EcoGreen Group of Silicon Valley

Agenda:
8:00 a.m. Open networking
8:15 a.m. Meeting will start
8:30 a.m. Presentation

~~~~~~~ Presentation ~~~~~~~~
Finding the Balance: Initiatives in Snowpack Monitoring for Increased Water Security
by Andrew Schwartz, PhD,
Director of the Central Sierra Snow Laboratory, UC Berkeley
https://cssl.berkeley.edu/

Increased interannual variability in Snow Water Equivalent and mid-season ablation periods have motivated transitions away from basic statistical modeling methods for water availability and flow forecasts to more comprehensive physical modeling techniques. These models, such as iSnobal or WRF-Hydro, use data assimilated from in-situ and remote sensing data sources from entities such as the USDA NRCS SNOTEL program and Airborne Snow Observatory to develop more precise forecasts. However, physical model performance relies heavily on the quality of the data being assimilated. As such, a renewed emphasis on comprehensive and precise measurement of snowpack and atmospheric conditions has emerged with the development of these models for operation.

In this presentation, gaps and deficiencies in snowpack monitoring pertaining to mass and energy balance will be highlighted. Initiatives that have been developed at the UC Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Laboratory (CSSL) to address these gaps will also be discussed.

Bio:
Dr. Andrew Schwartz is the Director of the University of California, Berkeley Central Sierra Snow Laboratory. His interests include developing a better understanding of snowfall and snowpack physical processes, the impact of climate change on hydrological processes, and improved measurement of the environment. He is passionate about developing research that can be quickly and efficiently included in operations and policy decisions.

Dr. Schwartz grew up in Denver, Colorado fascinated by severe weather and the large snowstorms that came from upslope wind events. He became particularly interested in snow and winter weather while snowboarding in the Colorado Rockies. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Meteorology from Metropolitan State University of Denver and began work as an Associate Scientist working on winter weather at the National Center for Atmospheric Research shortly after. He completed his PhD in Atmospheric Science from the University of Queensland, Australia in 2021 where his research focused on the impacts of wildfire burn scars on snowfall and snowpack processes.
Dr. Schwartz prioritizes science communication and transparency and enjoys discussing the lab’s work and weather conditions with the broader community.
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EcoGreen Group is a special interest group under CSix. (https://csix.org/)
EcoGreen Group’s mission is two-fold:
1)To create professional and entrepreneurial opportunities in sustainability and clean technologies
2)To disseminate information that promotes the well-being of People and Planet.

The EcoGreen Group fulfills this mission through our
• social media,
• volunteer opportunities
• member projects,
• biweekly meetings
for raising awareness, education & networking

Would you like to volunteer to give a presentation, or suggest a recorded presentation on a sustainability topic? Would you like an attentive audience to practice your job interview presentation? Please contact: info@ecogg.org

Agenda:
8:00 a.m. Open networking
8:15 a.m. Meeting will start
8:30 a.m. Presentation

~~~~~ Presentation ~~~~~~
Permaculture and Water Management
Videos by Andrew Millison
instructor, Department of Horticulture at Oregon State University

In " 7 Ways this farm harvests FREE water", we shall travel to Tabula Rasa in Oregon that has installed an extensive series of masterfully built ponds that have renewed the water supply in a dry valley.

In "How Hawaiian Rebels are Rebuilding an Ancient Food Paradise", we shall learn about an epic restoration of the Hawaiian Ahupua'a, the traditional watershed-scale food system of the Hawaiian people.

Next, in "How an Abandoned Village was Reborn in the Spanish Desert",
we shall go to Southern Spain to visit the restored village of La Junquera and the world's first Ecosystem Restoration Community, Camp Altiplano. We meet the movement's founder, John D Liu, and examine the destructive effects of industrial monoculture almond orchards and the innovative agroforestry systems being developed in this high arid plateau.

Then in "Inside Africa's Food Forest Mega-Project", we shall follow Andrew as he journeys with the UN World Food Programme to the country of Niger in the African Sahel, to see an innovative land recovery project within the Great Green Wall of Africa that is harvesting rainwater, increasing food security, and rehabilitating the ecosystem.

About the presenter:
Andrew Millison has been studying, designing, building, and teaching about Permaculture systems since 1996 and is an instructor in the Department of Horticulture at Oregon State University. He instructs Advanced Permaculture Courses in Teaching, and has guest instructed for many Permaculture courses throughout the Western US....