts across the country.
Registrants will receive the Xerces Society's Pollinator Conservation Toolkit which includes Xerces' latest book, Attracting Native Pollinators. Protecting North America's Bees and Butterflies, as well as habitat management guidelines and relevant USDA-NRCS and extension publications.
The Xerces Society is offering similar Pollinator Conservation Short Courses across the country. Visit our online events page to view up-to-date short course information.
SHORT COURSE TRAINING SKILLS AND OBJECTIVES
COURSE AGENDA
Module 1 Introduction and Importance of Pollinator Conservation
Module 2 Basic Bee and Other Beneficial Insect Biology
Module 3 Bee-Friendly Farming
Module 4 Open Laboratory (outdoors, weather permitting)
Module 5 Habitat Restoration
Module 6 Assessing Technical and Financial Support
Module 7 Additional Resources
Module 8 Wrap Up
INSTRUCTOR
Nancy Lee Adamson, PhD – Pollinator Conservation Specialist - East Region
Nancy is the Pollinator Conservation Specialist - East Region for the Xerces Society and the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service East National Technology Support Center (ENTSC). She supports pollinator conservation care of the ENTSC in Greensboro, North Carolina. She studied bees important for crop pollination (primarily native bees) and meadow restoration in the mid-Atlantic, ran the horticulture and Master Gardener programs for Frederick County, Maryland’s Cooperative Extension, and has long been involved in inventorying, collecting seed, and propagating native plants for habitat restoration. As Education Coordinator and Nursery Manager at Adkins Arboretum on the eastern shore of Maryland, she started a local ecotype propagation program following work with Bloomin’ Natives (now Chesapeake Natives). A former Peace Corps volunteer in Tunisia, she also worked as an intern with Cultural Survival in Petén, Guatemala.
GUEST SPEAKER
Don Keirstead, Resource Conservationist, New Hampshire Natural Resources Conservation Service.
ABOUT THE XERCES SOCIETYThe Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation is an international nonprofit organization that protects wildlife through the conservation of invertebrates and their habitat. The Society's Pollinator Conservation Program was launched in 1996, and works with leading native pollinator ecologists to translate the latest research findings into on-the-ground conservation. More information about the Xerces Society is available at www.xerces.org.