©Danielle Munzing
News
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Our Fall 2019 newsletter is ready! Download a copy and enjoy! |
News Archive
To keep our members up to speed with goings-on in our chapter, we generally produce two newsletters every year, in spring and fall. The timing of the spring newsletter varies, depending on the timing of our annual meeting. The fall newsletter is typically available in mid-November or early December. Please check back regularly for updates!
2019 Newsletters
2018 Newsletters
2017 Newsletters
2016 Newsletters
2015 Newsletters
2014 Newsletters
2013 Newsletters
To view newsletters from prior to 2013 visit the WATWS Google Drive account.
Washington Chapter History
To view the 25- Year History of The Washington Chapter of The Wildlife Society, 1966 – 1991 by E. Reade Brown and C. Fred Martinsen click here.
Exciting News! WA is the 2014 Chapter of the Year!!
The Washington Chapter of The Wildlife Society was notified in June 2014 that it was selected for the 2014 Chapter of the Year Award bestowed annually by The Wildlife Society nationally!!
The formal announcement and presentation of the Award occurred during the Award Ceremony on Sunday, October 26, 2014 during the 21st Annual Conference of The Wildlife Society in Pittsburgh, PA. Harriet Allen, Blake Murden, and Bruce Thompson were present to accept the Award on behalf of the Chapter.
See the link below for more detailed information on this prestigious award here.
This is a tremendous honor to be selected from among the TWS Chapters for this recognition. The award recognizes accomplishments in promoting professional standards, enhancing knowledge and capabilities of professionals, encouraging and promoting resource stewardship and TWS goals, advocating sound information in wildlife policy decisions, increasing public awareness and appreciation of wildlife and the profession, and ensuring financial stability and growth of the Chapter. Highlights of Chapter accomplishments considered in the selection included:
- Professional Interaction Opportunities – organized the 2014 Joint Annual Meeting in cooperation with 4 other partners to enhance opportunities for broader technical content around a theme of “Enhancing Conservation Program Delivery Among Agricultural and Other Natural Resource Interests”. That partnership yielded a program including the 4th International Burrowing Owl Symposium, Raptors of the Northwest Symposium, special sessions of the Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology, and a special conservation communication workshop conducted by Northwest Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation. There were 10 other workshops conducted as part of the Joint Meeting.
- Enhanced Communication – established a Chapter social media contact, migrated the Chapter webpage away from Joomla, and successfully launched a Facebook page through our social media contact that has done an exceptional job keeping information updated and exciting.
- Student Benefits – encouraged students throughout the state through invitations and incentives to participate as committee members and attendees at the annual meeting, including a Student Mentoring Session, providing free lodging for up to 16 students, including free lunches and reduced registration costs, involving students as volunteers for staffing key functions during Chapter meetings, and providing 2 research and education grants totaling $4,500.
- Professional Development – established annual meeting components sufficient to provide 36.5 contact hours for the TWS Professional Development Program.
- Professional Engagement – prepared a statement for administrators with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife that encouraged about 300 staff to pursue leadership opportunities by participating in activities of professional organizations like The Wildlife Society.
- Partnerships – engaged in extensive partnering during most of 2013 and early 2014 to plan, coordinate, and conduct a Joint meeting with Society for Northwestern Vertebrate Biology, Northwest Partners in Amphibian and Reptile Conservation, the Global Owl Project, and Researchers Implementing Conservation Action. This partnership, the Steering Team, and 16 associated committees included members from state and federal natural resource agencies, conservation NGOs, tribal interests, educators, conservation districts, landowners, and lay practitioners. The product was a 5-day technical forum comprised of workshops, technical sessions, poster presentations, and field trips involving nearly 270 attendees from 14 States and 4 Canadian provinces.
- Information and Outreach – published 2 detailed and broadly informative Chapter Newsletters to inform members on an array of topics and perspectives from 5 regional representatives throughout Washington.
- Special Recognition – expanded Awards and Recognition during 2013 from 2 categories to 8 categories. The expansion provided opportunities for new recognition categories that include: Conservation Award, Stewardship Award, Partnership Award, Foresight Award, Outreach Award, and a Chapter Award.
- Recruiting Diversity – encouraged student participation and added a special component to meeting registration to provide financial incentives for new professionals (employed less than 3 years). These efforts yielded dividends with 58 students and 22 new professionals registered for the most-recent annual meeting. Overall participation in the meeting included 122 (45.2% of registrants) women attendees and at least 6 attendees with tribal affiliations.
- Financial Responsibility – Demonstrated long-standing fiscal solvency and healthy financial reserves for Chapter business exceeding $45,000.
Thanks to all Chapter members who worked to make those accomplishments possible and, in doing so, contributed to this recognition.