(BIVN) – The fourth and final workshop of the Western Governors’ Biosecurity and Invasive Species Initiative was held at the Fairmont Orchid on Monday, the day before the Western Governors’ Association 2018 Winter Meeting got underway.
The Initiative is the central policy effort of Hawaiʻi Governor David Ige during his year as Western Governors’ Association Chair. A series of panel discussions focused “on the impacts that nuisance species, pests and pathogens have on ecosystems, forests, rangelands, watersheds, and infrastructure in the West.”
The workshops, held in the Fairmont Orchid’s Promenade Ballroom, were livestreamed on YouTube. Some of them can be watched below.
Workshop: Little Red Fire Ants & Rapid Ohia Death Case Study. Panelists: Dr. Cas Vanderwoude – Research Manager, Hawaii Ant Lab; and Robert Hauff – State Protection Forester, Hawaii Department of Land and Natural Resources. Video by Western Governors’ Association, livestreamed on Dec. 10, 2018.
Workshop: Integrated Pest Management in Practice. Panelists: Matt Baur – Associate Director, Western Integrated Pest Management Center; David Smith – Administrator, Hawaii DLNR Division of Forestry and Wildlife; and Dr. Flint Hughes – Ecologist, U.S. Forest Service Institute of Pacific Island Forestry. Video by Western Governors’ Association, livestreamed on Dec. 10, 2018.
The WGA 2018 Winter Meeting will be held from December 11-13 at the Fairmont Orchid. According to the organizers:
Twelve Western Governors will take part in public conversations about significant issues facing the region at the event hosted by WGA Chair and Hawaii Gov. David Ige. The Governors will hear keynotes and have onstage conversations with Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue, Veterans Affairs Secretary Robert Wilkie, and Administrator Linda McMahon of the U.S. Small Business Administration.
Governors joining Gov. Ige include: WGA Vice Chair Doug Burgum (North Dakota), C.L. “Butch” Otter (Idaho), Steve Bullock (Montana), Brian Sandoval (Nevada), Mary Fallin (Oklahoma), Kate Brown (Oregon), Dennis Daugaard (South Dakota), Gary Herbert (Utah), Matt Mead (Wyoming), Lolo Matalasi Moliga (American Samoa), and Ralph Torres (Northern Mariana Islands).
Additional keynotes will be presented by Nainoa Thompson, President of the Polynesian Voyaging Society, and Henk Rogers of Blue Planet Energy. Public roundtable discussions will feature the Governors discussing issues such as renewable energy, the outdoor recreation economy, healthcare, and veterans’ employment issues.
by Big Island Video News
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STORY SUMMARY
KOHALA COAST, Hawaiʻi - The day before the Western Governors’ Association 2018 Winter Meeting, a workshop is held, focused on the impacts of invasive species, pests and pathogens.