Wetland Superpowers
MEETING FOR THE WEEK OF Feb. 17, 2025
This Meeting at a Glance:
Program: Wetland Superpowers
Speaker: Alys Laver
Is this your first time to visit us? If so, welcome to our weekly online meeting! To complete our meeting, please continue reading from here to the bottom of this page. Each Monday, our week’s meeting is posted early in the morning, U.S. Pacific Time. These meetings are designed so that you can read and watch what we post anytime during the week. The entire meeting takes about 60 minutes to complete, with the video conference recording of the program being the bulk of the time. Note that you can easily read this meeting with your favorite device, so feel free to take our meeting on the go with you. Please also complete the attendance form at the bottom and leave a comment. Enjoy!
To properly attend this meeting, please:
Read and watch the content below in its entirety.
Complete the attendance survey.
Everyone is encouraged to leave a comment in the Disqus section at the bottom of the page.
Message from our President
Welcome our members, fellow Rotarians, friends, and guests. Thanks for joining our weekly meeting!
WEEKLY FUNNY WITH SHAGS
We believe laughter is an important part of life, and we should all make time to laugh a little. This segment of our meeting is meant to tickle you just enough. These funnies are curated by member Steven "Shags" Shagrin!
The Pillow Fight
Huge mistake challenging Death to a pillow fight.
I was NOT prepared for the reaper cushions.
INSPIRATION
Rotary's work to lead the effort to end polio can thank the Gates Foundation for an immense amount of support. In this video, you'll meet Sofonias Tessema of the Africa Pathogen Genomics Initiative at the Africa Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and learn about what they are doing to keep those in and beyond protected from current and future disease outbreaks.
LEARN SOMETHING NEW
Demystifying Generative AI: Transforming Data into Innovation
How It's Made
Soap bars! Water, fat, and lye, generally.
Are you receiving the Members Only Weekly Bulletin?
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PROGRAM: Wetland Superpowers
SPEAKER: Alys Laver
We bring you a new program every week on innovation, entrepreneurship, and education and how they contribute to service to others.
This week, we'll focus on the Superpowers of Saltmarsh and environmental innovation as a vehicle of hope for our climate. You'll learn about the Steart Marshes of England and their impact globally, covering history, design, and management, as well as how the work being done in the marshes influences policy and has become recognized as a solution to the challenges we all face.
Our speaker is Alys Laver, who has always had a passion for nature, and growing up on Somerset's Levels and Moors inspired a particular love for wetlands. After completing her Zoology Degree at Cardiff University, she went on to work for the University at the research field center. This involved working on a wide variety of research projects, the biggest being a countywide river improvement project.
After this, Alys started working on areas of conservation all around Somerset, delivering works to improve wetland habitats and supporting the species that use them. Alys was then hired as part of the Somerset Wildlife Trust as a Reserve Warden and was responsible for managing some of the rarest and most valuable areas of the United Kingdom.
In 2013 Alys started working for the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust (WWT) on one of the largest habitat creation schemes in Europe. Taking on the management of a site with a whole new direction for the organisation didn't come without its challenges. But since its completion the WWT Steart Marshes coastal project has developed into an exemplar for landscape scale habitat creation, a hub for cutting edge research and a demonstration site to showcase what wetlands can do for people and wildlife. In 2022 Alys assisted with the delivery of a £1.5 million government-funded scheme, getting Steart Marshes designated as a National Nature Reserve.
Members and guests, please welcome Alys Laver!
To learn more, go to:
https://wetland-data-explorer.wwt.org.uk/
https://www.wwt.org.uk/wetland-centres/steart-marshes/
To learn more about the Rotary eClub of Silicon Valley, go to:
http://rotary.cool
Our Three Podcast Series
Our main program speakers are available as podcasts in addition to YouTube videos! Each week, they are available on Spotify and Apple podcasts.
Or you can click below for this week’s speaker:
The Weekly Rotarian
Inspiring Solutions
And our original podcast, featuring some of the best of our previous speakers, is still available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts
Development Success Stories
Our third podcast features success stories about economic development from around the world. It is available on Spotify and Apple Podcasts, or you can click below.
UPCOMING PROGRAM RECORDING SCHEDULE
All of our guest speakers and programs are recorded live online over Zoom video conference. We welcome members and guests to join us in one of these upcoming recordings. Recordings are approximately 30 minutes long and are subject to change without notice.
Our online video conference room link for these recordings is always http://zoom.siliconvalleyrotary.com/. You are welcome to join us! Please note the timezone listed for all recordings is US Pacific Time (San Francisco, California, USA).
If you can’t join the live recording, please send your questions for an upcoming speaker to programs@siliconvalleyrotary.com.
THE ATTENDANCE SURVEY
Thanks for reading and watching this week’s meeting. You have two last things to do before you’re done.
We have a very short attendance survey below for you to fill out to record your attendance.
Visiting Rotarians, this is how you can get an email receipt to pass along to your club’s secretary as proof that you’ve attended our meeting if you need it for makeup.
Non-Rotarian Guests, we would love to see who is dropping by our meetings! This part is optional for you. If you think you may want to join our eClub at some point in the future, we would strongly recommend you fill out the attendance form as it will improve your chances of success for your membership application.
For all members and guests — we strongly recommend and ask that you leave a comment in our comments area below. Tell us how you enjoyed the program. Ask this week’s speaker any questions you might have. Or just stop by and say hello and tell us where you’re from!
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