Required reading prior to workshop Research Gaps/Strategy Documents Click here to access the Workshop presentations. Funding support provided by: BC Ministry of Forests and Range Forest Investment Account, Forest Science Program Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service Overview Program Registration Venue Contact Us The conference co-chairs would like to acknowledge the support of the members of the steering committee. Their contribution to the organization of this workshop is greatly appreciated.

THE MOUNTAIN PINE BEETLE EPIDEMIC and the FUTURE OF COMMUNITIES AND ECOSYSTEMS Research Synthesis and Strategy Workshop Series Co-hosted by: University of British Columbia: Vancouver, British Columbia Research Synthesis and Strategy Session (UBC Robson Square, downtown Vancouver): November 7th (8:30 am - 4:30 pm) Public Lecture (UBC Forest Sciences Centre, Room 1005): November 7th (6:00 - 9:00 pm) University of Northern British Columbia: Prince George, British Columbia Research Synthesis and Strategy Session (UNBC, Room 9-200): November 9th (4:30 - 8:45 pm) and 10th (8:30 am - 4:30 pm) Overview British Columbia is currently facing the largest mountain pine beetle (MPB) epidemic that Canada has ever seen. Aerial surveys of the province have shown the area infested by mountain pine beetle in BC has increased from 165,000 ha in 1999 to over seven million hectares in 2004. This outbreak is said to be the result of a multitude of factors including successive mild winters and an abundance of mature lodgepole pine stands. Concerns have also been raised regarding the projected decline in available timber supply on the future of the provincial economy and BC's resource-dependent communities in particular. The University of British Columbia (UBC) in Vancouver and the University of Northern British Columbia (UNBC) in Prince George are co-hosting two workshops and a public lecture series with video conferencing links that will bring together science providers and people affected directly or indirectly by the mountain pine beetle epidemic, including representatives from communities, First Nations, industry, academia, governments, and non-government organizations. The UBC events will consist of an evening public lecture and a daytime research synthesis and strategy session. The evening event for the general public will increase the public's awareness of the economic and community impacts of the current mountain pine beetle infestation in the province of British Columbia. The research synthesis and strategy sessions at UBC on November 7th and UNBC (evening of Nov. 9th and day of Nov. 10th) will be useful to researchers, community leaders, industry, First Nations, and Federal and Provincial government representatives involved in mountain pine beetle action planning. These sessions will continue the dialogue on defining what we currently know and what we still need to know about the impacts of the mountain pine beetle infestation on our environment, our economy, and our communities. This dialogue will be used to develop a proposed research agenda discussion paper which could be used to inform subsequent workshops and future research discussions. The objectives of the public lecture and research synthesis and strategy sessions will be met by: providing an update on what we know now based on a synthesis of current research; reviewing results of various knowledge gap and research needs identification processes underway; connecting people affected by the MPB epidemic to science providers, results to date, and research-agenda setting processes, to continuously improve research focus and effectiveness; elevating the public profile around mountain pine beetle research, and its existing and potential contribution to control and mitigation strategies.