Rockbridge Conservation 2022 Fall Seminars

We’ve got a great lineup of seminars this fall! These events are all free to attend. We hope you will join us!

September 21, 7:00pm    Carbon Sink Demonstration Project

David Yarrow will describe the synergistic benefits for creating carbon sinks for the land beneath our feet.  He is the manager of a citizen scientist project in Columbia, MO that seeks to demonstrate this potential by documenting increases in organic content of project test plots farmed with this goal.

October 19, 7:00pm        Alternatives to Mowed Grass Lawns

Alternative ground covers can increase biodiversity and organic content in soils, improving water retention and eliminating the need for chemical inputs.  Wren Frueh will focus on what native lawns are, why they’re important, and how to begin the process of putting one in.  Frueh is currently on staff of Valley Conservation Council. She has worked as a restoration assistant at the Conard Environmental Research Area, a tallgrass prairie conservation and restoration project.

November 16        Challenges for Virginia Native Bats

Leslie Sturgis is president of Bat Conservation & Rescue of Virginia.   An experienced presenter, Leslie will facilitate an in-depth discussion of Virginia’s native bats and the conservation challenges our bats face. She will give a brief overview of bats’ natural history, discuss regional species, touch on local conservation issues and how to address them. 

December 15, 7:00pm     Returnable Restaurant Carry Out Containers

Ellie Moss from Perpetual, a nonprofit organization promoting the transition from disposable to reusable containers, will describe the potential and challenges for creating an open loop returnable container restaurant carryout system.  Perpetual promotes the concept of a circular economy where the residue of one process is the food for another process where waste is prevented.