Speaker Series
The Kenai Watershed Forum along with the Kenai River Center enjoy offering unique opportunities for folks to come together and learn more about the area in which we live in. We do this through the Winter and Summer Speaker Series. These are FREE programs and open to all.
Winter Speaker Series
Welcome to the Kenai River Center Winter Speaker Series, sponsored by the Kenai River Center and the Kenai Watershed Forum. This series of monthly evening talks brings scientists, storytellers, historians and other experts to the Kenai River Center for events designed to entertain as well as educate. Presentations focus on the natural and cultural history of our Kenai Peninsula. All of the programs are free and open to the public, and refreshments are provided. Come to the Kenai River Center for an evening of enjoyment and learning! For more information about the Winter Speaker Series contact Jan Yaeger.
2008 - 2009 Winter Speaker Series
Shaping the Kenai Landscape • Dr. Dick Reger
Tuesday, Nov. 11, 2008 7 pm
Landscapes tell stories, and Dick Reger can teach us how to read them. We’ll learn what formed the hills and valleys we see on the Western Kenai and why we have the plant communities we do. You may learn to look at your home in a whole new way.
Dr. Dick Reger grew up in Soldotna and has spent almost 30 years studying the glacial and post-glacial history of the Kenai Peninsula. He has a PhD in geology from Arizona State University and is retired from the Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys.
Winter Skies • Kathy East
Tuesday, Dec. 9, 2008 7 pm
There’s a lot to see when the sky grows dark, and short days mean more time for star-gazing. Learn about winter constellations, the science behind the northern lights and galaxies far (and not so far) away.
Kathy East is Assistant Lead Flight Director at Kenai’s Challenger Learning Center and a former high school physics teacher. She has a particular interest in archaeo-astronomy, the study of how past cultures understood and used astronomy.
Historical Cabins in the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge • Gary Titus
Tuesday, Jan. 13, 2009 7 pm
Before the Kenai National Wildlife Refuge was the Kenai Moose Range, it was home to a variety of folks who chose to make a home in the wilderness. Their presence and their stories can be remembered through the cabins that still remain.
Gary Titus is a Wilderness Ranger and Historian for Kenai National Wildlife Refuge. He is also the co-author of Alaska’s No. 1 Guide: The History and Journals of Andrew Berg.
The Alaska Oceans Film Festival
Friday, Feb. 6, 2009 7 pm
The Alaska Oceans Film Festival celebrates Alaska's ocean bounty. The event features short films on saltwater adventure, coastal cultures and marine science from Alaska and around the world. The festival travels across Alaska and provides a great taste of 'all things ocean' for folks of all ages.
The Alaska Oceans Film Festival is brought to us by the Alaska Center for the Environment Oceans Program.
Sockeye Salmon Ecology • Dr. Carol Ann Woody
Tuesday, Mar. 10, 2009 7 pm
Sockeye salmon have a fascinating life cycle, and also form a crucial part of the ecology of the Kenai Peninsula. Come learn more about the complex and fascinating story of the salmon.
Dr. Carol Ann Woody has a PhD in fisheries science from the University of Washington and has studied salmon in Southcentral Alaska since 1991. She is past president of the Alaska Chapter of the American Fisheries Society.
Summer Speaker Series
A list of the 2009 Summer Speaker Series events will be available in May 2009.