Community Science Webinar

Date: Thursday May 23rd, 2024 10am - 12pm

Community science applications like iNaturalist have helped us understand where important plants and wildlife have been observed in our landscapes.
 
In this webinar, local government, First Nations and scientists will discuss how community science data and tools can help with stewardship of our lands.
 
After the panelists speak, we are keen to hear from participants about how you are using community science for conservation.

Organized by Action for Adaptation, a collaborative project of the UBC Botanical Garden and the Coastal Douglas-fir Conservation Partnership that is developing decision and policy support tools for local governments and First Nations on BC’s south west coast to support actions for climate adaptation and biodiversity conservation. www.actionforadaptation.ca
 
List of speakers
 
The use of community science to develop integrated species distribution models - Katherine Andy, Squamish Environmental Society
 
Community Science and monitoring biodiversity on municipal parkland - Pamela Zevit, Biodiversity Conservation Planner, City of Surrey
 
Mapping land cover using satellite and community science data - Dr. Erin Crockett, postdoctoral fellow, Earth Observation and Spatial Ecology lab, University of British Columbia for the Action for Adaptation project
 
Using historical and community science biodiversity data to understand change in bumble bee and vascular plant communities on Galiano Island - Andrew Simon, Institute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in The Salish Sea (IMERSS)

Speaker profiles:
 
Katherine Andy
Katherine has a background as an applied ecologist. She grew up in New Hampshire in the U.S. but moved to British Columbia and received her Master of Resource Management from Simon Fraser University in 2023. She specializes in studying how wildlife use habitat in an effort to improve land stewardship practices and promote ecological resilience. She uses a combination of field study, particularly camera trapping, and statistical modeling to learn about wildlife. 

Pamela Zevit
As a Registered Professional Biologist, Pamela's career focus has been on landscape ecology, species at risk and biodiversity conservation. Starting in 1995, she worked as a Conservation Planner for the Province of BC. In 2004, she moved on from government to become an independent adviser, researcher, and consultant. In 2010, she became Program Coordinator for the South Coast Conservation Program, transitioning to her role with Surrey in 2019 leading implementation of the City's Biodiversity Conservation Strategy.

Dr. Erin Crockett
Erin Crockett is a conservation scientist who has examined how biodiversity and ecosystem services are changing over time, the relationships between biodiversity and ecosystem functioning, and spatial planning techniques to create landscapes that work for both people and nature. Erin’s current work as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at the University of British Columbia Okanagan integrates field data and remote sensing data to map and model biodiversity across southwest BC, in collaboration with the Coastal Douglas Fir Conservation Partnership and the UBC Botanical Gardens. This involves generating spatial data layers (e.g., land cover, carbon storage, species at risk, and landscape connectivity) to enable local decision makers to better incorporate biodiversity knowledge into their strategic planning.
 
Andrew Simon
Andrew is a biologist and tireless advocate for community science, which he pursues as the curator of the Biodiversity Galiano project and co-founding director of the Institute for Multidisciplinary Ecological Research in the Salish Sea (IMERSS). His research and collaborations span multiple taxonomic groups and communities throughout the Salish Sea, including the Squamish Environment Society's Wildlife Connectivity Project. Andrew holds a Masters in Environmental Studies from the University of Victoria and is currently a PhD student at the University of Alberta, where he is studying biodiversity change in relation to lichen symbioses.