Do you have ideas for next year's 2014 Ecological Society of America Opening Plenary? If you've been to an ESA meeting, you probably know that it officially kicks off with the Opening Plenary on the Sunday evening of the meeting. We've had some great Opening Plenary speakers over the years including Jane Lubchenco, David Suzuki, Don Kennedy, Sandra Postel, Cristian Samper and many others who inspired us and set the tone for the meeting. Last year's speaker, Jon Foley, drew a large and vocal crowd in Minneapolis. Foley, a Saint Paul local, is active in the University of Minnesota's public outreach through the Institute on the Environment. He spoke about prospects for feeding the world in a future of global change, arguing passionately for the interdependence of environmental and human health and wellbeing. His presentation nicely introduced the meeting theme of "Sustainable Pathways: Learning from the Past and Shaping the Future" -- and ignited some equally passionate discussions. Next summer, ESA's 99th Annual Meeting will be held in Sacramento, CA, with the theme of "From Mountains to Oceans, it's all Ecology."
Who would you like to see as the 2014 Opening Plenary speaker? We're looking for someone (s/he doesn't need to be an ecologist) who may move, inspire, provoke or motivate us and whose insights need to be heard by our community. ESA doesn't pay speaker fees but we've managed to attract impressive folks in the past. If you have suggestions, please drop us an email before the end-of-year holidays, at [email protected] ******** Liza Lester Communications Officer Ecological Society of America Washington, DC (202) 833-8773 ext. 211 [email protected] Ecotone: news and views on ecological science http://www.esa.org/esablog/ Tweeting @esa_org
