The Open Ocean Trustee Implementation Group will hold its annual public meeting via an interactive webinar on November 14, 2018. During this meeting, NOAA’s Gulf Spill Restoration will present updates on the Open Ocean Restoration Area’s early restoration projects, first and second restoration plans, and monitoring and adaptive management activities. They will also provide an opportunity for questions and answers after the updates are presented.

This is the third webinar in ASWM and NRCS’s jointly-developed nine-part wetland training webinar series. The first half of the webinar will focus on explaining general wetland ecology concepts, including succession, thresholds, disturbance, sensitivity and resilience. The second half of the webinar will identify how source waters (surface and groundwater) and soils define the character of a wetland, including an introduction to the Hydrogeomorphic Wetland Classification System (HGM). Participants will come away from the webinar with an increased understanding of how to consider these key concepts as they plan conservation and management activities that include wetlands.

Presenters: Stacey Clark, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, and
Kendra Moseley, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service

This meeting of the Bay Area Sierra Club will feature a slideshow that will help you take more interesting photos of all of your holiday guests, of all of the flowers you receive, etc. Local Member Peter Bowman will teach four techniques that he learned from his famous Vietnamese teacher Do Anh Tuan.

At the end of the lesson, attendees themselves get a chance to identify these four techniques in photos which Peter will show without comment.

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for social hour.

This is the fourth webinar in ASWM and NRCS’s jointly-developed nine-part wetland training webinar series. The webinar will begin with a presentation on the variability in wetlands across the country, including how specific wetland functions and services vary by wetland type. The webinar will then move to a second presentation on wetland benefits and their impact on other resources at the watershed scale.  Participants will come away from the webinar with an increased understanding of variability of wetlands and their associated functions and services nationwide, as well as how wetland loss and wetland restoration can have impacts at the watershed scale.

Presenters: Doug Norris, Wetland Program Coordinator, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, and Andy Robertson, Executive Director, Geospatial Services, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota

In November 2018, new HHS Physical Activity Guidelines were released. They confirmed what America Walks already know- that when people move more, they are healthy, active, and engaged. Join America Walks for “Let’s Get Moving: The Power of Physical Activity” as they explore the guidelines and how communities are promoting physical activity with this webinar. This webinar is intended for those just starting out on the walking path as well as those interested in learning more about the topic.

Attendees of this webinar will:

• Learn about programs, policies, and projects that support walk-ability in rural communities and small towns
• Hear inspiring stories of communities on the walking path
• Explore resources that can help you in your work to create walk-able communities

Houston Audubon Nature Photography Association (HANPA) is an informal photo club for Houston Audubon members. They hold meetings monthly, September through May, on the first Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary headquarters library.

Webinar: Learn about our research campaign to improve understanding of the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current

Following recommendations from a National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report, the Gulf Research Program is developing a long-term research campaign to improve understanding and prediction of the Gulf of Mexico Loop Current System.

Known as Understanding Gulf Ocean Systems (UGOS), the campaign is envisioned as a comprehensive, cross-disciplinary, multi-institutional research campaign to improve understanding of the various interacting physical, biological, and chemical processes at work in the Gulf of Mexico. In December, the Gulf Research Program announced the award of $10.3 million in grants for eight new projects to conduct studies and collect data and observations that will inform the planning and launching of the campaign.

On January 11, project team members for that first round of funding awards will convene to plan for and facilitate coordination of efforts across their different projects. A portion of that meeting, from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m. ET, will be broadcast as a webinar open to anyone interested in learning more about the origin, current work, and longer term vision and timeline for the research campaign.

Register for the webinar: https://nas.us8.list-manage.com/track/click?u=8dc5d96edd0cea5da1175b8c1&id=8a861bd61e&e=0a9537353a

Hawks, falcons, owls and more await you at Houston Audubon’s Raptor Photo Shoots. You will have the opportunity to photograph Houston Audubon’s education raptors in an intimate setting at the Houston Audubon Raptor & Education Center. Whether you use a simple point and shoot or serious photography equipment, you will enjoy meeting and learning about these awesome birds. Light refreshments will be served on the deck for all to enjoy during the shoot. Space is limited to 15 participants.

Houston Audubon Nature Photography Association (HANPA) is an informal photo club for Houston Audubon members. They hold meetings monthly, September through May, on the first Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the Edith L. Moore Nature Sanctuary headquarters library.

Even one life lost is too many. Pedestrian safety is a critical part of planning for healthy, active, and engaged communities. Learn about resources and ideas to improve safety with this webinar. This webinar assumes basic knowledge of issues related to walking and walk-ability.