Useful Knowledge 101: Ecology of Philadelphia

Thursday, June 7th from 6:00pm to 7:15pm

RSVP Required – Space will be limited to 40 guests.

Join us at the APS Museum for the first lecture in the “Useful Knowledge 101” series running throughout the In Franklin’s Footsteps exhibition.  Bringing the spirit of Benjamin Franklin back to the American Philosophical Society, the series will provide you with engaging, educational, and useful information.

At “Useful Knowledge 101: Ecology of Philadelphia,” explore the ecosystems of Philadelphia and learn about organisms and plants that live in our area. Embrace the naturalist spirit that took hold of many of our Members as we investigate, from land to river, the organisms and plants from Philadelphia’s ecosystems. The presentations will include some hands-on investigating and useful information on plankton in our rivers, wildlife conservation happening in our city, and a discussion on what are (and are not) native plants in Philadelphia.

Speakers Bios:

Mandy Katz

Mandy is a horticulturist working at Bartram’s Garden since 2005 and in various vacant lots and yards of Philadelphia for the last twenty some years. She is a poet, painter, herbalist, and botanical illustrator, and reads the language of plants from multiple perspectives. This spring she published A Pocket Field Guide to Plants of the Lower Schuylkill with support from grants from Penn Program for Environmental Humanities and Bartram’s Garden Boathouse, as well as collaborative help from the Philadelphia Botanical Club.

Mayci Shimon

Mayci is the River Alive! Programs Coordinator at the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia. Born and raised in Missouri, she moved to the east coast and graduated from Lafayette College in Easton, PA with a Bachelor’s Degree in Biology and Religious Studies. During her undergraduate years, she had an opportunity to study abroad in New Zealand, which allowed her to cultivate a passion for conservation and environmental science. After graduating, she spent a year back home, only to head back east to Philly a year later to pursue a developing interest in environmental education. She hopes to pursue a Master's Degree in Environmental Science within the next couple of years.

Dr. Carlos Martinez-Rivera

Carlos is from Puerto Rico and obtained his doctorate degree from the University of Missouri-Columbia looking at how male frogs behave in a chorus while trying to secure a mate. For the last ten years, he’s been the Philadelphia Zoo amphibian biologist; he’s often off in frog-friendly places like the Tropical Andes of South America, the cloud forests of several Caribbean islands, or the wetlands of Philadelphia. At these sites, Carlos works with local partners trying to save critically endangered frogs from extinction; from Andean harlequin toads in Ecuador that were thought to be extinct 30 years ago, to recently discovered populations of the near-extinct Haitian stream side frogs, or the last thriving population of Atlantic Coast leopard frogs in PA, found right here at John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge.

RSVP Required – Space will be limited to 40 guests.

Event will take place in Philosophical Hall, located at 104 S. 5th Street.