Making Connections at the Student-Professional Networking Event

Hundreds of students and wildlife professionals came together Monday night at the Student-Professional Networking Event at The Wildlife Society’s 2015 Annual Conference in Winnipeg.

“I’m here to see what everyone is working on, and to see how I fit into the equation,” said Shelby Peterson, an undergraduate student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Also at the event, dozens of exhibitor booths were crowded with students and professionals checking out everything from information on Wildlife Services to trapping equipment and high-tech drones.

The event kicked off with the announcement of several awards, including TWS student chapter of the year, which went toTexas A&M-Kingsville for the fifth time. “Long hours and great people make things happen,” said chapter president Aidan Flores.

Nova Silvy, 2013 recipient of the Aldo Leopold Award, won the Wildlife Education Award, but joked that his graduate students “do all the work and I just get the credit.”