It starts at the top: The intertwined fates of water and ecosystems in the climate crisis

Join us on Saturday, September 23rd, for a symposium at CU SEEC.

The Center for Sustainable Landscapes and Communities, partnering with the Boulder County Nature Association is sponsoring a day-long symposium and information fair to update us on various aspects of the climate crisis which is affecting us locally.

Precipitation in Colorado’s high country has a big effect on the lives of Front Range residents, whether plant, animal, or human. Snowpack feeds local creeks, lakes and ditches and moistens the soil for plant communities. Climate change is altering the amount and timing of snow and rain, and the runoff of melting snow, as well as the amounts and chemistry of the water sent downstream. Greater variability in precipitation will also increase the frequency of drought, flood and wildfire. Other environmental changes of the Anthropocene Era are also affecting water chemistry and in turn the biological communities in our lakes and streams. What changes to our water supply are observed now and predicted for the future?  How do wildfires and wildfire mitigation affect these? How do scientists measure and model these changes?  And what are the consequences for our local ecosystems, both terrestrial and aquatic? Finally, what can we realistically do to slow the measured and perceived changes? Our quality of life, our food supplies and our ability to defend from wildfires all depend on the quantity and fate of Front Range precipitation.

The Boulder County Nature Association is providing FREE LUNCH!  In addition, FREE PARKING is available if and only if you register and follow the car registration links below.

Free registration is at https://bcna.org/2023ecosymposium

Parking Instructions

Parking information will be sent to participants who register on the BCNA link provided above. However, please be aware that CU’s parking rules are complex and space is limited. Please read the provided parking information carefully.

Schedule & Speakers

8:30  Building opens, display and information booths active

9:00       Welcome and Introductions

9:15 Introductory Talk

Liz Payton, Western Water Association

10:00 Break

10:20 Talks on changes in the alpine

Eve Hinckley, INSTAAR

Sarah Spaulding, USGS/INSTAAR

12:20 Lunch (yes there IS such thing as a free lunch)

Displays and information booths active

1:20 Rewetting landscapes for nature-based climate mitigation 

Tim Seastedt, INSTAAR

2:00      The next steps for rehydrating landscapes 

Brett KenCairn

2:50 Thanks and Evaluation

Local environmental groups involved in working with water and water conservation will have displays and information tables at this event, including:

Cool Boulder

Watershed Center

Boulder Watershed Coalition

Wildland Restoration Volunteers

…and more!