Keynote: Harnessing the Power of GIS for Bird Conservation

Speaker: Melanie Smith, Program Director, National Audubon Society

Summary: Conservation of landscapes and wildlife populations is inherently spatial, putting GIS practitioners in a key role for informing planning and policy through data and maps. Melanie Smith is a geographer and wildlife ecologist who led the development of the recently released Bird Migration Explorer by the Audubon Society and nine leading organizations in ornithology, technology, and conservation. This new tool maps out the migration patterns, place-to-place connections, and conservation challenges for over 450 species across the Americas. Melanie will talk about building the Bird Migration Explorer, the variety of roles played by GIS specialists to produce this interactive digital product, and its applications for public engagement and bird conservation.