ucdavis

What does it take to feed nine billion people? How does our food system encourage California agriculture to remain globally competitive, while reducing poverty in low-income countries? How can we deliver healthier outcomes for malnourished communities in Asia and Africa, while reducing rising obesity rates around the world? A food system that meets growing global demand must lower our environmental footprint as well.

Past climates in the region characterized by ice ages or droughts leave clues that are etched into our mountain slopes. These records remain today for us to uncover in the field, laboratory, and through computer modeling efforts.

Ongoing weather and climate research in the Sierra Nevada and Great Basin and how it shapes our understanding of the greater Earth system will be discussed in the next Tahoe Center for Environmental Science free public lecture.

UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center invites the community to take a different approach to family values in a public presentation led by Dr. Rick Grosberg. The program will begin at 6 pm on Thursday, October 16 at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences.

Lucas McNamara, 7, was hiking around Griff Creek near Kings Beach Fire Station last week with his family when he saw a black, spiny fish, about 1-foot-long, lying dead in the creek. He ran up the creek bed, yelling, “Dad, you need to look at the big crazy fish!”

Lucas’ parents, Steve and Jen McNamara, decided to make this a teachable moment for their son, who already shows active interest in science and the environment.

“I told Lucas that this fish is not normal for Lake Tahoe and may be harmful to the other fish and animals in the lake,” Steve said.

Dr. Louis Grivetti will present “Chocolate: Heritage of the Americas,” featuring samples of American Heritage Chocolate made with authentic ingredients from the 17th century. Chocolate today is a universal treat—amazingly, a mere 500 years ago it was unknown outside of Central America. This presentation will cover
the geographical origins and global dispersal of the cacao tree, and its most beloved product.

Chocolate’s extensive history includes its earliest uses by native Mesoamericans and the spread of cacao production and chocolate manufacture into

The 2014 monthly lecture series from UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center begins January 28 with a presentation on the dangers of radon. Eric Matus of the Nevada Radiation Control Program will lead a public lecture titled “Radon: What you don’t know could hurt you” beginning at 6 p.m. at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences.

The lecture will be at Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences, 291 Country Club Drive, Incline Village, Nevada (on the campus of Sierra Nevada College). No-host bar at 5:30 p.m., lecture at 6:30 p.m.

UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center presents an enlightening public lecture on the science of music on Thursday, February 6. Entitled “Music, Memory and the Brain,” it features Dr. Petr Janata of the UC Davis Center for Mind and Brain and his research on neurological links between music and memories.

Children are invited to spend the day with scientists on Saturday, August 10, learning about the unique ecology, function, restoration and preservation of Lake Tahoe. Children’s Environmental Science Day will be held at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences in Incline Village.

Join Dr. Sally Rogers, UC Davis MIND Institute, for a presentation on the latest findings on effects of intervention on the youngest children with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) on Thursday, August 22 at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences.

This lecture will discuss the need for intervention models for younger and younger children being identified with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), and the effects of interventions that focus on this age group.

Date: Thursday, August 22, 2013
Time: No-host bar opens 5:30 p.m. Presentation begins 6 p.m.

UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center releases the annual Lake Tahoe: State of the Lake Report on Wednesday, August 7. Director Geoff Schladow will present the most important factors that affect lake health at a public presentation at the Tahoe Science Center in Incline Village, Nevada on August 7 at 6 p.m.

Date: Wednesday, August 7, 2013
Time: No-host bar opens 5:30 p.m. Presentation begins 6 p.m.
Location: Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences, 291 Country Club Drive, Incline Village, NV
Cost: $5 donation suggested

Join UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center for an Open House at the Tahoe City Field Station (Historic Hatchery) at 2400 Lake Forest Road from 10 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday, June 15. Visitors can tour the historic building, talk to TERC scientists about their work, and learn something new about Lake Tahoe. Local garden clubs will be on hand to give plant selection and gardening advice, and Red Truck of Truckee will sell food and beverages.

UC Davis Tahoe Environmental Research Center will host the eighth-annual Science Expo, together with Tahoe Expedition Academy, other community partners, and with sponsorship from the Rotary Club of Tahoe-Incline.

The Science Expo is open to the general public on the evening of Wednesday, March 20 from 4 – 6 p.m. for children of all ages together with their families at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences in Incline Village. Ice cream will be provided by Susie Scoops of Incline Village. Admission is free.

A presentation on the Lahontan cutthroat trout will be featured tonight, Wednesday, at the U.C. Davis Lake Tahoe Regional Enviromental Center. The program and presentation by Gary Scoppettone, section chief of the Western Fisheries Research Center, begins at 6 p.m. (no host bar at 5:30 ) at the center, 291 Country Club Dr., Incline Village.

Natural forces and human actions have affected the lake's clarity, physics, chemistry and biology since 1968, when UC Davis first began continuous monitoring of Lake Tahoe.
Despite an extreme weather year, overall clarity at Lake Tahoe improved in 2011. Yet underlying trends portray a more complex picture of the Lake Tahoe ecosystem, according to the annual “Tahoe: State of the Lake Report 2012,” released today by the Tahoe Environmental Research Center at the University of California, Davis.

Enjoy some tasty BBQ dinner in good company and learn more about how to protect our Tahoe watershed! Guest expert Wendy West of UC-Cooperative Extension will be on hand, talking about how to identify, avoid and manage some of Tahoe's Most unWanted--invasive weeds. The Green Thumb Gardening workshops and take place most Wednesdays, from 5:30-6:45pm through August.

Location

Summer is a perfect time to learn about birds that migrate to the Lake Tahoe Basin for the season. Join Kirk Hardie, Co-Executive Director of the Tahoe Institute for Natural Science for two events introducing the migratory birds of the Lake Tahoe region. Kirk will present a talk on these avian visitors to the area on Thursday, June 14, 2012 (no-host bar at 5:30pm, presentation begins 6 pm, $5 donation suggested) at the Tahoe Center for Environmental Sciences on the Sierra Nevada College campus and a bird watching walk on June 16 starting at the UC Davis Tahoe City Field Station.

Do you love Lake Tahoe and have an interest in learning more about the lake? Do you enjoy science, learning new information, and sharing your knowledge?

Residents who would like to help people learn about the region's environmental assets and challenges are needed to serve as volunteer docents at the Thomas J. Long Foundation Education Center and the UC Davis Eriksson Education Center. Located in Incline Village and Tahoe City respectively, the two UC Davis education centers are well positioned along the North Shore of Lake Tahoe.