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T
he 7th International Fire Ecology and Management Congress is less than two months away! We have a great program lined up, and we are looking forward to the range of topics and session formats scheduled to occur throughout the week. See below for conference updates, and please forward this message along to your networks.
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Student Travel Grants
We are happy to announce that
the TREE Grant Program (Travel, Research and Educational Experience) will be offered this year
to help students travel to attend conferences, symposia, and workshops dealing with wildland fire science and management. This program is funded by the Joint Fire Science Program, and grants will be available for graduate students presenting posters or presentations at the Fire Congress, as well as any fire conferences in the upcoming year. Be on the lookout for a special TREE Grant newsletter in your inbox early next week, which will contain details on how to apply.
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Program News and Highlights
This year's program has a mix of presentations, roundtable discussions, and trainings for fire managers, natural resource professionals, and the academic and research community. A full schedule will be added to the conference website soon. And stay tuned for information about our mobile app, which will include presentation abstracts, speaker bios, personalized schedules, and many cool networking features!
Plenary Sessions:
Our opening and closing plenaries, presented by an outstanding set of national and international speakers, will focus on the conference theme Fire Vision 20/20: A 20 Year Reflection and Look into the Future.
Opening Plenary: A 20 Year Reflection on Fire Ecology and Management
- Nate Benson, National Park Service
- Reed Noss, University of Central Florida
- Stephen Pyne, Arizona State University
- Neil Sugihara, Northern Arizona University and Jan van Wagtendonk, National Park Service Emeritus
Closing Plenary: A Look into the Future of Fire Ecology and Management
- David Bengston, U.S. Forest Service
- Marc Castellnou, University of Lleida
- Kevin Hiers, Tall Timbers Research Station and Land Conservancy
- Leda Kobziar, University of Idaho and AFE President
In addition to the opening and closing plenaries, we have a special plenary session planned for Wednesday, November 29 that will feature
Fire AFEx Talks.
This plenary session will consist of 10 engaging presentations (think TED or TEDx talks) that will cover diverse wildland fire topics.
Special and Concurrent Sessions: More than 20 different special sessions containing 150+ presentations will occur throughout the week, covering topics from climate change and restoration to prescribed burn associations and fire education. Check out the special session abstracts for more details. We are also excited that over 150 oral presentations have been accepted to the 2017 Congress to share research results and management implications, applications and programs, case studies, and more.
Fire Circles:
18 interactive fire circles will give participants a chance to have focused discussions around key fire issues. Some fire circles are designed to follow-up on a special session or workshop, while others will seek input on a certain topic or share strategies for meeting specific management or program objectives. Check out the list of fire circle titles and organizers and start planning which ones you'd like to join.
Workshops: The
13 conference workshops offer opportunities to learn new techniques, skills, and information that you can apply to your fire management activities or research. Several of the workshops will provide training on how to use applications, software, and programs. Others cover timely topics such as sexual harassment or scientific integrity. The pre-registration workshops are filling up, so register now if you were hoping to secure a spot in one of those sessions.
Field Trips:
The conference field trips offer a chance to see first-hand how the concepts discussed during the conference are being applied in Florida. All fields trips are $60 which includes transportation and lunch. Check the website for field trip descriptions, including approximate hotel return times on Saturday afternoon/evening. We still have space on the following trips - register today to secure your spot!
- St. Sebastian River Preserve State Park Burnover Staff Ride
- St Johns River Water Management Hal Scott Property
- Archbold Biological Station
- Kissimmee Prairie Preserve State Park
- Merritt Island National Wildlife Refuge/NASA
Please email office@fireecology.net if you have already registered and you'd like to add a field trip to your registration, or if you want to be added to the wait list for the
TNC Tiger Creek Preserve or Big Cypress field trips.
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Award Nominations: Deadline Extended to October 15
It is not too late to submit your nominations for a Lifetime Achievement Award or Student Excellence Award! The due date for nominations has been extended to October 15. We will recognize the winners during the awards luncheon at the conference on Thursday, November 30.
Lifetime Achievement Awards
recognize individuals who have made a significant contribution to fire ecology and management and have inspired and mentored a generation of fire ecologists. Their contributions may be in research, management, teaching, service, outreach, or a combination of these areas. International nominations are welcome! Check out past award winners.
Have someone in mind? Visit AFE's nomination process webpage for more information.
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Moderators and Volunteers
Moderators
If you can serve as a moderator for a session at the Fire Congress, please contact Tom DeMeo at tdemeo@fs.fed.us as soon as possible so we can get your name added to the program. Moderator duties include introducing the speakers and keeping everyone on time.
Students
Students can get a reduced registration fee of $250 when they volunteer for work shifts at the conference. Simply choose the "student volunteer" option during registration, and we'll get in touch with you.
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Rooms Reservations - Book Now!
Room nights at the
Hilton Orlando Buena Vista Palaceare being offered at government per diem rates (starting at $129 per night, plus 12.5% tax).
Room reservations must be made by Monday, October 30, 2017 to receive our reduced conference rate.
Keep in mind that the reduced conference rates are also available for attendees 3 days before or after the conference, if you are planning to enjoy Orlando and the attractions area. In addition, discount tickets to the parks are available to conference attendees.
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Conference Presenter Information
Notifications have been sent to all presenters, along with your presentation date and tentative time. If you did not receive this information, let us know at
office@fireecology.net. Special session presenters, please contact your special session organizer if you need information regarding your presentation day/time. We are hoping to post the full schedule online within the next 2 weeks; thank you for your patience!
If you have not yet registered or if you still need to pay your registration invoice, please do so as soon as possible.
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Thank You to Our Sponsors and Exhibitors!
Sponsors
Exhibitors
Hosted by Association for Fire Ecology,
in cooperation with Southern Fire Exchange
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Join AFE Today: Become a Member of the Association for Fire Ecology's growing network of fire
professionals ~
Join AFE
to receive membership benefits & conference discounts.
Our Mission: The Association for Fire Ecology is an organization of professionals dedicated to improving the knowledge and use of fire in land management through science and education.
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