This week conservation leaders and policymakers are meeting to consider landscape-scale conservation initiatives that are helping to address some of North America’s most significant land and water challenges. The National Workshop on Large Landscape Conservation (NWLLC) on Oct. 23-24 at the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center is a collaborative forum that will feature keynotes from conservation leaders such as Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell, Mike Boots of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, and Collin O’Mara, president and CEO of the National Wildlife Federation.
“We are fortunate to be able to bring together the practitioners and policymakers behind these initiatives to share ideas and forge new partnerships.”
They join other notable conservation experts from the public, private, nonprofit, and academic sectors, including USDA Deputy Secretary Krysta Harden and the former governor of Wyoming, Jim Geringer, now a director at Esri, a leading provider of Geographic Information System (GIS) technology. Presenters are sharing research and insights that show how large landscape efforts are an integral part of our response to challenges such as wildlife habitat degradation, threats to water quality and quantity, losses of working farms and forests, and limited public access to urban, rural, and wild open spaces.
The sold-out workshop draws nearly 600 national experts interested in large landscape conservation issues, which directly impact environmental, wildlife and public health.
“Large landscape conservation initiatives are actually working to provide solutions for some of our nation’s most complex environmental challenges, while at the same time enhancing economic prosperity and energy security,” said James Levitt, Lincoln Institute of Land Policy fellow and NWLLC co-chair. “We are fortunate to be able to bring together the practitioners and policymakers behind these initiatives to share ideas and forge new partnerships.”
Outcomes and actionable items from the NWLLC will be shared after the workshop through forums and lectures around the country, as well as through multimedia content that will inform ongoing large landscape conservation efforts across the nation.
Follow @NWLLC and #NWLLC2014 on Twitter for the latest workshop news and updates. For more information about the NWLLC, visit www.NWLLC2014.org.