[Coral-List] FW: Call for Posters and Presentations - National Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration Conference

Precht, Bill Bprecht at pbsj.com
Fri Dec 9 14:57:01 EST 2005


 
Sorry for any cross-posting


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Restore America's Estuaries'
3rd National Conference and Expo on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat
Restoration "Forging the National Imperative"

December 9-13, 2006
New Orleans, Louisiana, Hilton Riverside Hotel

Call for Presentations and Posters

Restore America's Estuaries is pleased to announce the Call for
Presentations and Posters for "Forging the National Imperative," the 3rd
National Conference on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration.
Presentation submissions are due March 31, 2006 and Poster submissions
are due April 30, 2006.

For more information or to download the application, visit
http://www.estuaries.org/conference.

Following the devastating hurricane season of 2005, Restore America's
Estuaries is more committed than ever to holding the Conference in New
Orleans as scheduled. The Conference will bring timely national
attention to the challenges and opportunities to comprehensive coastal
ecosystem restoration throughout the U.S. and especially in Coastal
Louisiana and the northern Gulf Coast. Habitat restoration at all scales
is essential to the very fabric of our lives - the social, economic and
ecological well being of humans in the coastal landscape.
Through field sessions, participants will see first-hand how the city,
the parishes and coastal Louisiana are being rebuilt and restored. We
will work to ensure that the Conference supports the rebuilding process.

The National Program Committee invites you to submit a proposal to
present at the 3rd National Conference. There are two opportunities to
present:
*Contributed Sessions - 15-20 minute presentations integrated into a 90
minute session with time for discussion. Please propose one
presentation, and the National Program Committee will group
presentations into cohesive sessions. If you would like to propose a
full 90-minute session with multiple speakers, please see the Call for
Dedicated Sessions (http://www.estuaries.org/conference).
*Poster Sessions - Posters will be displayed throughout the Conference,
and one or two special 90-minute poster sessions will allow Poster
Presenters to discuss their work with Conference participants. A Student
Poster Contest will provide cash awards to the best student posters. For
more contest information, please visit the Conference website.

Presentations should emphasize best practices and lessons learned within
one or more of the Conference themes and topics.

Background --
The 3rd National Conference on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration
will advance the science, scale, pace, practice, and success of habitat
restoration at all scales. Past Conference locations include Baltimore
in April 2003 (800 attendees) and Seattle in September 2004 (1,000
attendees). This is the only National Conference that brings together
the entire coastal and estuarine habitat restoration community. It
provides a unique blend of people and policy, science and strategy,
business and best practices.

The Conference Program will address all aspects of coastal and estuarine
habitat restoration, in all habitats and at all scales.
Habitat restoration - manipulation of the physical, chemical or
biological characteristics of a site with the goal of returning
self-sustaining natural or historic structure and functions to former or
degraded habitat - offers great promise for reversing trends of habitat
loss and degradation and is a crucial component of comprehensive
ecosystem restoration, protection and management.
Resilient coastal habitat and ecosystems are essential for the
maintenance and security of the economic, ecological and social fabric
of our lives.

Conference Audience --
The Conference is a national (and international) gathering of the full
coastal and estuarine habitat restoration community, including
participants from both the public and private sector. Restore America's
Estuaries will work with 150 partners and supporters to develop and host
the Conference, and we expect 1,500 attendees from the restoration
community: non-profit and community organizations, businesses and
corporations from supporting industries, tribes, academic and research
institutions, and agencies from all levels of government. Restoration
practitioners, citizens and community leaders, consultants, scientists,
educators, planners, engineers, volunteers, program managers, field
staff, contractors, regulators and others involved in restoration
efforts will participate.

Themes and Topics for Presentations and Posters -- Restore America's
Estuaries and the National Program Committee seek proposals for
presentations and posters that relate specifically to one or more of the
following Conference themes. In addition, presentations and posters that
address the topics listed under each theme are strongly encouraged. You
may also submit a proposal that either involves more than one topic area
or falls outside of the suggested themes. The Conference Program
Committee will develop Conference Sessions that integrate various themes
of restoration while providing a mix of presenters from the various
sectors of restoration. When submitting a proposal, please indicate
which theme(s) is being addressed.

I. Human Dimensions of Restoration --
Our coasts and estuaries are cultural landscapes. Healthy and resilient
coastal ecosystems are essential to our economic, cultural, spiritual
and physical well being. Proposals are sought in this theme that address
the relevance of restoration at all scales and document the importance
of our coasts to our national heritage and to people's
lives: e.g. disaster prevention/relief, the economics of restoration,
and the importance of using local and traditional knowledge in
restoration processes.

II. Education and Outreach --
Proposals are sought that address building constituencies for coastal
and estuarine restoration through formal and informal education programs
and community outreach. Without the public will to proceed, restoration
at all scales cannot advance. Proposals in this theme are encouraged to
address the best practices and lessons learned in restoration education,
working with volunteers and the benefits of volunteer participation,
engaging key and new constituencies in restoration (such as faith-based
organizations and environmental justice organizations), and identifying
the values and messages that should be used to engage and educate the
public and public officials.

III. Comprehensive Ecosystem Restoration and Management -- Comprehensive
coastal ecosystem restoration and management is imperative. Proposals in
this theme may address many topics, including integrating the best
scientific understanding of coastal ecosystems into planning and
implementation, setting national priorities, choosing the right scale,
and funding habitat restoration at all scales.

IV. Science and Technology --
This theme addresses the latest advances in our understanding of coastal
and estuarine ecosystems and innovative restoration technologies.
Proposals are encouraged that address the integration of science into
practice at any scale, and in any habitat type. Other topics include
lessons learned from regional restoration science initiatives, how to
conduct effective monitoring, and new applications of technologies to
achieve restoration success.

V. Best Practices On-the-Ground --
Proposals that address the best practices and techniques of various
aspects of restoration in the field are invited. One approach to this
theme is to present lessons learned from projects that went awry.
Sessions within this theme will cover restoration practices at both
project and regional levels - including techniques such as transplanting
eelgrass, creating oyster reefs, beneficial use of dredged material and
control/removal of invasive species.

VI. Measuring and Communicating Results -- The restoration community
must be able to document and communicate its successes. This theme
emphasizes communicating our vision for success and also encompasses
monitoring and adaptive management (concrete case studies of adaptive
management in practice and triggers for adaptations). Specific topics
could include identification of the best means of project-level and
ecosystem monitoring, measuring the cumulative effects of smaller
projects, measuring ecological services provided by restoration,
cost-effective restoration, and integrating human values into
measurements of restoration results.

VII. Policy and Funding --
Negotiating the policy and finance mazes associated with habitat
restoration can be among the most challenging aspects of restoration
projects. This theme highlights policies and funding initiatives around
the country that have advanced restoration opportunities. Presentations
within this theme will provide opportunities for groups that have worked
to catalyze or shape policy on the local, state, regional or federal
levels to share lessons learned, and offer tools and suggestions.
Presentations will also explore creative funding
opportunities--including unique ways to raise the necessary "matching"
funds.

Presentation and Session Format --
Conference sessions will last 90 minutes each and will include three or
four presentations of approximately 15-20 minutes, with 20 minutes of
each session dedicated to a moderated dialogue between presenters and
the session attendees. The Conference program will be structured to
enable cross-sector dialogue within the restoration community.

Poster Session --
Posters will be displayed on a 4' x 4' board from Sunday evening,
December 10th to Wednesday afternoon, December 13th. One or two
designated Poster Session(s) will also be held so that presenters can
informally discuss their work with attendees.

Student Poster Contest --
All students with Posters at the Conference will be entered into the
Student Poster Contest. Cash prizes will be awarded.

Instructions --
Proposals for presentations and posters are requested that either (1)
address one of the above themes and/or (2) address one of the specific
topics identified within a theme. To submit a proposal for a 15-20
minute presentation, complete and return the attached Presentation
Proposal form by March 31, 2006. To submit a poster for consideration,
complete and return the attached Poster Proposal form by April 30, 2006.

Timeline and Due Dates --
*March 31, 2006 - Presentation Proposals due *April 30, 2006 - Poster
Proposals due *May 31, 2006 - Presenters notified of Proposal status

Selection Process and Criteria --
The National Program Committee will review proposals in conjunction with
Restore America's Estuaries' staff, and proposals will be evaluated for
their significance to the habitat restoration community, relevance to
conference themes, and ability to provide generally applicable,
take-home lessons. The selection process is competitive, and not all
submitted proposals will be accepted in the Conference Program. Unless
you request otherwise, presentations not selected for inclusion in the
Conference Program will receive strong consideration for inclusion in
the Poster Session.

Presenter Responsibilities --
Once a presentation, poster or session has been accepted, Restore
America's Estuaries will communicate due dates for additional
information, including A/V needs, biographical information and poster /
presentation descriptions for the conference program. All speakers and
poster presenters are responsible for registering for the conference and
should be prepared to cover their own registration and travel costs.
Restore America's Estuaries will offer the early bird/discounted
registration rate to all accepted presenters. Please contact Restore
America's Estuaries if you require financial assistance to attend, as
some scholarships may be available. Reasonable audio-visual equipment,
including projectors and screens, will be provided as needed.

For More Information --
Visit http://www.estuaries.org/conference, or call 703-524-0248.

About Restore America's Estuaries --
Restore America's Estuaries, established in 1995, is a nonprofit
organization working to preserve the nation's coasts and estuaries by
protecting and restoring the lands and waters essential to the richness
and diversity of coastal life. Restore America's Estuaries and its
affiliate members collectively represent millions of citizens in all
coastal regions of the United States. Restore America's Estuaries
authored and championed passage of the Estuary Restoration Act of 2000
- groundbreaking federal legislation providing strong federal commitment
and resources toward a goal of restoring function to one million acres
of estuarine habitat by 2010. Restore America's Estuaries led the design
of A National Strategy to Restore Coastal and Estuarine Habitat, and
defined and published the Principles of Estuarine Habitat Restoration in
partnership with the Estuarine Research Federation. The 1st and 2nd
National Conferences on Coastal and Estuarine Habitat Restoration
(Baltimore in April, 2003 and Seattle in September, 2004) were attended
by more than 2,000 people.



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