The revised Exchange has been designed to address concerns discussed by participants at the Symposium (and soon to be published in a Symposium Report). The revised proposal has been designed to be implemented using more of the practices commonly used by companies when undertaking new product development and testing. This will make for a more methodical sequencing of Exchange 2.0 development steps using principles of systems engineering.

For the first time, Conserv has made the Exchange 1.0 available to the general public. We invite others that seek to integrate government and markets to enhance ecosystem restoration to use the proposal and to provide commentary to Conserv that may be added to critique provided by Symposium participants.

We hope release of the document to the general public helps to more rapidly advance human society toward a more sustainable future.

Rappahannock Exchange (1.0) Prospectus

And thanks to Birdfreak.com for the use of this image.

- Michael Collins

Collins F2F Kickoff Presentation

Kline F2F Kickoff Presentation

The purpose of the study is to consider how groundwater management policy impacts optimal sustainable population size (OSPS) in Albemarle County and The City of Charlottesville, Virginia within an ecosystem services framework. The specific research question explored in this paper is - Does groundwater availability impact the determination of an optimal sustainable population size in Albemarle County and the City of Charlottesville and if so, what is that impact? The study embraces a holistic approach to exploring linkages between human population, land use, surface water and groundwater resources.

The report in its entirety is available below. Conserv requests a $25.00 donation for those that download the report and plan to use its contents for professional purposes. Alternatively, a check to the Center for Sustainable Groundwater, P.O. Box 1424, Charlottesville, Va., 22902 or to Advocates for a Sustainable Albemarle Population is also appreciated.

The Role of Groundwater Ecosystem Services in Determining an Optimal Population Size for the Charlottesville/Albemarle Community

Please contact Michael Collins at 540-661-7379 for more information.

Under this three year contract, Conserv staff will be responsible for provision of the following initiative deliverables:

• Convene and staff the Forests to Faucets (F2F) Advisory Council
  

  

• With the F2F Council and VDOF, develop Payment for Ecosystem Services (PES) pr ogram protocols.
• Create a SFRR Priority map of critical sub-watersheds necessary to target the F2F effort.
• Create a methodology to screen and target landowners for program eligibility.
• Create a marketing plan, marketing materials, and implement project marketing.
• Develop a Watershed Health Index.
• Prepare a Cost Benefit/Benefit Cost Transfer Analysis.

Project kickoff is now scheduled for Thursday, February 18 via the inaugural convening of invitees to participate on the F2F Council (invitation below).

Forests to Faucets (F2F) Advisory Council

Meeting Announcement and Agenda

Meeting Announcement

The Virginia Department of Forestry and Conserv-Marketplace for Ecosystem Restoration invite you to attend a meeting of the new Forests to Faucets (F2F) Advisory Council. The Council will advise the Department on issues and processes related to implementation of the Rivanna South Fork Reservoir Forests to Faucets (F2F) Pilot Program (project summary and list of invitees attached).

9 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Thursday, February 18

George Dean Board Room, Second Floor

Virginia Department of Forestry Headquarters

900 Natural Resources Drive

Charlottesville, Virginia

Meeting Agenda

1. Welcome

• Mike Gaffney, Chairman, RWSA (invited)
• Carlton Owen, President & CEO, U.S. Endowment
• Carl Garrison, Virginia State Forester, VDOF (invited)

2. Project Overview, Everette Kline, Director of Forestland Conservation, VDOF

3. Participant Introductions

4. Council Purpose, Michael Collins, Conserv

5. F2F Program Elements, Michael Collins, Conserv

6. F2F Timeline, Michael Collins, Conserv

7. F2F Advisory Council Administration Discussion

8. F2F Next Steps

9. Adjourn

Thanks to the University of Virginia Geostat Center for these aerial images!

For more information, contact Michael Collins at 540-661-7379.

Pamela was born and raised on her parent’s 980 acre riverfront agriculture and horse farm on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. The farm was rich in natural resources including thick forests, rich farmland soils, wetlands, streams, and associated wildlife and ecosystems. Migrating flocks of Canadian Geese and White Swans sought refuge in the fields seasonally. Pam enjoyed hunting, fishing, horseback riding, artifacting and many other pass times and adventures unique to growing up in wide open spaces. The Nature Conservancy later purchased approximately 300 acres of the farm which is known as the Jackson Lane Preserve and is part of the largest wetlands restoration effort undertaken by The Nature Conservancy in the Maryland/DC region.

Pam is currently working in business development for environmental consultants on Federal real estate projects. Her work involves researching funding, pursuing projects and arranging high performance technical teams to win projects for Superfund site remediation; Brownfield redevelopment, and preacquisition environmental due diligence  for the Environmental Protection Agency, USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the Department of Interior National Park Service.

Pam is enrolled in the University of Georgia Master Naturalist Program and pursuing coursework in Environmental Management. She also is actively involved in Georgia conservation organizations, relationships with conservation agencies, attendance at work shops and working to influence policy on conservation tax credit legislation, carbon sequestration, and bioregional assets.

Pam can be reached at plleiser@bellsouth.net.

More details to follow.

More information forthcoming….

Forests to Faucets (F2F) Advisory Council

Meeting Announcement and Agenda

Meeting Announcement

The Virginia Department of Forestry and Conserv invites you to attend a meeting of the new Forests to Faucets (F2F) Advisory Council. The Council will advise the Department on issues and processes related to implementation of the Rivanna South Fork Reservoir Forests to Faucets (F2F) Pilot Program (project summary and list of invitees attached).

9 a.m. - 12 p.m.

Wednesday, February 3

George Dean Board Room, Second Floor

Virginia Department of Forestry Headquarters

900 Natural Resources Drive

Charlottesville, Virginia

Meeting Agenda

1. Welcome

Mike Gaffney, Chairman, RWSA (invited)

Carlton Owens, Executive Director, U.S. Endowment (invited)

Carl Garrison, Virginia State Forester  VDOF (invited)

2. Project Overview - Everette Kline, Director of Forestland Conservation, VDOF

3. Participant Introductions

4. Council Purpose - Michael Collins, Conserv

5. F2F Program Elements - Michael Collins, Conserv

6. F2F Timeline - Michael Collins, Conserv

7. F2F Advisory Council Administration Discussion

8. F2F Next Steps

9. Adjourn

Months ago, after leaving a government job to work nearly full time for Conserv, my wife and I scrutinized our financial spreadsheet and reduced expenses. One of things that had to go was T.V., a difficult choice, sports fan that I am. In its place, I’ve rediscovered radio, albeit 21st century style, through the magic of the internet. Before Christmas, I listened to a 2005 National Public Radio interview by Renee Monagne with Jeremy Seal, author of Nicholas: The Epic Journey from Saint to Santa Claus (Jeremy Seal Interview).  I was particularly intrigued with the following portion of the conversation:

Mr. SEAL: Well, in my view, he was already halfway to being Santa Claus by the time he reached Holland, say from the 14th century. The popular short-form Dutch for St. Nicholas is Sinter Klaus. He was exported to America as a kind of dormant folk memory in the early decades of the settling of Manhattan. But I think what actually drove St. Nicholas to a revival was that from the 1780s, say, the revolution and the creation of commercial products meant that gift-giving as a custom began to acquire fresh momentum. Prior to that, it seems to me, it had been the local exchange of handmade gifts. And suddenly objects were flooding in from Europe, particularly toys, and this meant that commercial, canny interests in Manhattan began to realize that St. Nicholas was a figure which could lead this transformation in the significance and importance of gift-giving.

MONTAGNE: That is definitely, though, the beginning of his slide towards advertising Coca-Cola.

Mr. SEAL: Slide. I mean, yes, I think it is a slide. There is a wonderful 1840s woodcut which shows him holding a bag over his shoulder and he’s going down a chimney, and on the bag a local shop in Albany, New York, has actually written on the bag, `All those toys are from Pieces at number 50 Broadway.’ So that’s the first kind of endorsement that he carries, even in the 1840s. Having said that, he hangs on. He still means something very, very important. And it seems to me actually that all he needs to do is he needs to remember what St. Nicholas is and was known for, i.e., this defining act of charity.

So the mythical Santa keeps calling us back to charity and generosity. Even with the yearly stories about shoving matches for the next Beanie Baby, the guy in the red suit won’t let us forget that undergirding the holiday economy is love and connection through giving. Somehow, this mythical figure compels us in ways more powerful than any social force I am aware of. Can you imagine the federal government somehow trying to use a command and control system to make the Yuletide work? Of course, that’s ridiculous for all kinds of reasons. So, why is it any different when the context changes to ecosystem restoration?

Some of my colleagues and friends remain skeptical about the wisdom of trying to use markets to restore the quality of environmental assets. I tend not to share their concerns in so far as they relate to economic theory. However, I know that some feel that the privatization of nature is, well, sort of crass, because for many, nature has a deep personal, and for some, spiritual meaning. On this point, I get it, and to some degree, concur.

This is why I have begun to ponder the possibility that it will not be enough to just focus on the mechanical aspects of the construction of bioregional markets to restore keystone environmental assets. Just as Santa Claus guides the Christmas economy, so might the watershed marketplaces of the future need to consider the creation of the mythical river, or bay, or mountain range. Creation of a mythical Chesapeake Bay, for instance, may make some folks nervous, as a mythical forest or mountain could mean worship of nature, perhaps a slippery slope to pantheism. If Santa can avoid this pitfall in the most holy of times in the Christian calendar, surely we humans can devise a way to do the same for our most treasured natural communities.

I have to admit,  however, I don’t know how to do this, or if it is even possible. I do know that our most treasured natural assets are infinitely more than their component plants, animals, soil, and bedrock.

In this spirit-filled time of the year, the Board of Conserv and I wish all of our friends, colleagues, supporters, and sponsors the joys of fellowship. We are very, very excited about the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead in this new decade.

Thanks to the St. Nicholas Center for the use of these images.

Happy Holidays!

- Michael Collins