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Sunday, August 4th
Opening Plenary
Jackie Grant
Jackie Grant is the Executive Director of Grand Staircase Escalante Partners, which is the official Friends Group of the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument (GSENM). Jackie came to this position after 20 years embedded within academia where she progressed from Ph.D. to David H. Smith Fellow, and finally to Full Professor of Biology in the Department of Geosciences at Southern Utah University. Her career as a scientist and educator put her in an excellent position from which to lead the Bureau of Land Management’s primary national monument focused on science.
Sunday, August 4, 5:00 – 6:30 PM
Terrace Theater, Long Beach Convention Center
Monday, August 5th
Scientific Plenary and Awards Ceremony
Rodolfo Dirzo
Rodolfo Dirzo is currently Bing Professor in Environmental Science, in the Departments of Biology Earth System Science, Senior Fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment and Associate Dean for Integrative Initiatives in Environmental Justice at Stanford University. Rodolfo Dirzo studies ecology, natural history, conservation biology, and biocultural diversity, with an emphasis on evolutionary ecology of species interactions in a changing world. He has a longstanding dedication to K-12, undergraduate, and graduate education, particularly with respect to engaging underserved communities.
Abstract
Inspired by the wonders of nature and empowered by the bonhomie of networks
It was not until my mentors and teachers empowered me with the understanding of the underlying frameworks and theories of ecology that my innate appreciation for nature as a rural child, became an intellectual passion, leading to my advanced training as an ecologist. The generosity and wisdom of my mentors, including Francisco Gonzalez-Medrano, Jose Sarukhan, John Harper, Peter Raven, Hal Mooney and Paul Ehrlich, have guided me at different moments of my career. They have also inspired me to put my best effort and passion towards my own mentoring and teaching. It is because of the bonhomie of these networks of mentors, mentees and colleagues, that I have had an opportunity to:
- admire and enjoy the beauty and wonders of biodiversity;
- examine how the ecology of species interactions structures biodiversity;
- understand how such interactions are being impacted by the human enterprise; and
- how this affects human wellbeing.
I will use some examples to highlight how the study of the ecology of Earth’s wondrous nature and the bonhomie of our mentors and mentees represent a synergy of hope in the Anthropocene.
Monday, August 5, 8:00 – 10:00 AM
Terrace Theater, Long Beach Convention Center