The Natural Areas Conference Call for Proposals is now open.

Now accepting proposals for the 2017 Natural Areas Conference! The 44th annual Conference will be held October 10-12, 2017, at the Hilton Fort Collins. This venue is right on the edge of the Colorado State University Campus, in the shadow of Colorado’s beautiful Front Range. Our theme this year is Working Beyond Boundaries: Collaboration as a Key to Natural Areas Management.

Deadline for the Call for Proposals is May 12.

We invite proposals related to these topics:

• Conservation Across (Natural/Political/Cultural) Boundaries
• Urban/Wildland Interface
• Wilderness and Research Natural Areas Management
• Value of Healthy Land in Water Resource Management
• Role of Native Plant Materials in Restoration & Rehabilitation
• Role of Natural Areas in Pollinator and Invertebrate Conservation
• Natural Areas Management in Light of Climate Change
• Value of Ecosystem Services and Working Landscapes
• Restoration in the Anthropocene
• Communicating About Natural Areas Conservation
• Technology for Land Management Success
• Forest and Range Management
• Wildland Fire as a Management Tool
• Invasive Species Management
• Species Re/Introductions & Assisted Migration
• Rare Species Management

Visit the conference website to find more details about proposal types and to submit your proposal.
Types of proposals we are seeking:
Special Sessions

• Organized oral sessions
• Symposia
• Workshops

General Sessions

• Oral Presentations
• Poster Presentations

We especially encourage students to submit abstracts for General Session oral and poster presentations. Students will be eligible to compete for prizes in the student presentation competition. Find out more about what the 2017 Natural Areas Conference offers students.

Colorado, Fort Collins and Colorado State University
Fort Collins, Colorado is the cultural capital of northern Colorado. It’s also the state’s craft brewery capital, with more than 20 local breweries, including the nationally famous New Belgium brewery, maker of Fat Tire beers.

Fort Collins is conveniently located near Rocky Mountain National Park, the Arapaho-Roosevelt National Forest, and Pawnee National Grassland, as well as one of the many natural areas owned by the city of Fort Collins: Soapstone Prairie Natural Area. Fort Collins is also the home of Colorado State University and its nationally recognized Warner College of Natural Resources

Student Scholarships Available

We’re now taking applications for student scholarships up to $500 to be used for registration (includes Student-Mentor Networking lunch, NAA membership lunch, Awards Dinner, and field trip), lodging, and travel to the 2017 Natural Areas Conference. The deadline for applying for the John W. Humke student scholarship is May 19, 2017.

Full-time students attending accredited institutions and majoring in an applicable field such as natural resource management, biology, ecology, conservation, or related subjects are eligible to apply. You must be a current NAA student member to be eligible for the scholarship. Not a member? Join today or join when you register for the conference, at the special student rate. Apply now.

Nominations for Awards Open

Nominations are now open for the Natural Areas Association’s George B. Fell and Carl N. Becker Awards.

These awards represent recognition of the best and brightest in our natural areas professional community, and are a huge highlight of our yearly Awards Banquet at the Natural Areas Conference. Do you know a colleague who deserves to be recognized? Find out more about our Awards and the nomination process.

For info on sponsorship opportunities, contact Executive Director Lisa Smith at lsmith@naturalareas.org or visit naturalareasconference.org.

See you in Fort Collins!