Present at American Geophysical Union’s Fall Meeting; abstracts due 1 August

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Join Thriving Earth Exchange for AGU’s Fall Meeting, to be held 10-14 December in Washington, D.C. Abstract submission deadline: 1 August.

The AGU 2018 Fall Meeting provides a special opportunity to share science with world leaders in Washington, D.C. As the largest Earth and space science gathering in the world, the Fall Meeting places you in the center of a global community of scientists drawn from myriad fields of study whose work protects the health and welfare of people worldwide, spurs innovation, and informs decisions that are critical to the sustainability of the Earth.

You will connect with leading thinkers, learn about pioneering research and emerging trends, and use your voice to help drive science’s positive impact on the world.

Connect with the D.C. area’s many scientific institutions and witness the ways that your colleagues are helping to inform solutions to the challenges faced by this region. Recharge by exploring the city’s bustling restaurant and music scene and enjoy the beauty and richness of its national monuments and museums.

Celebrate Science

Launch AGU’s Centennial celebration by observing 100 years of Earth and space science accomplishments and set the stage for the next 100 years of breakthroughs. Recognize the outstanding contributions of individuals who have advanced science, served the community unselfishly and increased public understanding at the Honors Ceremony.

Advance Your Science and Your Career

Come to Fall Meeting to share your research, expand your skills and grow your career, learn from colleagues, and gain visibility and recognition for your own efforts alongside the world’s leading scientific minds. Experiment with new ways to present your research and engage with your colleagues.

Experience Science

See the latest research from every field and gain insights that will enrich your own work. Meet new collaborators as you explore more than 20,000 oral and poster presentations. Hear from renowned science lecturers and be inspired by world-class keynote speakers. Join a field trip to explore the local geology, delve into the many challenges facing the Chesapeake Bay (the largest estuary in the U.S.), or investigate the implications of climate change for the region’s mix of large coastal cities and dense agriculture.

Share Your Science

In the coming weeks and months, watch for announcements about the many ways you can share and stand up for science. By leveraging the D.C. location, the 2018 Fall Meeting offers a special opportunity for you to connect with global and national policy makers and leaders and to showcase our science worldwide.

Visit Your New Home Away from Home

Experience AGU’s newly renovated headquarters building, a model for energy-efficient urban renovation that embodies the spirit and values of scientific discovery and the tells the story of the impact of Earth and space sciences on society. Members are always welcome at the AGU Headquarters.

Join a community hike at Fountainhead, 15 July

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On 15 July 2018, Northern Virginia Conservation Trust will be teaming up with their partner, NOVA Parks, to offer an interpretive, community hike at Fountainhead Regional Park hosted by NOVA Park’s Roving Naturalist, David Garcia. There are a limited number of spots, so first come, first served!

For more information and to RSVP, please email Emily Bowman at [email protected] or call 703-354-5093.

Join NVCT’s Alexandria Kayak/Canoe Cleanup on June 30th

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Previous date was rained out!  Please join the Northern Virginia Conservation Trust (NVCT) for its annual Kayak/Canoe Cleanup of the tidal estuary of Cameron Run at Hunting Creek in Alexandria. NVCT will have a limited number of boats available for volunteer use, but if you have your own, please bring it to support the cause! Coffee and snacks will be offered starting at 9.15 am.  Gloves, trash bags, bug spray, and a water jug for refilling reusable bottles will be provided.  Please bring sunscreen, hat and water shoes and a reusable mug if you’d like coffee.

This is a beautiful landscape and precious wildlife habitat, so it is a great opportunity to help nearby nature while enjoying a morning on the water.

Hunting Creek, Old Town Alexandria

RSVP to Emily Bowman at [email protected] or (703) 354-5093 for more details, including specific location, and to reserve a boat

Saturday, 30 June 2018

9.30 am – 1.00 pm

 

Explore the Discovery Trail through Fairfax County Parks this summer

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The Fairfax County Park Authority’s Discovery Trail Map features 12 sites across the park system that give children and adults the chance to discover each park’s special features. There’s a game built into the activities, so prizes are a possible outcome (e.g., bicycles, mini-golf, a carousel, train, tour boat, pedal boat, camping, wagon ride, RECenters and a boat rental).

This year’s free summer activities highlight the rich diversity of wildlife you’ll see in Fairfax County parks.

  • Now in its fifth year, the map encourages children and adults to explore and learn interesting facts about the wildlife that lives in the parks. Discover which bird’s wings beat up to 53 times per second, which park serves as the perfect habitat for the great blue heron and which creature could be called a party animal!
  • Discovery Trail Maps ware available now at staffed FCPA locations, Fairfax County Public Libraries, and Board of Supervisors offices (while supply lasts).  Maps also will be available online at Download Discovery Trail Map during the promotional period, May 26 – Sept. 3, 2018.
  • Each featured site has a sticker with a unique image that reinforces the educational messages on the map.
  • Pick up a sticker for each park at the sticker location listed in the table above, and place it in the corresponding box (participant must be present to receive a sticker).
  • Participants who visit at least eight of the featured sites will receive tickets to more park fun valued at $93 and be entered in a drawing for one of four bicycles donated by Spokes, Etc. through the Fairfax County Park Foundation.
  • Qualifying maps can be redeemed at Burke Lake Park, Frying Pan Farm Park and Green Spring Gardens.

Learn more

Attend Butterfly Identification Workshop, with Dr. Leslie Ries, 25 June

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The sight of butterflies fluttering around on a warm day is one of the most iconic signs of summer. These beautiful insects usually only live for a few weeks as adults, but they make quite an impression while they are in their full glory. There is a large variety of butterfly species in our area and we are going to census them on June 30 during the Audubon Society of Northern Virginia Butterfly Count in and around our Occoquan Bay Count Ciricle.  

In preparation, Dr. Leslie Ries will be teaching a butterfly workshop focusing on identifying butterflies in Northern Virginia. The classroom portion of the workshop is FREE and will be on Monday, 25 June.

The field trip portion will be in conjunction with the count on June 30.

Register

National Wildlife Federation
11100 Wildlife Center Drive Reston, VA
Monday, 25 June 2018
7:00 PM-9:00 PM

Stream monitoring at Lake Accotink Park

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GET YOUR BRAIN WET! Attention adults and children who enjoy helping our parks and environment!  Join Audubon Naturalist Society, Friends of Lake Accotink Park and Friends of Accotink Creek (FOAC) as they catch stream critters (macro invertebrates) to document the health of the stream. This family-friendly event is a great opportunity to learn about what lives in the creek by finding, identifying and counting these creatures.

For more information and to register, please visit the FOAC CALENDAR and click on “Biological Stream Monitoring.”

Accotink Lake Park
7500 Accotink Park Rd, Springfield, VA 22150
Meet in the parking lot behind Lake Accotink Park Administrative building
Saturday, June 9, 2018
9:30 – 11:30 am

Join Matt Bright for a Conservation Walk at Marie Butler Leven Preserve

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Marie Butler Leven Preserve offers 20 acres of rich woodlands and meadows that are being managed step-by-step into a virtual library of plants native to the greater Washington, D.C. area. This visit to the Preserve will be split between a walk through the preserve and helping with management of invasives and planting of natives. The walk will pass by a partially restored meadow with a mix of native forbs and grasses as well as remnant turf grasses, and down the wooded slopes towards Pimmit Run to a small seepage-fed wetland. Volunteers will be given a tour of restoration efforts of the park as well as native flora of note.  The group will be working on removing Vinca from an area where it threatens native populations of Phlox divaricata and Erythronium americanum.

Be prepared! Given the work, come with sturdy shoes, appropriate clothing for avoiding ticks, and gloves if you prefer. Also sunscreen, bug spray, and drinking water. Gloves and tools will be provided.

Matt Bright is Conservation Manager at the Earth Sangha, where he has worked full-time since 2011 on plant propagation, conservation, and restoration here in Northern Virginia and in the rural Dominican Republic. He lives on site at Marie Butler Leven Preserve with his wife Katherine Isaacson, who is the Outreach and Development Coordinator also at the Earth Sangha. Matt is a Certified Horticulturist with the Virginia Nursery and Landscape Association, a member of the Virginia Native Plant Society (VNPS) and an instructor for the Arlington Regional Master Naturalists. Before joining the Sangha full-time, Matt attended Kenyon College in Ohio, where he also worked as a volunteer firefighter.

Sponsored by VNPS, this program is free and open to the public. However, space is limited so please click here to REGISTER.

To CANCEL your registration or ask a QUESTION, please email [email protected].

Marie Butler Leven Preserve

1501 Kirby Lane, McLean VA  22101

Saturday, May 26th

1.00 -3.00 pm

Grasses: the good, the bad, and the just plain ugly, 12 July

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Botanist and grass enthusiast Sarah Chamberlain speaks on the grasses of the Mid-Atlantic region: natives useful for growing in your yard, naturalized non-natives, and the invasive exotics that pose a threat to native landscapes; how to tell who’s who, and what we know about how to get rid of the bad actors.

Arlington Central Library
1015 N Quincy St, Arlington, VA 22201
Thursday, 12 July 2018
7.30-9.00 pm

Sponsored by the Virginia Native Plant Society. This program is free and open to the public.

Cranberry Lake Film and Talk

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Cranberry Lake is a 17-minute documentary about forest ecology students taking immersive field courses in the Adirondacks.  The film explores the connection between experiential learning and environmental stewardship.

After the feature presentation Virginia Native Plant Society (VNPS) Potowmack Chapter president Alan Ford will moderate a Question and Answer session about the challenges, issues, and solutions to native forest, streams, wetlands, and wildlife conservation in the greater D.C. region.

Zoya Baker is an award-winning filmmaker and animator based in New York City. Her work includes films, documentaries, commercials, and television shows. Zoya received a BFA in Film & Television at NYU Tisch School of the Arts and is currently pursuing an MFA at Hunter College Integrated Media Arts program.

Green Spring Gardens
4603 Green Spring Road
Alexandria, VA 22312
Thursday, 14 June 2018
7.30 pm – 9.00 pm

Sponsored by the Virginia Native Plant Society (VNPS).  VNPS programs are free and open to the public.

Join or volunteer for the 2018 Sustainable Garden Tour, June 10

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The Northern Virginia Soil and Water Conservation District’s 2018 Sustainable Garden Tour  features rain gardens, green roofs, native plant landscaping, rain barrels, backyard wildlife habitat, composting, and more. Local residents open their gardens and share their experiences landscaping with natural resources in mind. Visitors on the tour are allowed to visit each garden at their own pace, and may visit as many or as few as they like. There is no RSVP required, and the tour is free and open to all: Sunday, June 10,  1-5 pm at sites throughout the Fairfax-Falls Church-Annandale area,

NVSWCD needs volunteers to assist garden hosts. Volunteers will welcome and guide visitors and provide information. Each volunteer will be assigned to one of nine sites:

  1. Booker Residence, 3442 Surrey Lane, Falls Church VA
  2. Sawhney Residence, 4212 Saint Jerome Dr, Annandale, VA 22003
  3. King Residence, 4023 Roberts Road, Fairfax VA 22032
  4. Belvedere Elementary School, 6540 Columbia Pike, Falls Church VA 22041
  5. Chesterfield Mews Community Association, BEHIND 3170 Readsborough Ct, Fairfax VA 22031
  6. Daniels Run Peace Church, 3729 Old Lee Highway, Fairfax, VA 22030
  7. Carosella Residence, 2903 Rosemary Lane, Falls Church, VA 22042
  8. Meara Residence, 7211  Arthur Drive, Falls Church, VA 22046
  9. Jones Residence, 3517 Queen Anne Dr, Fairfax, VA 22030

You can sign up to volunteer for the whole time (12:30 – 5 pm) or one of two shifts (12:30 – 3 or 2:30 – 5).

Please contact Ashley Palmer: [email protected]