Willamette Valley Oak and Prairie Summit packed the halls of ODFW headquarters on Nov. 25!

The Willamette Valley Oak and Prairie Cooperative hosted its first ever Oak and Prairie Summit on November 25! Over 180 people registered for this event, which brought together experts, researchers, and practitioners dedicated to the conservation and restoration of oak and prairie ecosystems in the Willamette Valley. The agenda included insightful panels, featured talks, and flash talks covering a wide range of topics such as oak habitat conservation, wildfire risk mitigation, and the impact of invasive species. Additionally, breakout group discussions provided a platform for collaborative dialogue on critical issues like climate adaptation, prescribed fire, and private landowner engagement. Conference proceedings for the event can be found here.

Thanks to Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife for hosting the event, the Oregon Department of Forestry and the Long Tom Watershed Council for funding lunch, the City of Eugene for snacks and coffee, Lauren Grand at OSU Extension for running registration and website, the event planning committee (Michael Ahr, Lauren Grand, McKenna Armantrout, and myself), the WVOPC steering committee for supporting the vision and content of the conference, and all of our wonderful presenters and facilitators during the event!

We were extremely impressed with the engagement at this event and hope to run it again in the future!