Corridors to Sustainability - Designing Within the Natural Context

 The Northeast Organic Farming Association's (NOFA) Organic Land Care (OLC) Program will be holding its Annual Gathering on Tuesday, December 7, 2010 at the Student Union Building on the UConn Campus in Storrs from 8:00am – 4:30pm. This is NOFA OLC's largest event, bringing together many of NOFA's accredited professionals and the public for a full day of informative speakers, collaboration and networking.

This year's Annual Gathering will focus on preserving biodiversity. At the current rate, scientists have projected up to 30% of all mammal, bird, and amphibian species and 20% of plant species will be threatened with extinction within this century. This is far greater than what has been determined as the safe and natural rate of species loss.

To address this issue, the United Nations has declared 2010 the "International Year of Biodiversity." In support of this effort, the NOFA OLC Program has decided to focus its Annual Gathering on ways that land care professionals and others can fight this loss in the way they care for landscapes. Landscape related threats to biodiversity, such as habitat loss, alteration, and pollution from excessive pesticide use and as well as the widespread use of foreign plants will be covered.

Now more than ever, we as landscapers and land owners have an obligation to preserve habitat while enhancing the aesthetics of the landscapes we live in. This year's conference will address how to preserve biodiversity as we design our landscapes.

Speakers for the day will include Michael Klemens (Ecological Thinking), Claire Rutlage (Emerald Ash Borer Update), Carolyn Summers, author of Designing Gardens with Flora of the American East (Gardens Filled with Life), Catherine Zimmerman, author of Urban and Suburban Meadows (Meadowscaping), Kim Stoner (Pollinators in the Landscape), and the Keynote Speaker, Doug Tallamy, author of Bringing Nature Home; How Native Plants Sustain Wildlife in our Gardens (Maintaining Curb Appeal). There will also be a 45‐minute panel discussion with all speakers at the end of the day.

You can register for this event by calling 203-888-5146. The cost is $85 for NOFA Accredited Professionals and $95 for the public. Lunch will be provided.

For more information about the Annual Gathering and the NOFA OLC Program, please visit www.organiclandcare.net.