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 reducing 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.

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

Upcoming Penn State Extension Educational Opportunities:

-- September 28: Dive Deeper Water Education Summit - Harrisburg

-- September 30: Riparian Buffer Maintenance - Dauphin County

-- October 4: Webinar - On-Lot Septic Systems and Groundwater Quality

-- October 28: Water Ways On Wheels - A Bike Tour In Lancaster County

-- October 30: Safe Drinking Water Clinic - Private Water Wells - Forest County

-- November 8: Webinar - Nitrogen In Groundwater, Where It Comes From, Health Risks

-- Penn State Extension Online Water Courses

Related Articles - Penn State Extension:

-- Celebrate Riparian Buffers Month In October! With Penn State Extension, Chesapeake Conservation Landscaping Council, Penn State Agriculture & Environment Center [PaEN]