[BCNnet] Wild Things plans

[bobolnk at ix.netcom.com]

A message from the Wild Things crew ...

Wild Things, the February 2005 Chicago Wilderness Conference, was a resounding success and served to bring together an energetic group of people interested in the natural world.  A number of ideas and initiatives arose from that conference.  This message is an invitation to take advantage of the opportunity to get involved in planning and implementing the next steps.  As soon as definite dates are set for any of these events and activities, we'll spread the word as widely as we can -- including through this listerv.

 In the meantime, if you would like to participate -- or just provide input -- on any of these, please respond either to the listserv or directly to Greg or Maggie (and they'll pass it along to the right task force).

 1.        Winter Workshops -- topics being considered to date: 

          NEW FACES:  Recruitment, outreach, partnerships, community and youth involvement. 

 ·         FRIENDS AND POLITICS:  Advocacy, communication for advocates, the political process, dealing with all kinds of people. 

 ·         INVASIVE SPECIES: evaluating and improving our "Best Management Practices." Building on the Nature Preserve Commission's Invasive Species Guidelines, Chicago Wilderness materials and Forest Preserve District materials -- from our own experiences. 

-            What works? What doesn't work?

-            Evaluating management practices species by species

 
·         RESTORATION PLANNING (and habitat planning):  "How To" sessions on two levels: 

-            Introductory
-            Advanced

 
2. Volunteer monitoring in Summer '06. Audubon will announce and start to organize as soon as this year's focus is determined (by a CW project being coordinated by the Illinois Natural History Survey).

 3. Summer '06 Field Seminars.

 4. A "Grassroots Team" for Chicago Wilderness.

 5. Planning for the ’07 conference like "WILD THINGS" (with the same name? or a new one?).

6. Overall "brainstorming" and project generation on building the "community of conservation" in the Chicago region.

 Please let us know any thoughts you have about any of these ideas.


Wildly yours,

 Greg and Maggie
quirkaceae at yahoo.com, mkurcz at audubon.org, 847 965-1150

------------------------------------
Judy Pollock 
jpollock at audubon.org