Dear
Members, Collaborators and Friends of the Baltimore Ecosystem Study:
You
are invited and encouraged to attend the 2012 Baltimore Ecosystem Study (BES)
Long-Term Ecological Research Program Annual Meeting on Wednesday and Thursday,
24-25 October and the Community Open House and Greening Celebration on 24
October.
The
Annual Meeting is designed to share the technical scientific results of the
project with BES researchers, educators, local, state and federal agency
representatives while also being open to the media, and interested community
members. The Community Open House is an
informal venue to share non-technical project information and results with
teachers, students at all grade levels, community members, media, and regional
decision makers.
Annual Meeting:
The
fourteenth BES Annual Meeting will be held at the Cylburn Arboretum Vollmer
Visitor Center at 4915 Greenspring Avenue, Baltimore, MD, 21209. Here is a link to directions and a map: http://tinyurl.com/cylburn-map
The Annual Meeting talks will start promptly at 8:30 am on Wednesday including Keynote Speaker Professor Sherry Olson, author of the BES Book of the Year, “Baltimore: The Building of an American City.” After lunch there will be a poster session followed by afternoon talks. The Community Open House will begin at 6:00 pm. The Thursday session will begin at 8:30 am, ending at noon. Breakfast will be available both days beginning at 8:00 am for those who purchase meal tickets.
Those
who have research results gathered as a part of, or particularly relevant to,
the Baltimore Ecosystem Study, are invited to present a 15-minute talk or a
poster summarizing the results. If you
would like to present your research at the meeting, please submit your 250-word
abstract by Friday 12 October. The
abstracts will be published on the BES website as well as in the program
booklet. You can include one graphic or
table with your abstract. Please submit
your abstracts electronically using the online form here: http://tinyurl.com/bes-2012-am-reg. This is a strict deadline, so be sure your
abstract reaches us by 12 October.
The
final program of talks and posters will be posted via the BES website - http://beslter.org shortly before the meeting.
New This Year:
As an enhancement to our poster session we will
start it off with each poster presenter coming up to the podium and showing a
slide of their poster. Two minutes will be
allotted for each presenter to say just a few very brief words about their poster. This will be followed by presenters standing
with their posters for more in-depth talks with attendees. This will give an opportunity for each poster
to be highlighted and allow for those interested in further discussion to talk
with the presenter at their poster.
As an opportunity to link science and art, our BES
Artist-In-Residence, Lynn Cazabon will have a photo exhibit of her work up
during the meeting.
Annual Meeting Parking:
There
is free parking available at the Arboretum.
The Vollmer Center is a reasonable walk from the #1 bus stop.
Annual Meeting Meals:
Coffee
will be available for all attendees. Pre-paid breakfast and lunch will be
available onsite on the first day and breakfast on the second day. Time allotted for lunch will be one hour. We
encourage you to register and pay for your meals in advance. There will be very
few extra meals available if you sign up at the door. You can also bring a bag lunch. Options for
local dining close by are limited. The
costs below are to cover your food and drink.
There is no fee to attend the meeting.
The
options are:
Breakfast
Day 1: $ 8.50
Lunch
Day 1: $14.00
Breakfast
and Lunch Day 1: $22.50
Breakfast
Day 2: $ 8.50
Breakfast
both days and Lunch Day 1: $31.00
Descriptions
of the meals are included on the registration form. See below.
You
can either pay by credit card through the registration form or by check
payable to "Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies." Checks should be mailed to Holly Beyar, Cary
Institute of Ecosystem Studies, PO Box AB, Millbrook, NY 12545. You will be given tickets for your pre-paid
meals along with your name tag when you arrive at the meeting.
Meeting Registration:
All
Annual Meeting attendees and participants will need to register by Wednesday 17
October. Here is a link to the form: http://tinyurl.com/bes-2012-am-reg
. If you have any questions, please
contact Holly Beyar at (845) 677-7600 x210 or beyarh@caryinstitute.org.
Community Open House and Greening Celebration:
The
eleventh Community Open House and Greening Celebration will follow the Annual Meeting
on Wednesday evening 24 October from 6:00 to 9:00 pm at the Cylburn Arboretum
Vollmer Visitor Center.
The
Community Open House and Annual Greening Celebration is a joint gathering by
BES and the Parks and People Foundation.
This event highlights community involvement in various greening
activities such as community gardens. It
is also an opportunity for community members to meet and talk with BES
researchers in a less formal setting to learn more about BES. The event will feature non-technical displays
and handouts. Please contact Valerie
Rupp at Parks & People, 410-448-5663 x114 or valerie.rupp@parksandpeople.org
with any questions about the Open House, or if you would like to submit a non-technical
poster or other display.
I
encourage all participants and collaborators in the Baltimore Ecosystem Study
to present a talk or poster at the Annual Meeting, as well as to attend the
Open House in order to promote communication and mutual understanding in this
spatially, topically, and institutionally very diverse study.
Sincerely,
Steward
T.A. Pickett,
Project
Director
