‘Stewardship Challenges in Penn’s Woods’

Drew Gilchrist, a representative from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, will visit Delaware Valley University on Tuesday, Oct. 31 to speak about protecting wildlife habitats. The seminar, “Stewardship Challenges in Penn’s Woods,” will be held in the Life Sciences Building auditorium from 6 to 7:30 p.m. There is no charge to attend and the event is open to the community. The event is being sponsored by the One Health series and the Department of Landscape Architecture and Environmental Sciences.

“In an increasingly developed world, our remaining forests and naturalized areas are being challenged to provide quality wildlife habitats and continued environmental services, such as clean water, fresh air, and protection from extreme weather,” said Reg Hoyt, co-chair of the animal biotechnology and conservation department at DelVal and chair of the One Health group. “Among the major stewardship challenges facing the health of our natural areas are; invasive plants and insects, forest fragmentation, changes in water quality and quantity and the negative impact of large populations of white-tailed deer. This presentation will break down each of these topics and suggest pragmatic steps we can take to maintain the health of our natural lands.”

Gilchrist is a regional advisor for the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. He currently provides grant funding and technical assistance services to help communities, nonprofits, and citizens with recreation, conservation and natural resource related projects and management issues. Before joining DCNR, he worked for the Natural Lands Trust where he was the regional director of land protection. Gilchrist earned his bachelor’s in geography with an emphasis in natural resource management from Penn State and attended the University of Wyoming’s master’s program in natural resource management.