Free 1 Hour Virtual Workshop! Thurs, Jan 22 at 12pm PST

In partnership with the Columbia Mountains Institute of Applied Ecology (CMI), Kootenay Conservation Program (KCP) presents their Annual Winter Webinar Series on the theme of Lessons for the next chapter of Restoration & Stewardship in the Columbia Basin.

The Crown of the Continent surrounds the convergence of British Columbia, Alberta, and Montana, with headwaters for rivers that flow to the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic Oceans. Cottonwoods are riparian poplar trees, and the Crown provides a global center of their biodiversity, with four species and their hybrids. Stewart will introduce their ecology and adaptations and describe successful restoration applications that have delivered environmental flows from regional dams.

Facilitator

• Stewart Rood has been a Professor of Environmental Science at the University of Lethbridge for four decades, following studies at the Universities of Alberta, Calgary, and Toronto, and fellowships in England and Norway. His research focuses on riparian ecosystems, with analyses of woodland ecology and river hydrology. He has worked with agencies across western North America that own and operate dams, to provide functional flows that balance environmental conservation and economic outcomes.
  Stewart is also an avid river kayaker, and his wife Dianne will tell you that he studies cottonwoods as an excuse to go paddling.

This year’s webinar series is designed to honour the legacy and capture the extensive knowledge of senior restoration and stewardship professionals in the Columbia Basin. As many of these experts approach retirement, this series provides a timely platform for intergenerational knowledge exchange—ensuring that decades of applied research, field experience, and collaborative learning are effectively transferred to the next generation. Presenters will reflect on key lessons from their careers in ecological restoration, land stewardship, and ecosystem monitoring, emphasizing important insights that can and should inform future restoration efforts.

As we explore these stories, we recognize and honour Indigenous peoples as the original and enduring stewards of these lands, and reflect on how Indigenous values, knowledge, and practices can be meaningfully integrated into current and future restoration planning and implementation. By fostering this continuity, the series supports the long-term resilience of conservation efforts in the Kootenays—a region of exceptional biodiversity increasingly affected by climate change and human disturbance

Register Here

Stewart Rood, PhD, Professor of Environmental Science, University of Lethbridge