For our first presentation of our fall/winter speaker series, we’re very pleased to once again welcome back Jenny McCune from the University of Lethbridge’s Department of Biological Sciences.

**Please note, Nature Lethbridge’s AGM will follow the presentation.*

Presentation overview

Academic ecologists have studied plant communities for well over a century, yet many mysteries remain. How do plant communities form? Why are some species in one place but not another?

How will plant communities respond to ongoing global change?

On one hand, the deep history of plants through time shows their remarkable resilience, propensity to evolve, and ability to survive catastrophes.

On the other hand, many of the plants we know and love today are succumbing to habitat loss and alteration. In just the past few decades there have been tremendous shifts in the composition of plant communities, but these recent changes often go untracked and therefore unnoticed.

In this talk I will argue that plants are both fundamental to life on earth and that each individual plant species is precious and fascinating in its own right. Using my own experiences studying plants and plant communities for more than two decades, I will highlight the challenges and intrigue involved in trying to understand the short- and long-term history of these enigmatic green creatures. Understanding the natural history of plants is of great importance, both for guiding plant conservation and for measuring the magnitude of our impacts on the planet.