IT STARTS AT THE TOP:

THE INTERTWINED FATES OF WATER AND ECOSYSTEMS IN THE CLIMATE CRISIS

ANNUAL ECOSYMPOSIUM

Saturday, September 23, 2023

9 AM – 3 PM

BOULDER COUNTY NATURE ASSOCIATION

CENTER FOR SUSTAINABLE LANDSCAPES AND COMMUNITIES

Sustainability, Energy and Environment Complex (SEEC)

University of Colorado Boulder

4001 Discovery Drive

Please register on Eventbrite to let us know you are planning to attend.

Information about parking will be emailed to those who register.

ACCESSIBILITY

There are accessible parking spaces near the building in lot 556. To use them, you will need a hang tag for your car as well as an advance parking permit for Lot 556, northeast of the building. The conference room is on the main floor and no stairs are required to reach it. After registering on EventBrite, see your confirmation message for details about how to request a parking permit in advance. If you didn’t save your confirmation message, please look for a reminder email.

The meeting room is equipped with an infrared assisted listening system, and receivers for this system will be available for audience members to use during the ecosymposium. If you’d like to try it out, come a bit early and look for a volunteer at the table.

ABSTRACT

Precipitation in Colorado’s high country has a big effect on the lives of Front Range residents, whether plant, animal, or human. Snowpack feeds local creeks, lakes, and ditches and moistens the soil for plant communities. Climate change is altering the amount and timing of snow and rain, the runoff of melting snow, as well as the chemistry of the water sent downstream. Greater variability in precipitation will also increase the frequency of drought, flood, and wildfire. Other environmental changes of the Anthropocene Era are also affecting water chemistry and in turn the biological communities in our lakes and streams. Speakers will address questions such as, What changes to our water supply are observed now and predicted for the future? How do scientists measure and model these changes? And what are the consequences for our local ecosystems, both terrestrial and aquatic?

SPEAKERS

Liz Payton, Western Water Assessment, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES), University of Colorado Boulder: Climate change’s complex effects on the water cycle

Eve-Lyn Hinckley, Cooperative Institute for Research in Environmental Sciences (CIRES) and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado, Boulder: Water in a warming alpine: Surprises in the water quality record of Niwot Ridge, Colorado, and beyond 

Sarah A. Spaulding, US Geological Survey and INSTAAR, University of Colorado Boulder: Algae in the Front Range and beyond

Tim Seastedt, INSTAAR and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Senior Fellow in the Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at CU Boulder: Using our precipitation to rewet the sponge: How landscapes and biota manipulate precipitation to cool the landscape, capture greenhouse gases, and increase biological diversity

Brett KenCairn, Senior Manager, City of Boulder Nature-based Solutions, and Director, Center for Regenerative Solutions, serves as the city of Boulder’s Senior Policy Advisor for Climate Action and leads the City’s Natural Climate Solutions team. He is also the Director of the Center for Regenerative Solutions (CRS)—a national initiative to expand natural climate solutions nationally that is co-sponsored by the Urban Sustainability Directors Network: Nature-based solutions: Beyond a carbon-centric approach to climate change: Water cycles and nature-based solutions as a new paradigm for climate action

Program details

ABOUT THE ECOSYMPOSIUM

REGISTRATION: We are asking everyone to register on Eventbrite. There is no cost for event and everyone is welcome. We do need to know how many people plan to attend, however. Information about parking will be emailed to you when you register on Eventbrite.

COFFEE AND LUNCH: There will be a coffee break in the morning. Both coffee and lunch will be provided for all registrants at no charge. If you have special dietary needs, please bring whatever you need.

MASKS: Reliable wastewater data show that COVID rates are rising steeply. To keep everyone healthy, we ask everyone who attends to:

• Stay home if you have symptoms, a known exposure to COVID-19, or a positive test result.
• Bring a high-quality mask that fits over your mouth and nose. You may want it if the person next to you is coughing!
• Feel warmly invited to wear a mask, welcome those who do. Let’s use good individual judgment and a community-minded ethos in protecting ourselves and each other.

ADDITIONAL DETAILS:

If able, please bring a re-useable mug or thermos. Coffee, tea, and lunch will be provided.

Carpooling is strongly encouraged, or please use alternative modes of transportation like biking or taking the bus.

POSTERS: Print and post at your work, school, or other site: Event poster

PAST ECOSYMPOSIA: Programs, speakers, and abstracts