PA Environment Digest

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Registration is now open for the 2023 PA Statewide Watershed Conference to be held October 29-30 at the Altoona Grand hotel in Altoona.

The theme of the Conference is -- Watershed Connections: Engaging Communities And Restoring Our Watersheds Together.

The PA Environmental Council and the PA Organization for Watersheds and Rivers invite you to join your watershed colleagues and friends for two days of inspiring, engaging, and meaningful presentations and conversations.

You will have the opportunity to learn from fellow watershed organization leaders as they share restoration and education project success stories as well as their journeys toward effective strategic planning and people-centered- leadership.

Explore how urban youth and underserved youth are connecting with local farmer to learn about best practices to protect water and about new efforts to train landscapers to identify invasive species and select natives instead!

And as always you’ll hear all about the science of water quality monitoring and watershed restoration- from understanding and interpreting your data to improving buffer installation outcomes to restoring floodplains and reduce flooding impacts.

Keynote Speaker

Victoria Prizzia, Founder and Principal of Habitheque is the Keynote presenter at the conference.

Victoria has provided senior management and creative direction in the creation of new interpretation programs—serving the public interest at the intersection of cultural assets, storytelling and innovation.

Victoria’s work aims to engage the public with nature-based solutions to some of the planet’s most critical challenges.

She brings together artists and scientists to demonstrate how we can build a more just and sustainable future for all living things.

Her work includes Window on the Watershed, a ten-day installation at the 2018 Philadelphia Flower Show that illuminated the ecological lessons and stories of the Delaware River Watershed through the endless cycle of water movement and filtration downstream, flowing across different but connected ecosystems; River Alive, a new, 4,000 square foot exhibition focused on the wonders and challenges of the Delaware River watershed, our place within that system, and the increasingly sophisticated science we use to understand the watershed’s complexity; the Mussel Hatchery and Living Laboratory, an installation that demonstrates the ecological benefits of freshwater mussel restoration within the Delaware River watershed, and provides a facility for rearing mussels to be released in the river; and most recently POOL, A Social History of Segregation, a multi-award winning installation located at the Fairmount Water Works in Philadelphia that weaves together history, site-specific artwork, storytelling, scholarship and place-based learning.

Special Workshop/Field Trip

New this year is an optional half-day interactive workshop on Effective and Impactful Media Engagement and Communication presented by Bob Oltmanns, a public relations/marketing communications counselor and advisor, and President of OPR Group, LLC.

Also happening Sunday morning is an optional private tour of the Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art in Altoona.

Conference Sponsors

This special event would not be possible without the support of sponsors, including--

-- Major Supporters: PA American Water, Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Campbell Foundation and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

-- Watershed Advocate: PA Environment Digest, Appalachian Region Independent Power Producers Association (ARIPPA), ARM Group, Chesapeake Legal Alliance, Ernst Conservation Seeds

-- Carbon Offset/Sustainability: American Dairy Association North East

-- Nonprofit Friend: American Rivers, Bird Town Pennsylvania, Keep Pennsylvania Beautiful, Stroud Water Research Center, Trout Unlimited

Click Here to become a sponsor.

To register or for more information, visit the PA Statewide Watershed Conference webpage.

NewsClips - Watersheds:

-- WNEP: Kids In Lackawanna County Discovering The World Of Water

-- Muncy Luminary: Church Of The Resurrection In Muncy Began A Care For Creation Mission By Planting A Forest On Church Grounds