Maintaining Biodiversity in Cities and Towns: An International Perspective
24 July 2003
A Public Open Forum to be held at
Prince Phillip Theatre, Architecture Building, The University of Melbourne
Introduction
One of the biggest environmental issues facing Australia today is how to
balance the growth of our cities and towns with the preservation of our
unique biodiversity. The ecological study of cities and towns is essential
if we are to develop management and planning strategies that effectively
preserve and maintain Australia's plants and animals.
This Public Open Forum has been organised to raise awareness of the
contribution that the field of urban ecology can make to preserving and
maintaining biodiversity in our cities and towns. We have put together a
distinguished list of experts from Australia and around the world. They
will share their experiences in applying ecological knowledge to management
and planning strategies that contribute to the persistence of indigenous
plants and animals in urban and suburban environments.
This Forum is designed for policy makers, planners, natural resource
managers, students, teachers, naturalists, and the general public. It is
relevant to anyone interested in the ecological study of urban and suburban
environments and how knowledge from these studies has been applied to
address critical environmental issues.
Program Overview
Session 1- Understanding the Ecology of Cities and Towns
The creation of cities and towns produces highly fragmented landscapes of
small patches of remnant vegetation within large patches of residential and
commercial development, all of which are intersected by an extensive
network of roads, train lines and utility corridors. Understanding how
organisms respond to these unique conditions offers insights into how these
populations can be preserved and maintained.
Session 2- How Ecological Knowledge Can Enhance Planning and Environmental
Management
By combining ecological knowledge with an examination of our traditional
approaches to the construction of cities and towns, each speaker will
highlight ways to minimize the impacts of cities and towns on indigenous
plant and animal communities.
Session 3- Questions and Discussion
Time has been set aside at the end of the Forum for questions and
discussion. In addition, an open reception will directly follow the Forum
to allow participants the opportunity to interact with the speakers.
Program Speakers
Mrs. Joy Murphy Wandin - Wurundjeri Elder
Dr. Gee Chapman - University of Sydney
Dr. Christopher Dunn - Morton Arboretum, Chicago, USA
Prof. Gerhard Eisenbeis- Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, Germany
Dr. Glenn Guntenspergen - US Geological Survey, USA
Dr. Katarina Löfvenhaft- Stockholm University, Sweden
Dr. Charles Nilon - University of Missouri, USA
Dr. Richard Pouyat - US Forest Service, USA
Dr. Denis Saunders - CSIRO Sustainable Ecosystems, Australia
Dr. Rodney van der Ree - Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology,
Australia
Organising Committee
Dr. Mark McDonnell - Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology
Ms. Amy Hahs - Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology
Ms. Bronwen Hewitt - Conference Management, The University of Melbourne
For inquiries regarding registration contact:
Bronwen Hewitt, Conference Management, The University of Melbourne
Email:
Telephone: 03 8344 6389
Fax: 03 8344 6122
or visit the website: <http://www.conferences.unimelb.edu.au/arcue/>
____________________________________________
Amy Hahs
Research Officer
Australian Research Centre for Urban Ecology (ARCUE)
Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne
c/- School of Botany, University of Melbourne, Victoria, 3010, Australia
phone: + 613 8344 3334 fax +613 9347 5460
Any opinions, explicit or implied, are solely those of the author and do
not necessarily represent those of the Royal Botanic Gardens Board.
Birding-Aus is on the Web at
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