Keynote Speaker
TBD
Jenica Allen – Invasive Plants and Climate Change
Jenica Allen a Senior Research Fellow at UMass Amherst and Director of NE RISCC. She studies the intersection of invasion ecology and data science in order to inform proactive invasive plant management.
Gera Williams – Save the Ash Trees: Effective and strategic management of Emerald Ash Borer
Gera Williams is an Invasive Species Specialist at the James River Park System. She has a BA from Tulane University in American Studies.
Jim Hurley – New Initiative for Addressing Invasives in Virginia
Jim Hurley the Treasurer on the Board of DIrectors for Virginia Blue Ridge PRISM. He is a Master Naturalist, Tree Steward, a member of the Virginia Noxious Weed Advisory Committee, and Board Member of the Virginia Native Plant Society.
Catherine McGuigan – Utilizing ArcGIS and Digital Recordkeeping to Improve Project Management and Communication with Landowners and Funders
Catherine McGuigan is a a graduate of VCUarts and VCU’s Center for Environmental Studies. She works as a Resource Managment Planning Assistant at Virginia State Parks.
Deah Lieurance – Comparison of Invasive Species Assessments
Assistant Professor of Invasive Species Biology and Management at Pennsylvania State University College of Agricultural Sciences Department of Ecosystem Science and Management.
Andrew Rohrbaugh –
Andrew Rohrbaugh is a Section Chief within the Bureau of Forestry of the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. He received a BS in Environmental Studies from Gettysburg and his Biology MS from Shippensburg University in 2009.
Megan Lowe – Teaching Effective Invasive Plant Management Strategies to Volunteers to Expand Volunteer Impact in Natural Area Settings
Megan Lowe is a staff member of the James River Park System Invasive Plant Task Force
Matt Tancos – Updates from the USDA on the Most Recent Invasive Plant Research
Matthew Tancos is the Lead Scientist of the biological control of invasive plants project at the Foreign-Disease Weed Science Research Unit (FDWSRU) located at the Fort Detrick U.S. Army installation in Frederick, Maryland. Dr. Tancos’ research group investigates and develops biological control solutions for invasive plant management. His research leverages advances in plant genomics and molecular biology to investigate high-risk but impactful technological advances that will augment microbial-based biological control agents.
Laura Greenleaf – The History and Impact of the Invasive Plant Task Force in the James River Park System
Laura Greenleaf is a Certified Virginia Master Naturalist and the co-founder of the James River Invasive Plant Task Force where she works as the Invasive Plant Management Coordinator. She has a Bachelors of Social Work from James Madison University and a Master of Public Administration from George Mason University.
Patricia Greenberg –
Patricia Pearl Greenberg currently works as the Invasive Management Area (IMA) Program Manager for the Fairfax County Park Authority Natural Resources Branch in Northern Virginia. She holds a master’s degree from George Mason University in environmental science and policy with a focus on urban forestry. Her interest in invasive species management and protecting natural areas started during her undergraduate studies at Eckerd College, located in Florida.
Kathryn Giles Garrison – How to Triage a Highly Invaded Environment
Kathryn Garrison is the Superintendant of the James River Park System in Richmond Virginia. Previous to joining the City of Richmond, she was the director of Groundwork RVA and an adjunct faculty member at VCU. She received a BA in American Studies from Williams College and a Masters of Urban & Regional Planning from VCU.
Ryan McClean – Managing EDRR species across boundaries – NY case study: a community approach
Ryan McClean is the Terrestrial Invasive Species Project Manager at the Lower Hudson Partnership for Regional Invasive Species Managment. In 2017, Ryan received his B.S. in Biology with a minor in Environmental Studies from The College of New Jersey.
Michelle Fonda –
Michelle Fonda is the Private Lands and Invasive Species Biologist for the West Virginia Division of Natural Resources. They hold a Master’s degree in Forestry and Natural Resources from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor’s degree in Wildlife Science from the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry. Michelle is passionate about ecological restoration and providing landowners with knowledge about improving wildlife habitat and managing invasive species.