Ecological Society of America explores global warming at its 95th Annual Meeting

Posted by on June 8, 2010

Registration opens for the meeting of the world’s largest organization of ecological scientists

Registration is now open to the press for the Ecological Society of America’s (ESA) 95th Annual Meeting which will be held August 1-6, 2010 in Pittsburgh. The meeting, which has the theme “Global Warming: The legacy of our past, the challenge for our future,” draws a critical combination of more than 3,000 scientists, policy makers and concerned citizens to explore the causes and consequences of global warming and to discuss the ways in which climate change permeates many areas of environmental concern, such as endangered species, food security and freshwater resources.

In the Opening Plenary “Environmental disasters in the US: exploring our reactive mode,” a panel of experts will discuss large scale environmental disasters — such as the Deep Horizon disaster, Hurricane Katrina and Asian carp invasion — and explore with audience input the ways in which society assesses risk, and why we so often find ourselves reacting instead of proactively taking steps to minimize or avoid grave outcomes. The Opening Plenary will take place Sunday, August 1 from 5:00-6:30pm at the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.

Steve Running — board member on the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), professor at the University of Montana and team member for NASA’s Earth Observing System — will give the scientific plenary lecture on climate change and ecology and his views on the outlook for global policies after the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen. The lecture will be held onMonday, August 2 at 9:00-10:00am in the David L. Lawrence Convention Center.  Both the Opening Plenary and the Scientific Plenary are free and open to the public.

The scientific program will feature 24 symposia, 179 oral sessions, 91 poster sessions and a host of special sessions, events and workshops. Numerous field trips will take participants from the rivers and mountains of eastern Pennsylvania to the nearby neighborhoods of inner city Pittsburgh. These trips are open to all meeting registrants; please note, however, that field trips are not included in press registration. An exhibition hall will showcase publishers of scientific texts and journals.

The meeting schedule is available at www.esa.org/pittsburgh. Please note that all abstracts are embargoed until 12:00am EST the day of their presentation. Interested press should contact Katie Kline or Nadine Lymn to register. The deadline to register for field trips and workshops is June 15.

Scientific presentations will include sessions devoted to:

  • Ecological Impacts on Human Populations and Biofuel Ecology
  • Global Change and Alpine Ecosystems: The Experience So Far and Looking Ahead
  • Amphibian Decline and Chytridiomycosis
  • Reclamation and Reforestation of Mined Land
  • Linking People, Nature and Water Together through Restoration: Applications and Lessons
  • Learned in Wetland Restoration in the Mid-Atlantic United States
  • Invasive Species and Climate Change:  Challenges and Opportunities in a Warmer World
  • The Invasion Ecology of Disease:  Understanding the Drivers of Microbial Community
  • Assembly and Host-Microbe Dynamics in the Human Body
  • Plant Signaling: The Opportunities and Dangers of Chemical Communication

Field trip highlights include:

  • Disturbance Ecology on the Allegheny Plateau
  • Brownfield Blitzers: A Dialog with Inner City Pittsburgh Neighborhoods Using Visual
  • Approaches for Conserving Biodiversity, Engaging Communities, Sharing Knowledge and
  • Addressing Environmental Justice
  • Urban Agriculture in Action: Greening Blighted Land and Revitalizing Communities
  • Parks, Streams and Urban Systems: Successes and Challenges in Restoration
  • Steel City to Green City

Newsroom operation

Members of the press (see policy below) are exempt from registration fees and may attend all meeting sessions. A staffed press room, including computers, a printer, telephones and an interview area, will be available.

ESA Policy on Press Credentials

We will waive registration for reporters with a recognized press card. Registration is also waived for current members of the National Association of Science Writers, the Canadian Science Writers Association, the International Science Writers Association and the Society of Environmental Journalists.

We do not waive registration for editors of peer-reviewed journals, ad sales representatives, publishers, program officers or marketing professionals.

Institutional Press Officers

Press officers may request copies of all abstracts related to their institution. ESA will distribute any relevant press releases in the Annual Meeting press room. Please contact Katie Kline for more information.

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