Explore the nexus between below and aboveground biodiversity with Evan Abramson, Principal of Landscape Interactions and Rubén Parrilla, Soil Technical Coordinator and Education Director at NOFA/Mass.
They will present two seasons of data from ten participating sites, walk audience members through the process of creating the target list of over 150 native bee, butterfly and moth species at risk of local extinction in western Massachusetts, and showcase a series of scalable, replicable designs for working landscapes that support these species, all forthcoming in a free, public access publication.
Funded by a Healthy Soils Action Grant, Landscape Interactions and NOFA/Mass have been collaborating with farmers and community gardeners across western Massachusetts to examine the connections between land use, plant-pollinator networks, soil health and soil organic carbon on sites ranging from expansive rural farmscapes to small urban parks.
The project, Healthy Soil through Maximum Biodiversity aims to demonstrate that enhancing plant diversity and supporting at-risk pollinators leads to healthier soils, increased soil organic carbon sequestration and improved ecosystem function.