Florida Section Meeting and Orlando Annual Meeting 2014

Last week I attended the Florida Section meeting, met with the Section BOD, and went on a site visit of the Orlando 2014 Annual Meeting hotel.  Beautiful scenery, fun and interesting people, and an awesome site selection for 2014.  Read on for the highlights:

Florida Section Meeting:

The Florida Section of SRM joined forces with the Florida Section of the Wildlife Society to put on an excellent Prescribed Grazing and Wildlife Workshop.  The workshop was hosted at the scenic Disney Wildlife Preserve in Kissimmee, Florida.  Chad George, Florida Section President, started us off with: Grazing 101, followed by Erin Myers: Wildlife Habitats in Central Florida.  Pete Heard shared his extensive knowledge and experience in his presentation: Grazing and Wildlife, explaining how different wildlife species react to management activities and how to manage for wildlife.  After lunch, we went into the field to develop grazing plans on-site and learn more about their design and implementation.

The workshop was informative, applicable, and an outstanding hands-on introduction to grazing plans.  In particular, the entire group of instructors provided excellent demonstrations and examples throughout the workshop.  Pete Deal brought grass samples to show how grazing at varying intensities affects above and below-ground biomass and root structure.  Chad George provided a plethora of easy-to-follow examples to better understand grazing.  My personal favorite began: "...imagine you're at a buffet...", in order to describe how and why animals select forage.

The Florida section meeting was a great opportunity to hear about rangeland management and grazing plans in Florida ecosystems.  I enjoyed the meeting (despite the sweltering heat!) and appreciate the hospitality of the Section.  In addition to the meeting, it was great to hear that the Florida section is looking forward to collaborating with the Southern section of SRM to host the 2014 Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida.

Site Visit for the 2014 Annual Meeting - Orlando:

The 2014 Annual Meeting will be held in Orlando, Florida.  SRM was able to nail down a stellar contract with the host hotel, the Caribe Royal.  The site, meeting space, and accommodations are all spectacular.  The entire meeting will be at one location, and the hotel will offer federal per diem rates for the all room reservations - during February, peak season for Orlando.  Here are some added perks:

• All rooms are suites
• Good restaurants on-site
• Federal per diem for all room reservations
• Great deals for students sharing rooms
• Refrigerators in every room
• Beautiful swimming pool and surrounding area
• Free shuttles to Disney (2 miles away) if you want to bring the family 
• Large meeting facilities
• AND we negotiated free Internet in rooms
• ...it's a meeting in Florida

Stay tuned - I will be heading to the Nebraska Youth Range Camp June 7th.

CalPac Section Meeting at Deep Springs College

Deep Springs Colllege sits twenty-six miles from the nearest town, situated in the eastern California high desert.  The ranch/college hosts 26 male students, and focuses on a liberal arts education, a self-governing student body, manual labor, and an isolation policy.  Needless to say, the location for the CalPac section meeting was an interesting one!

The CalPac section had the task of providing my first introduction to an SRM section meeting and tour.  I think they did a magnificent job.  I met with the section Board of Directors and provided an update from the SRM BOD and headquarters on May 4th and again during the technical session on May 5th.  The group tolerated my inexperience with chalk boards (aren't those extinct?) and provided some feedback for the parent society.

The May 5th technical sessions included some excellent talks: David Neidorf and Paul Starrs introduced us to Deep Springs College, its history and highlights, and Tom Talbot, President of the California Cattlemen's Association, gave an update on the organization and current projects.  Two Deep Springs students provided a glimpse into life at the College, followed by a series of talks focusing on different aspects of the area.  Speakers were: Glenn Harris, Dawn Becker, James Bartolome, Sherm Swanson, Yvonne Wood, and Lynn Huntsinger, and topics included: innovative approaches to land management, vegetation monitoring, grazing management, geomorphology, global pastoralism, and the endemic black toad.  See the lineup and topics on the CalPac section website.

The technical session was concluded by yet another excellent meal prepared by the College followed by a campfire.

The field tour on May 6th was a windy, fun, and educational experience.  Ken Mitchell, Deep Springs Ranch Manager, led us on a tour of the college including their solar array and hydro plant, the surrounding area, the abandoned White Mountain City, a petroglyph site, and the nearby Black Toad Habitat.  The combination of a technical session, much of which focused on the surrounding area, followed by a tour of the college and nearby area was excellent.

For me, the CalPac meeting highlight was the people.  Whether it was stories of 'how I first became a cowboy', renegade plant identification trips for the upcoming finals week, jokes around a camp fire, or quips about this blog, there was fun to be had the entire trip.  I met some great folks, had interesting conversations, and am looking forward to next year!

Stay tuned - I'm heading to Florida next week.

Watch out for that calf!

University of Nevada Reno - Pizza with the Range Club

This past Monday, May 3rd, I joined the University of Nevada Reno Range Club for pizza. This is an enthusiastic bunch - with close to fifteen students who sacrificed their evening to meet with me the week before university finals!

The Range Club members shared their career goals, which varied widely, including ranching, recreation, law enforcement, extension, and education, and we spoke about how SRM can help them get involved and be successful in the Society and in their careers. We also brainstormed about how SRM can help them meet these goals, including: more opportunities to interact with other range clubs, ways to find and post jobs and résumés through SRM, and ideas for how the Society can better help students and professionals interact and network at SRM events.

UNR has undergone significant budget cuts, leaving some students unsure of how they will be able to meet their degree requirements for graduation. Dr. Tamzen Stringham saved the day during dinner, when she offered to teach an additional rangeland restoration course this fall (pending participation from enough students) in order to help them graduate.

No doubt, this is a group willing to go above and beyond: a professor offering to squeeze extra work into a tight fall schedule and a group of students willing to meet with me during the finals crunch. Thanks to the UNR Range Club for the ideas, insight and time!

Stay tuned - there will be more to come.