Join us for a discussion on conservation easements and how they can be used as a tool to permanently protect your land. During this webinar, ACT staff will provide an introduction to conservation easements, discuss the benefits of placing an easement on your property, and highlight how easements are protecting private land across North Central Florida.
OUR SPEAKERS
Erica Hernandez joined ACT in spring of 2019 as the Statewide Land Acquisition Specialist after spending a year camping across the western U.S. and Canada. Erica has spent her career researching flora and fauna across the state of Florida and earned her master’s in Interdisciplinary Ecology from the H.T. Odum Center for Wetlands at the University of Florida. From deep interior swamps and estuarine ecosystems to sandhill and rare communities like Florida dry prairie, Erica loves to be neck deep in mud or crawling around saw palmetto looking at Florida’s rich ecological heritage. Erica has been a public servant for state agencies and public universities for over 20 years, often collaborating on complex projects requiring large stakeholder participation. She has published reports and peer reviewed literature studying wetland restoration and loves analyzing long term data sets to understand how natural communities respond to disturbance and applying these insights to management planning. When not daydreaming about science, Erica can be found foraging for wild fruit or blacksmithing.
Melissa Hill is a lifelong Florida resident and has been involved with ACT since 2014. She graduated from the University of Florida with a master’s in Interdisciplinary Ecology from the School of Natural Resources and Environment and a certificate in Environmental Education and Communication. From 2016-2018 she collaborated on an ACT pilot project to understanding the biophysical and social intersections needed for conservation easements on the coast to protect sea turtle nesting. The following year she served as ACT’s Community Outreach Coordinator. Since August 2019, she has served as the land acquisition specialist and project coordinator for the Santa Fe River Basin watershed where she manages a regional partnership and executes conservation easements and land acquisition deals. On an off day she can be found catching a sunrise or out paddling.
WHEN
Tuesday, November 10
6:00 PM to 7:30 PM
WHERE
This is an online event with both audio and visual components. We recommend viewing the event online to access all visual components of the presentation.
Online access information will be provided upon registration. Only one person per household needs to register unless you will be using separate devices to access the webinar.
FOR MORE INFORMATION & REGISTRATION
Registration is required for this free event. Click on the button below to register.
Contact Alachua Conservation Trust by phone: (352) 373-1078 or email: info@AlachuaConservationTrust.org with any questions.
Banner image by Kim Davidson.
