Monday, February 8, 2010

Conservation Education Day 2/17 Agenda

Conservation Education Day
Wednesday, February 17, 2010
EMS Building (109 3rd Street) Bovina, TX


Purpose:
•provide education about playa wetlands, their ecological services, and learning opportunities
•to educate participants about the link between playas and recharge of the Ogallala Aquifer
•to offer information about federal programs for playa conservation, as well as resources for grazing management techniques that can improve playa habitat

Agenda

8:30am Welcome & Introductory Exercise for Educators

9:00 Engaging students in outdoor learning through Playa Festivals
Darryl Birkenfeld, Ph.D., Director, Ogallala Commons, Nazareth, TX

9:25 High School Service Learning as a Playa Festival Component
Patsy Allen and FCCLA students, Friona High School

9:50 Science Learning Activities that Complement Playa Festivals
Laura Wilbanks, Science Teacher, Whiteface Elementary School

10:10 Break

10:25 Playa Outdoor Classrooms, Interns, & Summer Learning Opportunities
Julie Boatright, Ogallala Commons intern and grad student, heritage management,
Texas Tech University

10:40 Brainstorming and Feedback Session

11:am Lunch Education Session with Landowners & Educators

11:20 Playas…What do they do and Why they matter?
Jim Steiert, outdoor writer and author of Playas: Jewels of the Plains

11:45 Making the Ogallala Aquifer More Visible…Images of Saturated Thickness and
Depletion Rates
Kevin Mulligan, Department of Economic Geography, Texas Tech University

12:15pm Responding to the Challenge: Federal Programs
for Playa Conservation and Techniques for Grazing Management
Manuel De Leon, Wildlife Biologist, Natural Resources Conservation Service,
Lubbock

12:45pm Discussion and Survey

1:10pm Adjournment