CPC National Meeting 2022
CPC at Denver Botanic Gardens
Celebrating Conservation Milestones
May 4-6, 2022
We are delighted to announce that the 2022 CPC National Meeting will be our first-ever hybrid meeting, with both in-person and online presentation sessions highlighting the theme of “Celebrating Conservation Milestones.” In-person sessions will be held at the Denver Botanic Gardens which offers 50 gardens for you to explore, as well as the interactive Science Pyramid, Mordecai Children’s Garden, and collections of natural history, art, and library holdings. Meeting sessions will be held at the Freyer – Newman Center, the new home to DBG’s plant and fungi herbaria, art galleries, libraries, and research labs. In-person sessions will be live streamed and recorded for later viewing on the Whova conference platform used by the CPC National Office for our 2020 and 2021 virtual meetings. Virtual attendees will also have access to pre-recorded presentation content and virtual break out sessions. See below for registration offerings and more details.
Presentation sessions will include updates from the CPC National Office on network-wide initiatives, in addition to lightning talks from CPC network partners on plant conservation research, accomplishments, and challenges. We welcome Conservation Officers and Network Partners to submit abstracts for presentation sessions highlighting this year’s theme of “Celebrating Conservation Milestones.” We ask that our contributors consider presentation proposals that celebrate a long-term conservation story, an exciting achievement in a new conservation project, or topics that otherwise adhere to the theme.
Pre-meeting Field Trip
We are also thrilled to offer in-person attendees a pre-meeting field trip opportunity to tour the USDA-ARS National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation (NLGRP), which holds thousands of seeds, spores, and embryos from CPC’s National Collection of rare plants. Dr. Chris Walters of NLGRP will show attendees the facilities used to test the biophysics of seeds that are currently under investigation in CPC’s IMLS-funded study of seed storage longevity. Note: this field trip will take place the day before the National Meeting on Wednesday, May 4, 2022 (not the customary Saturday following the meeting). Registration for the field trip is now closed.
Board of Trustees Meeting
This year, CPC’s Board of Trustees meeting will take place the Wednesday before the CPC National Meeting on May 4, 2022. The Board will have the opportunity to take a field trip to NLGRP on Tuesday May 3, 2022.
COVID-19 Safety
We fully acknowledge that we are still living in an uncertain era in the midst of a global pandemic. Therefore, we respectfully request that all in-person attendees provide proof of COVID-19 vaccination prior to arriving in Denver. We will reach out to registrants a few weeks prior to the meeting to obtain scanned images of vaccination cards. We also note that Denver Botanic Gardens will be following the health and safety protocols required by the City of Denver which are frequently updated as pandemic conditions change.
We thank Kubtec Scientific for underwriting National Meeting lightning talks
We thank Plant Cell Technology for underwriting National Meeting coffee breaks
Important Dates
April 1, 2022
Presentation Abstracts Due and Early Bird Registration Ends. This is also the last day to book rooms in our hotel block. See below for travel and lodging details.
April 28, 2022
Last Day to Register and Deadline for Online Presentation Content. We recommend in-person registration during the early bird window to secure a spot in our hotel block. See below for registration details.
May 4-6, 2022
National Meeting Activities Begin. The pre-meeting field trip takes place Wednesday, May 4, and Conference sessions take place Thursday, May 5 and Friday, May 6 at Denver Botanic Gardens.
Registration Offerings
In-Person
We are excited to gather in person after a two year hiatus. Early bird registration is available before April 1, 2022 and costs:
- $375 for CPC members
- $425 for Non-members
- $200 for full time students
- Add $75 to each category to secure a spot for our pre-meeting field trip to the National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation on Wednesday, May 4
- Late registrations between April 1 – April 28 will add $50 to all categories
In-person registration includes:
- Two full days of face-to-face networking with top conservation experts
- Eligibility to present conservation research from your organization in-person as either a 5 minute lightning talk or poster presentation
- Lunch and dinner during conference session on May 5-6
- Free entrance with two drink tickets to the Star Award Banquet at Chatfield Farms, Thursday May 5
- Transportation from Hilton Garden Inn Cherry Creek to conference on May 5-6
- Networking with in-person and virtual attendees through the Whova conference platform
- Eligibility to compete in the conference photo contest for cash prizes
- Access to the Whova conference platform and recorded meeting content beginning two days before and six months after the meeting
*In person attendees will be required to show proof of COVID-19 vaccination status at meeting registration.
Virtual
We are thrilled to provide the CPC National Meeting experience to a wider audience through our virtual registration offering. The virtual registration deadline is April 28, 2022 and costs:
- $50 for CPC members
- $65 for Non-members
- $35 for full time students
- There is no early bird registration discount for the virtual platform.
Virtual registration includes the following:
- Access to a high-quality live stream of the CPC National Meeting conference proceedings
- Opportunity to ask live questions to in-person presenters through the Whova conference platform
- Eligibility to present conservation research as an ONLINE ONLY 5-minute lightning talk or poster presentation (see presentation guidelines)
- Virtual breakout sessions moderated by CPC National Office
- Networking with both in-person and virtual attendees through the Whova conference platform
- Eligibility to compete in the conference photo contest for cash prizes
- Access to the Whova conference platform and recorded meeting content beginning two days before and six months after the meeting.
*Our hope is to upload recordings of individual conference talks shortly after sessions conclude.
2022 CPC National Meeting
Dr. Deane Bowers
Professor of Biology and Curator of Entomology, University of ColoradoDr. Bowers in her own words:
I have been fascinated by insects since I was small and am one of the lucky people who have been able to follow such an early interest throughout the rest of my life. My fascination with insects led me to graduate school at the University of Massachusetts, where I got my Ph.D. In 1989, I came here to the University of Colorado, where I am jointly appointed in the CU Museum and Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology as Curator of Entomology and Professor of Biology. I have been happily employed here at the University of Colorado for 33 years.
My research interests are in the interaction of insects with plants, their environment and their enemies. I am especially interested in the chemical mediation of plant-insect-enemy interactions; but also in the effects of human alterations of the environment on these interactions. I work in a variety of systems, including butterflies and their host plants, predators and parasitoids; native bee communities; and insect immune responses to parasitoids and pathogens. In my free time I enjoy weaving and natural dyeing (with both plants and insects), as well as gardening and exploring the outdoors.
Don't Miss Moments
Field Trip to National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation
Perhaps the true “physical” home of the CPC National Collection is the seed vault at the USDA-ARS National Laboratory for Genetic Resources Preservation in Fort Collins, Colorado. Dr. Christina Walters and her lab have been seminal in establishing the best practices for seed conservation of rare and agricultural species. We are thrilled to give conference attendees a chance to tour the NLGRP facility prior to the National Meeting on May 4.
Network Updates & Dozens of Rare Plant Conservation Stories
The CPC network is busy! Learn about exciting developments within the CPC network in the last year including our individual membership program, early results of our IMLS-funded seed longevity project, and project progress from the final year of the CPC Rare Plant Academy Grant. We also look forward to hearing from our network through 5-minute lightning talks and posters! See presentation guidelines below for details on in-person and online-only presentation formats.
Spotlight on Rare Plant Reintroduction
The theme of this year’s meeting is “Celebrating Conservation Milestones” and there is no sweeter milestone than learning how our fellow botanists helped endangered plants survive and thrive. In 2021, the CPC National Office created a strategic plan of rare plant reintroduction with the help of Dr. Joe Bellis of the Liverpool John Moores University. Our hope is to revitalize the CPC Reintroduction Registry and initiate new analysis of plant reintroductions that incorporations climate suitability modeling explicitly.
Win Prizes in Our Photo Contest!
We love rare plant photos and the people who take them! For the third year running, we plan to reward your hard-earned field photos with prizes. Contest details to come in the weeks leading up to the conference, but there will be cash prizes for the first, second, and third place winners in both categories. Both in-person and virtual registrants will be eligible to participate. Learn more and submit photos.
Happenings
Three Day Meeting Agenda
Who to Contact
For agenda, presentations, videos details, contact
Katie Heineman, Ph.D.
Vice President of Conservation and Science
For registration assistance, contact
Email TeamFor our Cancellation Policy Contact CPC office
(760) 796-5686Travel and Lodging
Travel Information
Denver is served by Denver International Airport (DEN), located 25.9 miles from Downtown Denver. The A line train can be taken from DEN to Union Station (Downtown Denver) for $10.50.
The Hilton Garden Inn Cherry Creek is a convenient place to stay as it is only 2.5 miles from Denver Botanic Gardens. Transportation to the Hilton Garden Inn Cherry Creek from DEN via Uber/Lyft is $40-$50 and about $62 via taxi (Yellow Cab Denver). Transportation to the Hilton Garden Inn Cherry Creek from Union Station via Uber/Lyft is $18-$20 and about $18 via taxi (Yellow Cab Denver).
All attendees should make their own arrangements to get to and from the hotel/airport. Shuttles from the hotel to the meetings and the field trip are included in the conference registration.
Hotel Parking: Complimentary onsite parking.
Limited free parking is available at Denver Botanic Gardens in the parking complex between York and Josephine streets during regular hours of operation.
Hotel Information
CPC reserved a block of rooms at Hilton Garden Inn Cherry Creek (600 S Colorado Blvd, Denver, CO 80246) for the nights of May 3 – 6 (check out Saturday, May 7). The group rate is $149/night, and availability may be limited during the pre-conference dates (May 3 & 4). The deadline to book a hotel room at the group rate is April 1, 2022.
Group SRP Code: CPC52
Presentations
BEFORE April 1, 2022, we ask Conservation Officers and Network Partners to submit abstracts with their registration form. We will hbe limiting in-person oral presentations to ONE per institution.
Oral Presentations
We invite one representative per CPC Participating Institution to contribute a 5-minute update about the rare plant conservation research at their institution. This year, the theme of our meeting is “Celebrating Conservation Milestones.” We ask that our contributors consider presentation proposals that celebrate a long-term conservation story, an exciting achievement in a new conservation project, or topics that otherwise adhere to the theme. With your permission, we will catalogue these videos through our CPC Rare Plant Academy platform as an educational resource.
In-person lightning talks will be live-streamed to the virtual attendees via the Whova conference platform. In-person oral presenters will have the opportunity to field questions live from both in-person and virtual attendees. Conference presentations will be recorded and embedded onto the conference platform shortly after each session for all attendees to view.
We ask that presenters bring their powerpoint presentations to the conference on a flash drive and email Katie Heineman their PowerPoint presentations the day before their presentations.
For institutions who cannot send a representative to the meeting, we invite the submission of online-only presentations or posters. This content may be submitted by virtual registrants prior to the meeting no later than April 28, 2022. These presentations will appear on the Whova conference platform two days before the start of conference sessions, but will not be streamed live to in-person conference attendees. Online-only presenters will have the opportunity to field questions and feedback about their presentation via the Whova conference platform, which is available to all meeting participants. Online-only content will also be catalogued on CPC Rare Plant Academy. Please follow the content guidelines suggested for in-person presentations.
Please self-record your oral presentations using the software of your choosing (Zoom, PowerPoint, Panopto, Screen cast-o-matic). You will receive instructions in mid-April notifying you how to transfer files to the CPC National Office. If possible, please use head phone or air pod microphones when recording your presentations to maximize the audio quality of presentations. Avoid settings with loud ambient background noise (labs with autoclaves, etc.) Good audio quality makes your recorded presentations more enjoyable and allows CPC to reuse your valuable information for educational purposes.
Posters Presentations
If you would like to highlight the work of multiple members of your institution or multiple projects, you may give one or more poster presentation(s) in addition to an in-person or online oral presentation. Posters given in-person should be printed a standard size (3 ft x 4 ft) using a material than can be hung with push pins into a conference poster bulletin board. Online posters should be emailed as PDFs to Katie Heineman (kheineman@saveplants.org) by April 28, 2022.
Thank you to our 2022 National Meeting underwriters, Kubtec Scientific & Plant Cell Technology!
Ready To Get Started?
If you have meeting access questions, contact the CPC National Office at info@saveplants.org.