Mark Hostetler, professor of wildlife ecology and conservation at the University of Florida, will speak at Luther College as part of the Biology Colloquium series at 9:40 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 15, in Valders Hall of Science Room 206. This event is open to the public with no charge for admission.
Hostetler's talk, "The Green Leap: Opportunities to Conserve Biodiversity in Cities," focuses on the opportunities that exist to conserve biodiversity when land is developed. He will provide a framework, tools and examples that help cities to adopt conservation design and management strategies. In particular, he will talk about an online planning evaluation tool called "Building for Birds." This tool allows decision makers to manipulate amounts of forest fragments, both urban and rural, and tree canopy in residential areas to help determine best designs for conserving bird habitats.
With more than 20 years of experience in urban wildlife and green development issues, Hostetler conducts research and outreach on how urban landscapes could be designed and managed, from small to large-scale, in order to conserve biodiversity. Partnering with policy makers, city and county planners, environmental consultants and developers, he leads efforts to establish model communities that incorporate conservation design and management strategies that enhance biodiversity and minimize development impacts on nearby natural areas.
Hostetler co-founded the University of Florida's Program for Resource Efficient Communities and collaborates with an interdisciplinary team of scientists and graduate students to foster green development projects nationally and internationally. He serves on the advisory board of URBIO, a scientific network for education and research that promotes urban biodiversity across the globe.
The author of "The Green Leap: Conserving Biodiversity in Subdivision Development," Hoestetler has produced and directed the award-winning TV series "Living Green." He regularly contributes to several online blogs regarding urban biodiversity conservation and green development, including The Nature of Cities.
Hostetler has a bachelor of science in biology from Purdue University and a Master of Science and Ph.D. of zoology, both from University of Florida.
A national liberal arts college with an enrollment of 2,005, Luther offers an academic curriculum that leads to the Bachelor of Arts degree in more than 60 majors and pre-professional programs. For more information about Luther visit the college's website: http://www.luther.edu.
