Watershed organizations and local governments are invited to the first annual Chesapeake Watershed Forum on November 17-19 at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, West Virginia.

The Chesapeake Watershed Forum will become a yearly event, held to assist watershed organizations and local governments in watershed planning, protection and restoration.

"Restoring the Bay requires new approaches, creative thinking and innovative implementation strategies to get the job done," said David Bancroft, President of the Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay. “An annual Watershed Forum will help accomplish that.”

Goals of the regional forum are to strengthen the capacity of watershed organizations, highlight new tools and techniques, stimulate effective partnerships between watershed groups and local governments, and to build capacity for more effective communication with the public about the importance of watershed stewardship.

To fulfill these goals, the Forum will feature seven tracks over three days, including forty one sessions, three computer labs, eight facilitated discussions, two field trips and multiple networking opportunities.

Forum Track titles will be: Emerging Issues; Watershed Science; Communicating the Message; Watershed Planning and Policies; Collaboration; Organizational Development; and Fundraising. The keynote speaker will be Peter Forbes, Executive Director of the Center for Whole Communities.

The Chesapeake Watershed Forum will provide an opportunity for watershed groups and local governments across the region to come together to learn new tools and techniques as well as share best practices.

Registration materials, Forum schedule and session descriptions are available at the Watershed Forum webpage.

8/4/2006