General Information
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Soil and Water Conservation Society 2003 Annual Conference July 26-30, 2003 at the Spokane Convention Center, Spokane, Washington Theme: "The Columbia, Conserving a Legacy of Life" For information contact: Nancy Herselius at |
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Spokane, Washington is the setting for the 2003 annual conference of the Soil and Water Conservation Society. Spokane is a spirited community nestled in the midst of a natural wonderland of forests, lakes and mountains. It is a place where hospitality blends with the modern conveniences of a vibrant, progressive metropolitan area. The heart of Spokane is the Spokane River, where spectacular falls and scenic beauty sit next door to a modern convention center and downtown retail core. Spokane is Washington’s second largest city and the largest metropolitan area between Seattle and Minneapolis. Retail shops abound in Spokane’s convenient skywalk system, only a few blocks from the convention center and hotels. Major retail stores, boutiques, restaurants and cafes are all connected one story above street level. River Park Square is Spokane’s newest gathering place. This shopping and entertainment complex houses a 20-screen movie theater, several premier stores and several specialty restaurants. Spokane has all the amenities of a large city without big city hassles. The downtown area is a blend of turn-of-the-century renovated buildings, modern architecture and tree-lined streets. Visitors love the convenience, the safety and the beauty of the city. The theme for the annual conference is “The Columbia: Conserving a Legacy of Life.” The theme will unfold in the plenary and concurrent sessions, as well as the technical tours. The program will focus on four areas:
USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service Chief, Bruce Knight, will speak to registrants during the opening plenary session of the 2003 Soil and Water Conservation Society’s annual conference in Spokane, Washington. This session is scheduled for Monday, July 28, 8:00 a.m. Chief Knight will speak to the 2002 Farm Bill and other current issues. A few minutes will be given for questions from the audience. Immediately following Chief Knight’s presentation will be the Pritchard Lecture. Rob Caughlan will speak on past administrations conservation efforts and his analysis of what the future holds. The topic for presentation at the first plenary on Monday morning, July 28 is planned to deal with world water shortages and what this means for development and economics. The Monday afternoon and Wednesday morning plenaries will be in a “news hour” format that was popular in Indianapolis. The tentative topics are “market based incentives” and the “implication of water shortages.” Program committee members are hard at work coming up with controversial and entertaining panel members. Concurrent sessions will take place on Monday, July 28 as they have been in the past. A concurrent session has also been added on Wednesday morning, 8 – 10 a.m. The final plenary will take place immediately following the concurrent session and the conference finale will be the awards lunch. Several quality workshops are planned; information will be available on the Web site and in the preliminary program by mid- to late-February. CPESC and CPSWQ exam reviews are being held in Spokane. Both will take place on Sunday, July 27. The exams will be given on Tuesday, July 29. Those interested should register on the form provided with the preliminary program. Prospective exhibitors and poster presenters should check out what is planned for Spokane. Exhibits and posters will be set up Sunday morning, July 27. The area will be open to registrants Sunday from 1p.m. through the Welcome Reception (approximately 9 p.m.) and again on Monday, July 28, 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. Morning and afternoon breaks will take place in this room as well. And there is more! Two new happenings for the exhibit/poster area are an “attendee challenge” and a “combined book display.” The attendee challenge will involve each registrant receiving a card on which to gather initials from exhibitors. With the initials, qualified registrants will have a chance at prizes provided by the exhibitors. This innovation should bring quite a bit more foot traffic to the exhibit area. The combined book display will be set up in a booth in the exhibit hall. It will contain books and publications from various publishers as well as information on ordering. The Inland Empire Chapter has worked hard to organize technical tours, optional site-seeing tours and activities for the teens and youth. More information will be made available on these happenings in the next few weeks. Organizations, groups and/or committees are invited to hold meetings and/or receptions at our annual conference. Forms for these purposes can be obtained by contacting Nancy Herselius at 515-289-2331, extension 17 or nancyh@swcs.org. Contact Nancy Herselius, Member Services Coordinator, at 515-289-2331, extension 17 or nancyh@swcs.org for more information on the annual conference.Special note if you are calling the overflow hotel: After March 1, the West Coast Grand Hotel will begin using the name Red Lion. When calling for reservations, the Red Lion is correct. REGISTER NOW!!! PLAN ON GOING TO NEXT YEAR'S CONFERENCE! 2004 SWCS Annual Conference © Soil and Water Conservation Society |
