Science Café
October 6 @ 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm CDT
Why Are Oaks Losing Ground? The Role of Fire in Their Persistence
Once common across much of the central and eastern United States, open oak woodlands are disappearing as forests become denser and shadier.
In this Science Café, Dr. Alexander examines the important relationship between oaks and fire, how decades of fire exclusion have changed our forests, and what can be done to restore these iconic ecosystems. Learn why oaks matter, what is causing their decline, and how fire may be part of the solution.
Dr. Heather Alexander is a professor of forest and fire ecology and the Dwain G. Luce Endowed Professor of Forestry at Auburn University. She teaches courses in forest ecology and fire management and studies how changing fire patterns affect forests. For more than 20 years, her research has focused on the effects of fire on eastern U.S. forests, and for over a decade, she has studied wildfire impacts in Alaska and Siberia. She has published more than 90 scientific papers, mentored over 30 graduate students, and recently received the Distinguished Leader Award from the International Association of Fire Ecology.
Tickets for this Nature Zen Month Special Edition of Science Café are $30. Proceeds will benefit Overton Park Conservancy’s year round free and accessible environmental education programming.
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Overton Park Conservancy is the nonprofit organization that has been caring for Memphis’s central green space since 2012. With the generous support of our community, we work each day to make the park a beautiful and welcoming place for all Memphians, as well as a valuable source of urban habitat for wildlife.
The Conservancy must raise roughly 85% of our budget each year from people like you who care about the many things Overton Park has to offer. A gift of any amount helps us maintain and improve the park.
