2006 ACCEE Conference: Shaping Our Destiny - May 10-12

The 2006 ACCEE Conference: Shaping Our Destiny will be at the Wyndham Hotel in Syracuse May 10-12. Syracuse is known for many things, including a number five seed basketball team in the upcoming men's NCAA Basketball Tournament. It's also home to a unique traffic light in the Tipperary Hill area, a predominantly Irish neighborhood. Installed in 1924 at the intersection of Tompkins Street and Lowell Avenue you will find vehicles waiting for the only upside-down traffic light in the country where the green light is on top and the red on the bottom.

This is a warm-up for the upcoming ACCEE trivia contest as we gear up for the only system-wide professional development conference open to all CCE educators and staff. During the three days of the conference and the day leading up to the conference, attendees will be treated to eight pre-conference inservices, 9 mobile learning workshop, 64 on-site workshops, and dynamic keynote and capnote presenters. Your least expensive option is to register by the early-bird deadline of March 31.

Online registration for the 2006 ACCEE "Shaping Our Destiny" Conference is available at http://conferences.cce.cornell.edu/accee. Before you register, first take a look at the conference brochure (click on the link to "Conference Brochure") to familiarize yourself with the registration options (page 11) as well as all the workshops, tours, pre-conference inservices, and events. One quick tip: have your account number (all 17 digits) ready when you begin to register. If you don't know all of the digits, enter zeros. We look forward to seeing you in Syracuse!

PRE-CONFERENCE INSERVICE -- Tuesday, May 9 1:00 p.m. through Wednesday noon

Responding to the Invasion: Invasive Species and CCE's Role in Outreach, Prevention and Management. Invasive species affect every NYS county. A significant price is paid for this invasion, measured in damaged crops, ruined infrastructure, power failures, food and water shortages, environmental impacts, and human and livestock health. Invasive species and their costs to society are increasing at an alarming rate. While government agencies have responded, a well-informed public is the first line of defense. Cooperative Extension is uniquely positioned to provide the linkage between invasive species research and the public; much of the best research into such species is happening at Cornell. This inservice will address aquatic, terrestrial, insect and pathogenic invaders. A mix of university researchers and extension educators will present this inservice, which is coordinated by senior extension associate Chuck O'Neill, a member of the federal Invasive Species Advisory Committee and NYS Invasive Species Task Force.

WORKSHOP SESSION 1 --Wednesday, 2:30 - 4:00 PM

Extension Programming in Invasive Species: The Next Step. A follow-up session to last year's introduction to invasive species and extension outreach programming, this session will be a roundtable discussion of where CCE should be going vis-a-vis invasive species outreach and how we can move the organization in a positive direction. Presenter: Chuck O'Neill