The Organization of Wildlife Lands and Realty Specialists (OWLS), an Affiliate of the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies (AFWA), is holding their 24th annual conference on Florida's Space Coast. This year's theme focuses on the ongoing work and commitment to protect Florida's wildlife heritage and the efforts being made to address 21st century challenges.

The organizing agency, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, hopes participants will leave with new ideas, approaches, methods, and an understanding of Florida's commitment to conserve wildlife and their habitats and how the State plans to accomplish that goal in the coming decades.


Go Zero Program

We are participating in the Go Zero program with The Conservation Fund (TCF)! Go Zero calculates carbon dioxide emissions that will result from the energy use at the conference, as well as the travel of our attendees. To help trap the carbon dioxide that is produced from the conference, The Conservation Fund will plant native trees in protected parks and wildlife refuges across the nation. As they grow, these new forests will help clean the air that we breath, filter the water we drink, restore sensitive wildlife habitat and enhance public recreation areas for current and future generations.

TCF's Florida Office will donate the cost of planting the trees, giving everyone the "Gift of Zero" - a healthier planet.

Thank you TCF!

Click here for more information: http://www.conservationfund.org/

Program Committee:

Will Abberger
Trust for Public Land
will.abberger@tpl.org
Seth Blitch
Apalachicola NERR
Department of Environmental Protection
seth.blitch@dep.state.fl.us
Hugh Boyter
Conservation Planning, LLC
boyterh@comcast.net
Dana Bryan
Florida Park Service
dana.bryan@dep.state.fl.us
Jimmy Conner
Caravelle Wildlife Field Office
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
jimmy.conner@MyFWC.com
Gary Cochran
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (OWLS President)
gary.cochran@MyFWC.com
Steve Coughlin
Land Stewardship
South Florida Water Management District
scoughli@sfwmd.gov
Doreen DiCarlo (conference coordinator)
Center for Environmental Studies
ddicarlo@ces.fau.edu
Jay Exum
Glatting Jackson
jexum@glatting.com
Larame Ferry (program co-chair)
Division of Habitat and Species Conservation (HSC)
Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission
larame.ferry@MyFWC.com
Layne L. Hamilton
Florida Panther and Ten Thousand Islands NWR
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
layne_hamilton@fws.gov
Dennis Hardin
Division of Forestry
hardind@doacs.state.fl.us
Richard Hilsenbeck
The Nature Conservancy
rhilsenbeck@tnc.org
Chris Koeppel
Natural Resources Management
Brevard County
chris.koeppel@brevardcounty.us
Erin Myers
Natural Resources Conservation Service
Erin.P.Myers@fl.usda.gov
Jon Oetting
Florida Natural Areas Inventory
JOetting@fnai.org
Keith Singleton
Division of State Lands
Department of Environmental Protection
keith.singleton@dep.state.fl.us
Ellen Stere
Division of State Lands
Department of Environmental Protection
Ellen.Stere@dep.state.fl.us
Susan Trokey
Ding Darling Refuge
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service
Susan_trokey@fws.gov
Maria Zondervan
Altamonte Springs Service Center
St. Johns River Water Management District
mzondervan@sjrwmd.com