3 Day Training Course (August 19-21, 2011)

Mangrove Forest Ecology, Management and Restoration
Instructors: Roy R. “Robin” Lewis III & Jorge A. Herrera-Silveira
Languages: English & Spanish
Cost: $350

The three day training course includes an introduction to mangrove forest ecology, management options and problems, and restoration design issues. There is a total of 24 contact hours for the course and each participant will receive a certificate of completion. A digital copy of the classroom program in .pdf format, along with additional materials including monitoring reports, will be given to each of the participants. Case studies of successful and failed mangrove restoration projects from around the world will be discussed and analyzed. The emphasis of the course is on cost- effective mangrove management and Ecological Mangrove Restoration (EMR) methods for successful restoration. Participants are invited to bring pending project designs or case studies already in implementation for professional review and critique. The second day of the course will include field trips to several mangrove restoration sites just north of Merida. Potential participants may review typical course materials at www.mangroverestoration.com

1 Day Training Courses (August 20 & 21, 2011)

Saturday, August 20, 2011

The Use of Mycorrhizas in Ecosystem Restoration
Instructor: Marcela Pagano
Language: English & Spanish
Cost: $125

The objective of this course is to introduce and familiarize the audience in the world of mycorrhizas, fungi that colonize roots of most agricultural and terrestrial plants, but also of some aquatic plants, being organisms of extreme importance in ecological restoration. Relevant findings will be emphasized (theoretical and practical approaches), such as inoculation of AM fungi, their identification, methods for their evaluation, as well as recent challenges. Additionally, case studies of agroforestry, and natural environments restoration (riparian, highland fields and dry forest) from Brazil will be presented and illustrated. The benefits and problems of the use of AM in restoration will be discussed, in order to highlight the importance of germplasm banks of AM, the relationship of AM with soil characteristics, especially organic matter and glomalin contents. Research directions that are needed to increase the understanding and the potential use of AM, for regeneration in habitats subjected to disturbance, and, consequently, the wise management of ecosystem goods and services, which can prevent a deepening of poverty, will be discussed. For more information, click here

Basis for projecting the Soil Bioengieering in ecological restoration
Instructors: Paola Sangalli & Pilar Barraqueta Egea
Language: English & Spanish
Cost: $125

The Soil Bioengineering is a technical discipline – in which living plants are used as construction items, alone or combined with inert materials (stone, wood, metal …) in restoration and rehabilitation processes. It pursues technological, ecological, economic as well as design goals. The fields of application are very different, including the restoration of the natural environment of extractive activities (mining, quarrying …), infrastructure (motorways, railways…) riverbeds, dunes and coastal areas, and urban areas. The techniques are nowadays employed in Central European countries (Switzerland, Austria, Germany, and Northern Italy) and begin to be used more widely in North America and in the Mediterranean area. Although these techniques have a potential application in other latitudes, there is still a deficit in knowledge and training of technicians and professionals, both in projects and in the implementation. For more information, click here

Sunday, August 21, 2011

Natural Processes for the Restoration of Drastically Disturbed Sites
Instructor: David Polster
Language: English
Cost: $125

Natural processes have been “restoring” natural disturbances since the beginning of terrestrial vegetation on the earth about 400 million years ago.  Natural systems have developed to address all of the problems associated with un-vegetated sites.  Bare rock is colonized by lichens while shifting sands are revegetated with stout rhizomatous grasses and mat-forming woody species.  Understanding how these natural processes that have evolved over millions of years operate, allows us to use these processes to solve some of the toughest reclamation challenges facing us.  This workshop will provide participants with a new way of looking at the restoration of challenging sites.  By taking clues from how natural systems restore analogous natural disturbances we can design restoration programs to re-integrate human disturbances with the natural successional trajectories that lead to effective ecological restoration of our most severely disturbed sites. For more information, click here

Principles of Ecological Restoration and Their Application
Instructor: Andre Clewell
Language: English
Cost: $125

The workshop identifies the principles of ecological restoration. The application of these principles will be demonstrated by examples from actual restoration projects. The workshop begins with an overview on how various human values are fulfilled through ecological restoration. These include ecological values, socioeconomic values, cultural values, and personal values. Then the ecological attributes are identified that we want to achieve in a restoration project. These include biophysical attributes, the re-initiation of ecosystem function, and the emergent attributes of resilience and sustainability. The selection of an appropriate target ecosystem for restoration will be addressed with respect to restoration under changing environmental conditions. The reasons will be identified on why it is important to return an impaired ecosystem to its historical trajectory of ecological development, and not necessarily to its former state. Steps in the preparation of a reference model on which restoration plans are based will be presented. Strategies for conducting a restoration project will be introduced and evaluated with respect to the intensity of effort needed to attain restoration goals. The critical roles of stakeholders and the local community will be emphasized in all aspects of project work. The ways that SER can assist you in your project work will be identified.