I like the idea of taking a train to the ESA meeting, and train travel in general, but coming from the West coast, it would take almost 60 hours on Amtrak! If only we had a high speed rail line linking the eastern and western US...
Jonathon Donald Masters candidate, Geography University of Nevada, Reno -----Original Message----- From: Ecological Society of America: grants, jobs, news [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Reinmann, Andrew, Brett Sent: Friday, April 26, 2013 10:22 PM To: [email protected] Subject: [ECOLOG-L] Take the Train to ESA Minneapolis Hello EcoLoggers, To those of you heading to the 98th ESA conference in Minneapolis, are you interested in reducing the environmental footprint of this year's conference? Have you considered changing the mode of transportation you use to get there? One of the largest environmental footprints of national conferences is the mode of transportation its attendees take, which is often air travel. While it may be the quickest form of transportation, flying is also the most environmentally detrimental. I propose that we, as members of the world's largest professional society of ecologists, make a formal attempt to shrink the environmental impact of this meeting by choosing alternative means of transportation. One viable option is train travel. I am a PhD candidate at Boston University and have taken the train to ESA meetings for the past few years. I have effectively used the longer travel time to work (think presentation preparation!). Although this may not be a feasible option for everyone, if you do have the flexibility to allow for this more environmentally responsible (and fun) alternative I urge you to do so. Traveling by train could also provide more opportunities to network if attendees coordinate their schedules. Organizing this as a group would strengthen ESA's commitment to sustainability and stewardship while furthering ESA's ability to be a leader and role model for other scientific societies. If just 100 of us travel half-way across the country via train instead of flying we will mitigate climate change to the same extent as taking 15 cars out of commission for a whole year! This provides us with the opportunity to present our research at a national conference while exemplifying part of the solution to the ecological problems that confront our planet. Please contact me ([email protected]<mailto:[email protected]>) if you are interested in taking the train to ESA or simply have questions about this mode of transportation. I will help attendees coordinate their plans so they can travel with other attendees. Knowing where everyone is traveling from will also allow me to calculate the cumulative reduction in our carbon emissions. Thanks! -Andy Reinmann -- Andy Reinmann Ph.D. Candidate Biology Department Boston University 5 Cummington St Boston, MA 02215
