 AZAD |
AZAD 2006 Regional Conference
The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum in Tucson is hosting a regional AZAD Conference on September 15-17, 2006 with the theme "Treasure the Desert." The Desert Museum is a world-renowned zoo, natural history museum, and botanical garden, all in one place!!! Exhibits re-create the natural landscape of the Sonoran Desert Region so realistically you find yourself eye-to-eye with mountain lions, prairie dogs, Gila monsters, and hummingbirds. On the Museum grounds, you will see more than 300 animal species and 1,200 kinds of plants. There are almost 2 miles of paths within 21 acres of beautiful desert.
Because the mission of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum is to inspire people to live in harmony with the natural world by fostering love, appreciation, and understanding of the Sonoran desert, the registrants will be offered many highlights of the Desert Museum.
On Friday we welcome you to Tucson and have selected a few pre-conference tours to area attractions for your enjoyment. At the Icebreaker in the evening, conferees will see demonstrations of live animals and interpretive kits while attending an authentic Mexican Fiesta complete with a mariachi band at the Doubletree Hotel.
On Saturday, Zoo Day at the Museum, participants will attend the plenary session where the speaker will be a popular local editorial cartoonist. Attendees will then be able to choose from behind-the-scene tours, AZAD Tours, or individual tours of the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum grounds.
In the afternoon, demonstrations about ethnobotany and native foods will be conducted in the Desert Garden and tasting is encouraged. Materials from the Sonoran Sea Aquarium will also be on display. The popular presentation, Live and (sort of) On the Loose: A Look at Venomous Reptiles of the Southwest will be offered later in the afternoon. This humorous and informative presentation covers natural history, venoms and envenomations, and bite statistics.
Sunday includes multiple concurrent sessions convering select topics and papers submitted for the conference. Closing remarks and a raffle will also be held. Those who wish may visit the Phoenix Zoo at no cost with their registration badge today and tomorrow.