The Garden to Present Symposium on Ecological Restoration

The Santa Barbara Botanic Garden is pleased to announce the 2013 Honorable John C. Pritzlaff Conservation Award Dinner and Symposium. This year the award ceremony and dinner will be held on Thursday, October 24 from 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm in the Anacapa Room of the Montecito Country Club. Two years ago the Garden expanded the award’s scope to include the Pritzlaff Conservation Symposium, a half-day gathering of residents, policy-makers, academics, and environmentalists to address topics critical to environmental conservation both in our region, as well as internationally.

The conservation symposium will be held on Friday, October 25 from 1 pm to 5 pm in the Santa Barbara Public Library’s Faulkner Gallery. Both events will recognize the 2013 Honorable John C. Pritzlaff Conservation Award recipient, Dr. Bruce Pavlik, Director of Restoration Ecology for the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, England.

“The Garden uses the Pritzlaff Conservation Award to celebrate and call attention to our mission: conserving California’s native plants,” said Dr. Steve Windhager, Executive Director at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden. “Every year we focus on the most pressing issues and concerns among leaders of the conservation community, and present the award to one of the global trailblazers in the field who is helping to solve those problems.”

Since receiving his Ph.D. in Botany in 1982, Dr. Bruce Pavlik has been a long-time instructor at both academic and government institutions, from Mills College in Oakland to the National Park Service Training Program. He has served as vice president of the California Native Plant Society, and as series editor of the California Natural History Guide series. He is currently the Head of Restoration Ecology for the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Dr. Pavlik’s research has focused on the ecology of plants native to western North America, including the conservation of endangered species. Ecological restoration has become central to his research program and recent projects have emphasized the design and active management of populations and communities using field- based, experimental approaches. He has authored or co-authored more than 50 scientific and popular publications, including Oaks of California, California’s Changing Landscapes and The California Deserts: An Ecological Rediscovery.

Contact: Joni Kelly, Communications Manager jkelly@sbbg.org 805-682-4726 ext. 132



Titled “Releasing Constraints on Large-Scale Ecological Restoration,” the 2013 Pritzlaff Conservation Symposium will address why, despite numerous small-scale successes, ecological restoration is still typically underfunded and small in scale. According to conference organizer and speaker Denise Knapp, Director of Conservation and Education at the Santa Barbara Botanic Garden, “this topic is particularly timely, as restoring diverse habitat will maximize ecological resilience to climate change and ensure continued ecosystem services such as clean water, pollination of our food plants, soil retention, and recreational opportunities.”

As the Keynote speaker of the Symposium, Dr. Pavlik will share his thoughts on how restoration ecology can transition from a provincial discipline to a global practice. Other speakers participating in the symposium include: Dr. Phil Williams from U.C. Berkeley; Dr. Christy Brigham from the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area; and Dr. Michael White from the Tejon Ranch Conservancy. The symposium will conclude with a panel discussion and audience participation addressing strategies for increasing the reach and effectiveness of restoration in the future.

The Honorable John C. Pritzlaff Conservation Award Dinner and Symposium are open to the public. For ticket information and details on the symposium’s schedule, topics and speakers, please visit www.sbbg.org/classes- events/lectures-symposia or call 805-682-4726 ext. 102.