| Date | Presentation |
|---|---|
| August 6, 2024 | EcoJEDI Summer Speaker Series USDA Natural Resource Conservation Service: Melissa Blair, Isaac Norris, and Brian Townsend Zoom | 12–1:30 pm |
| July 23, 2024 | EcoJEDI Summer Speaker Series Dr. Brian E. Washburn, USDA APHIS Wildlife Services, NWRC Microsoft Teams | 12–1:30 pm Brian Washburn biography Dr. Brian E. Washburn is a Research Biologist with USDA APHIS Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center (NWRC) Sandusky, OH, Field Station. Prior to joining NWRC in 2003, Dr. Washburn was a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Missouri (MU), received his Ph.D. at the University of Kentucky, and M.S. at Penn State University. In his current position at NWRC, Dr. Washburn works extensively with colleagues and partners from Wildlife Services research and operations, the U.S. Department of Defense, Universities, civilian airports, state wildlife agencies, nongovernment organizations, and private industry. His research involves basic and applied wildlife ecology studies that provide a better understanding of wildlife movement patterns (e.g., migration ecology), foraging ecology, habitat management, land-use practices, and ecology of wildlife within urban ecosystems. Findings from his research are used to reduce wildlife hazards within and near airport environments. In addition to his appointment with NWRC, Dr. Washburn is an adjunct professor at the University of Missouri, Michigan State University, and North Carolina State University. |
| July 11, 2024 | EcoJEDI Summer Speaker Series Dr. Susan Loeb, U.S. Forest Service Microsoft Teams | 12–1:30 pm Susan Loeb biography Dr. Loeb's research focuses on the ecology, evolution, and conservation of mammalian species in natural systems and how these species adapt to anthropogenic changes. She develops and tests new techniques for furthering our knowledge of mammalian species. Dr. Loeb's current research goals are to understand the biology and ecology of eastern forest bats to develop methods and guidelines for their conservation and recovery. Areas of current research include ecology of threatened and sensitive species such as the tricolored bat and northern long-eared bat, effects of forest management practices on bat habitat use and community structure, developing and testing methods to monitor bat populations across the landscape, and understanding the impacts of white-nose syndrome on southeastern bat species. Dr. Loeb's past research addressed interactions between the southern flying squirrel and the endangered red-cockaded woodpecker. She has also studied the importance of coarse woody debris and other forest structural characteristics on small mammals of southeastern forests. |
| June 17, 2024 | EcoJEDI Summer Speaker Series Alex Toder, USDA NRCS Microsoft Teams | 12 pm Alex Toder biography Alex Toder is a Soil Conservation Scientist with the USDA National Resource Conservation Service, Marfa, Texas. Prior to joining NRCS in 2022, Alex received his M.S. degree in Environmental Science from The University of Texas at San Antonio and his B.S. degree in Wildlife Ecology at Texas State University. Prior to starting his M.S., Alex did several internships with the different federal agencies and volunteered with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. At The University of Texas at San Antonio, his thesis research analyzed aquatic invertebrates in isolated and permanent pools in Leon Creek Greenway. In his current position at NRCS, Alex works with private landowners to restore rangelands, degraded riparian sites, and improve wildlife habitat. |
| April 23, 2024 | Counterstorytelling in the Sciences: How Countering Contextualizes Research Dr. Lizette Navarrete-Burks, University of Houston-Downtown Microsoft Teams | 6–7 pm |
| February 28, 2024 | Storytelling in Science Leah Cuddeback, Hill Country Alliance Microsoft Teams | 6 pm |
