WRRI to Host 2019 Annual Conference for Water Resource Industry and Academe
By Summer Walls
North Carolina’s Water Resources Research Institute will host its 21st Annual Conference on Thursday, March 21 from 8:15 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Friday, March 22 from 8:45 a.m. to 4 p.m. On Thursday, a networking reception from 5 to 7 p.m. will allow attendees to interact and learn about new research findings in the field through poster presentations by WRRI funded researchers and many others.
The WRRI Annual Conference brings together scientists, students, consultants, nonprofits and state representatives with the common goals of preserving North Carolina’s waters, fostering research and engaging the public. Registration is currently open and continues throughout the conference, with early registration discounts available until 12 p.m. Friday, March 15.
WRRI invites the public to join in discovering the latest research, networking with industry insiders, developing skills to address North Carolina’s water challenges and sharing best practices and successes in water resource management. Interactive sessions, lightning talks and thematic sessions will showcase a variety of topics. Highlights include water resource management, utilities and public health, water body management and restoration, future planning and more. View the full agenda on the conference site.
Vernice Miller-Travis of Skeo Solutions, Inc. will give the keynote address on “Community engagement: Thinking outside the box or just plain common sense?” Miller-Travis is the senior advisor for environmental justice and equitable development on Skeo’s Community Planning and Revitalization team. For 30 years, she has been a leading proponent of environmental justice and equitable and sustainable development, at the nexus between civil rights and environmental enforcement. She is a recognized leader in this multidisciplinary field at the local, national and international levels.
Miller-Travis is an urban planner, sought after for her environmental conflict resolution expertise and facilitation and mediation skills. Her work has focused on restoring blighted, contaminated and environmentally distressed communities. Her work supports federal, state, local and neighborhood efforts to advance community revitalization via brownfields and Superfund site remediation and redevelopment, urban waters restoration and area-wide planning through collaborative problem solving, building cultural competence and cross-cultural conflict mediation.
In addition to the keynote address, talks, sessions, panel discussions and networking opportunities, WRRI also will be offering four free workshops at the close of the conference, Friday March 22 from 2:20 to 4 p.m. Thanks to support from sponsors and partners, these workshops will be open to the public, as well as to registered conference attendees, and free of charge. Workshops include:
- Get outside: Teaching water literacy outdoors, with the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality
- Managing and sharing water data using community tools, with the The Consortium of Universities for the Advancement of Hydrologic Science, Inc. (CUAHSI)
- Albemarle-Pamlico Sound: Management of a shared waterway, with the The Albemarle-Pamlico National Estuary Programs (APNEP)
- Too much, too little, or just right? Drought information resources for water managers, with the North Carolina Climate Office
Take advantage of the early registration rates before noon on March 15. See the full conference details and register at wrri.ncsu.edu/conference.
