Webinar

Have you ever considered how your land fits in to the ecology of Vermont? Wondering if your woods are a cut above? Join Andy Wood with the Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department to learn how Vermont Conservation Design’s cutting edge science can help you better understand your woods, waters, and wildlife. Participants can expect to leave with an understanding of how to access VCD data, how to map their land in BioFinder, and how to put science to action on the ground.  

After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

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This past February five species and three critical habitats were added to Vermont’s Threatened and Endangered Species list. From bat hibernacula to native pollinators with rapidly declining populations, these new listings highlight some of our state’s most pressing conservation challenges at a time of habitat loss and changing climate. Want to learn what’s being done to conserve them?

Join scientists from the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department, Audubon Vermont, The Nature Conservancy, and Vermont Center for Ecostudies, for a lunch hour (12-1 pm) webinar on Wednesday April 27th. We’ll cover the ecology of the newly listed species, explain what “critical habitat” is and how it helps recover threatened or endangered species, and walk through some of the conservation steps we are taking—and how Vermonters can help.

Event Date: WEDNESDAY April 27, 2022, 12:00-1:00 pm

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Attracting birds to your backyard is a great way to observe birds up close and help them find food. However, using birdfeeders beyond the winter months is strongly discouraged since it can also attract hungry bears. Bears searching for bird seed can have serious consequences for your property, your neighbors, and the wellbeing of the bear. Fortunately, there are other options!  

Join Audubon Vermont’s Gwendolyn Causer along with Vermont Fish and Wildlife biologists Doug Morin and Jaclyn Comeau as they discuss how to attract birds with native plants instead of birdfeeders. They will share information about Audubon’s Native Plants for Birds Program, the benefits native plants have for birds, along with the risks birdfeeders create for bears and birds. 

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The Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service are working with Lake Champlain United and Trout Unlimited to host a virtual meeting with anglers and other interested people on the State of the Lake Champlain Salmonid Fisheries.

Date: Saturday, March 26 | 1–4 p.m.

Registration is required.

For the agenda and to register please click here.

The BioFinder website (BioFinder.Vermont.gov) allows Vermonters to interact with the Vermont Conservation Design (VCD) through an online map with information about what each piece of it means and how it was created. VCD identifies features at the landscape and natural community scales that are necessary for maintaining an ecologically functional landscape – a landscape that conserves current biological diversity and allows species to move and shift in response to climate and land-use changes. There is a lot here to be sure! But sometimes the technology can be a barrier to understanding. Join Community Wildlife Program staff for an informal drop-in help session to get your questions answered. We’ll do a 15 min segment on BioFinder basics and then have unstructured time to answer your questions and talk you through using the BioFinder map.

Presenters: Jens Hilke, Conservation Planner, VT Fish & Wildlife Department 

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Repeat session of this webinar will be offered on the following date: 
• Session 3: Thursday, May 19, 2022, 1:00pm-2:00pm 
 

There are a broad range of activities that Conservation Commissions can engage in, from stewarding town owned land to advising on land use planning to developing educational programs and volunteer opportunities. With all these options, it can be overwhelming and it requires careful planning to help a Conservation Commission move forward. Sometimes commissions need to take a fresh look at what they're doing and make small adjustments to get the group on the same page or get more people involved. Last year the Association of Vermont Conservation Commissions partnered with the Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department to produce a new version of the Conservation Commission Handbook as a reference for commissions to use. This webinar will provide ideas for reinvigorating your commission including outreach, strategic planning and the basics that make Conservation Commission an awesome volunteer opportunity.

Presenters: Jens Hilke, Conservation Planner, VT Fish & Wildlife Department 

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Every eight years, Vermont municipalities update their town plans to set the vision for moving forward and balancing an array of competing values. Natural resource issues are an important consideration in this balancing act. While every town is unique and different resources are present in each community, a lot can be learned from what other towns have done to address these topics. The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department & Vermont Natural Resources Council have completed our decennial review of every town plan, zoning, subdivision & ordinance in Vermont. Our analysis offers insights into best practices in handling natural resource issues in municipal planning. Join this session to learn more about improving your town plan natural resources chapter.

Presenters: Jamey Fidel, General Counsel & Forest & Wildlife Program Director, VT Natural Resources Council

Jens Hilke, Conservation Planner, VT Fish & Wildlife Department 

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Every eight years, Vermont municipalities update their town plans to set the vision for moving forward and balancing an array of competing values. Natural resource issues are an important consideration in this balancing act. While every town is unique and different resources are present in each community, a lot can be learned from what other towns have done to address these topics. The Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department & Vermont Natural Resources Council have completed our decennial review of every town plan, zoning, subdivision & ordinance in Vermont. Our analysis offers insights into best practices in handling natural resource issues in municipal planning. Join this session to learn more about improving your town plan natural resources chapter.

Presenters: Jamey Fidel, General Counsel & Forest & Wildlife Program Director, VT Natural Resources Council
Jens Hilke, Conservation Planner, VT Fish & Wildlife Department 

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Repeat session of this webinar will be offered on the following date:

Session 2: Tuesday, May 10, 2022, 1:00pm-2:00pm  

Vermont’s first Climate Action Plan has been released and we have lots to do! But where to begin? And what are appropriate climate-related projects for Vermont’s Conservation Commissions and towns to tackle? Join the Agency of Natural Resources’ Global Warming Solutions Act Coordinator, Marian Wolz, and Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department’s Community Wildlife Program staff to learn more about what is in the Climate Action Plan and what your town can do to address these pressing issues.

Presenters: Marian Wolz,  Global Warming Solutions Act Coordinator, VT Agency of Natural Resources
Jens Hilke, Conservation Planner, VT Fish and Wildlife Department 

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Vermont’s first Climate Action Plan has been released and we have lots to do! But where to begin? And what are appropriate climate-related projects for Vermont’s Conservation Commissions and towns to tackle? Join the Agency of Natural Resources’ Global Warming Solutions Act Coordinator, Marian Wolz, and Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department’s Community Wildlife Program staff to learn more about what is in the Climate Action Plan and what your town can do to address these pressing issues.

Presenters: Marian Wolz,  Global Warming Solutions Act Coordinator, VT Agency of Natural Resources
Jens Hilke, Conservation Planner, VT Fish and Wildlife Department 

Register Now

Repeat session of this webinar will be offered on the following date: 

Session 2: Tuesday, April 26, 2022, 2:00pm-3:00pm