The Wild Ideas Worth Sharing speaker series, held in collaboration with the Academy of Science St. Louis, offers opportunities to network, learn, and envision a more biodiverse St. Louis region and world. A diversity of people share stories and insights from real-world projects happening in the region and around the world, and challenge us to wildly rethink how we live, work and play.
Convened by BiodiverseCity St. Louis and the 100+ organizations within its network, the Wild Ideas series returns in 2019 with a line-up of local and global perspectives on how cities, communities and entire cultures can live in ways that enable a greater diversity of life to survive and thrive:
November 14, 2019, 6–8 p.m.
Invasive Species Solutions: When science, policy, and stewardship converge
Our local lands and waters—and the life they support—are among our region’s most valuable assets. These special places face many threats, including the problematic spread of invasive species. In recent years, the BiodiverseCity St. Louis network of organizations and individuals have joined forces to activate the region in tackling this problem hands-on, through the Honeysuckle Sweep for Healthy Habitats citizen stewardship campaign. This campaign occurs March 1–31 and November 1–30 each year. As part of the November campaign, a trio of field experts have been invited to St. Louis to share the science of invasion biology, underscore the urgent need to manage existing and emerging invasive species, highlight the role citizens can play in changing policy to preserve biodiversity, and how sustained stewardship can restore and heal landscapes and whole communities.
SPEAKERS
Dr. Ryan McEwan, University of Dayton
Amur honeysuckle: What can we learn about the “rules” of nature from a plant that breaks them all?
Amur honeysuckle seems to always win. It wins in the forest, in the road-side ditch, and in the edge of the agricultural field. If you are not careful, it will win your backyard. In this talk, Dr. Ryan McEwan will share the science behind why this plant wins all the time, and what that means for forests, streams, and future ecosystems where all the rules have changed.
Dr. Theresa Culley, University of Cincinnati
Stopping plant invasions by starting with ourselves
The Callery pear is a perfect example of a perfect storm of gardening fervor, widespread commercialization, and prodigious fruit set, all triggered by human desires and tastes. We are all part of the problem, so we must be part of the solution. Dr. Culley will share how she is using science and data to engage policy-makers and build political and cultural will around preserving biodiversity.
Stephen Packard, Woods and Prairies Foundation
Celebrating invasive control and the recovery of rare species
In many cases, it took decades, changes of tactics, and the work of good numbers of dedicated, creative, spirited people. Renowned conservationist and ecological restoration practitioner, Stephen Packard, shares stories of failures and dramatic successes in the fight to restore growing populations of endangered and threatened plants, and the wildlife dependent on them.
Location:
Missouri Botanical Garden
Ridgway Visitor Center - Shoenberg Theater
4344 Shaw Blvd.
St. Louis, MO 63110
Free event, but registration required.
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Register
Sponsored by the Albers/Kuhn Family Foundation
Presented by BiodiverseCity St. Louis, Academy of Science of St. Louis, Center for Conservation and Sustainable Development, Missouri Department of Conservation, Missouri Botanical Garden, and Shaw Nature Reserve.
Chartered in 1856, The Academy of Science of St. Louis is an independent science organization dedicated to advancing the public understanding of science and promoting interest in the sciences to students and adults through accessible, year-round seminars and educational initiatives.
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BiodiverseCity St. Louis is a growing network of organizations and individuals throughout the greater St. Louis region who share a stake in improving quality of life for all through actions that welcome nature into our urban, suburban and rural communities.
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