RECENT ANS ANNOUNCEMENTS

None this week.

UPCOMING MEETINGS

UPCOMING WEBINARS

NAISMA Monthly Webinars:

May 18, 2022 @ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm CDT - Using Community Based Social Marketing to Prevent the Spread of Invasive Species

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) continues to integrate community-based social marketing (CBSM) into statewide aquatic invasive species invasive species
An invasive species is any plant or animal that has spread or been introduced into a new area where they are, or could, cause harm to the environment, economy, or human, animal, or plant health. Their unwelcome presence can destroy ecosystems and cost millions of dollars.

Learn more about invasive species (AIS) prevention programming. CBSM is a social science approach to foster sustainable, environmentally beneficial behaviors and provides a step-by-step approach for assessing risks and identifying opportunities for long-term change. The DNR followed CBSM steps to better understand stakeholder knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, barriers, motivators, and communication preferences specific to activities they participate in and the AIS prevention actions we need them to adopt. R

June 15, 2022 @ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm CDT  -  Spotted Lanternfly Ecology and Biocontrol Efforts

July 20, 2022 @ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm CDT - “Jumping Worms:” What We Know Now

August 17, 2022 @ 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm CDT - How to Get Your Project Funded

EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES

None this week.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

Preventing the Introduction and Spread of Invasive through Strategic Landscape-Level Approaches

Using appropriations to the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (Public Law 117-58, also referred to as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Bipartisan Infrastructure Law
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) is a once-in-a-generation investment in the nation’s infrastructure and economic competitiveness. We were directly appropriated $455 million over five years in BIL funds for programs related to the President’s America the Beautiful initiative.

Learn more about Bipartisan Infrastructure Law ), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), in collaboration with other U.S. Department of the Interior bureaus, is providing grants to support implementation of measures that prevent the introduction or spread of invasive species.    Proposals are requested that advance strategic, ecologically-based, landscape-level prevention measures. Landscape-level approaches are those that bring together multiple geographies, sectors, and stakeholders to protect and conserve natural resources on a larger scale.  Total funding available is $1,852,550. The USFWS anticipates funding one to four projects, ranging between $200,000 and $1,852,550. Proposals are due June 22, 2022. The anticipated award date is August 2022.   Additional details can be found in the Notice of Funding Opportunity on grants.gov, Number F22AS00320.    Please direct questions to Susan Pasko, Division of Fish and Aquatic Conservation, USFWS HQ, 703-358-2466, susan_pasko@fws.gov. 

America the Beautiful Challenge 2022

NFWF Request for Proposals for the America the Beautiful Challenge 2022: The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation has released the 2022 Request for Proposals for the Biden-Harris Administration's America the Beautiful Challenge, which will leverage Federal conservation and restoration investments with private and philanthropic contributions to accelerate land, water, and wildlife conservation efforts across the country. This year, NFWF expects to award up to $85 million in grants to support locally led ecosystem restoration projects that invest in watershed restoration, resilience, equitable access, workforce development, corridors and connectivity, and collaborative conservation, consistent with the America the Beautiful Initiative. The historic Bipartisan Infrastructure Law is a major source of the initial Federal investments for the America the Beautiful Challenge. In addition, 24 philanthropic organizations, which currently invest $250 million annually to address our country’s biodiversity and climate crises, have committed to align their organizations’ funding with the principles of the America the Beautiful Initiative and to support the new public-private partnership in expanding investment in conservation.

RECOMMENDED READING

Human Foot Traffic and the Associated Spread of Invasive Species

Milne, A., & White, J. (2022, May). Human Foot Traffic and the Associated Spread of Invasive Species. In Inquiry@ Queen's Undergraduate Research Conference Proceedings (Vol. 16).

Transformative learning in graduate global change education drives conceptual shift in invasive species co-management and collaboration

Haak, D. C., Salom, S., Barney, J. N., Schenk, T., Lakoba, V. T., Brooks, R. K., ... & Sharma, G. (2022). Transformative learning in graduate global change education drives conceptual shift in invasive species co-management and collaboration. Environmental Education Research, 1-19.

ANS IN THE NEWS…      

We must remain vigilant with invasive species

May 8, 2022. As British Columbians, we all value the province’s rich, diverse wildlife and marine habitats, and recognize that invasive species are a major threat to our natural ecosystems and infrastructure. We rely on resilient land and water habitats, free from invasive species, for food, livelihoods, cultural purposes and much more.

American turtle threatens SA biodiversity – but our tough-cookie snakes could rattle an invasion

May 8, 2022.  The red-eared slider is already finding a comfy home in South Africa, posing a threat to endemic wildlife. Rattlesnakes and the like, on the other hand, are likely to meet more aggressive resistance.

Invasive Fish Found In Hudson River! Catch It, Kill It, Leave It On Land!

May 8, 2022. There are a variety of creatures that have made their way to New York and they don't belong here! Invasive bugs, worms and fish to name a few. There is one fish that was recently found in the Hudson River Near Poughkeepsie and if you happen to catch one, kill it and leave it on land.

New West Centre to explore “aquatic invaders” of the Fraser River

May 8, 2022. Ruby Banwait, community science lead at the Invasive Species Council of B.C., is the featured speaker at Fraser River Discovery Centre’s upcoming Faces of the Fraser event: Aces of the Fraser – Aquatic Invaders.

Invasive species are transforming coastal estuaries

May 7, 2022. A new study led by the University of California, Davis has found that native species in California’s estuaries are predicted to experience greater decline, due to an interaction of invasive species with climate change climate change
Climate change includes both global warming driven by human-induced emissions of greenhouse gases and the resulting large-scale shifts in weather patterns. Though there have been previous periods of climatic change, since the mid-20th century humans have had an unprecedented impact on Earth's climate system and caused change on a global scale.

Learn more about climate change .

Ministers’ statement on Invasive Species Action Month

May 6, 2022. Josie Osborne, Minister of Land, Water and Resource Stewardship, and Katrine Conroy, Minister of Forests, have released the following joint statement during Invasive Species Action Month:

The cost of invasive species bears heavy on Indian economy: study

May 5, 2022. India has lost $127.3 billion (Rs. 8.3 trillion) in the last 60 years to invasive alien species, making the South Asian nation the second most invasion-cost bearing country after the United States, a study has said.

Removing alien plants can save water: we measured how much

May 4, 2022. One of the things that contributes to ecosystem degradation in South Africa is invasion by alien plants. This is estimated to cost the nation R6.5 billion annually in damages and the government spends over R400 million annually clearing alien trees.

Citizen Scientist opportunity to report invasive phragmites

May 4, 2022. Friends of the Salmon River is offering a citizen scientist opportunity to report sightings of invasive phragmites.

Tiny, slow-moving, invasive snail multiplying quickly across Pa.

May 4, 2022. Whenever the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission looks for the non-native, invasive New Zealand mudsnail, it finds them in more and more waters across the state.

Toughness has limits: over 1,100 species live in Antarctica – but they’re at risk from human activity

May 3, 2022. It’s hard to survive in bitterly cold Antarctica. But the ice continent is home to more than 1,100 species who have adapted to life on land and in its lakes… This approach aided conservation, by restricting entry and limiting what people can do, safeguarding biodiversity from issues such as wildlife disturbance, pollution, and introduction of invasive species.

'Unwanted Dead or Alive' Draft Series to Raise Awareness about Aquatic Invasive Species

May 3, 2022. Four locally brewed beers themed to aquatic invasive species (AIS) will be introduced during a special event this weekend, according to Pennsylvania Sea Grant and Penn State Behrend.