Sunday, January 17, 2010

The 're-boot' Fowl Meeting Feb. 21, 2010

Fowl Meeting Feb. 21, 2010
If you read the December Friends of Wetlands Newsletter you are aware that there are some dramatic changes taking place at FOWL. Our founder and president since 1991, John Katko, has resigned. He is spending much of his time in California these days.
In the interest of restructuring the leadership of FOWL we are meeting to consider how and where we go from here. The first such meeting was last week. Meeting minutes can be found at http://freindsofwetlands.pbworks.com. In two hours we barely got started with our agenda. Our next step is to develop a new board of directors.
Since John bore the burden of duties for FOWL, several new leaders are needed to take on and share responsibilities. FOWL will likely take a new direction and character as the leadership is reconstituted. We have begun a Call for Nominations to the FOWL Board of Directors.  Our goal is to have a new leadership to present to the members in time for the FOWL Picnic on June 19th.  I am beginning to think of this as a 're-boot' of FOWL since it looks like we are starting all over again. I hope it is more like an upgrade.
It is time that the organization rethink what it is about. Please consider adding your thought and talents to this process. Our next 're-boot' meeting will be on Sunday Feb. 21 at the Elyria Public Library, West River Branch at 2pm. See events.fowl.org for details. If you would like to contribute but cannot attend, you can email me or start a discussion at http://blog.fowl.org.

Friday, January 08, 2010

Ohio Reptile Research and Conservation Conference


Registration is now open for the Ohio Reptile Research and Conservation Conference to be held on Saturday, March 13, 2010 in Columbus, Ohio. Sponsored by the Ohio Division of Wildlife and the Ohio Biological Survey, invited speakers from the Midwest will present findings of recent research and conservation projects involving Ohio’s snakes, turtles, and lizards.


The Conference will start with setup and registration from 8:30-9:00 AM. Paper presentations will commence at 9:00 AM. Lunch will be provided as part of the regular registration fee of $35 ($25 for students). All registrants to the conference will also receive an inaugural Ohio Wildlife Legacy Stamp (a $15 value). On-site registration fees are the same, but with no lunch. The conference concludes at 5 PM.

For details see: http://www.ohioamphibians.com/reptile/index.html