36th Annual Pinelands Short Course
Galloway, N.J. — The 36th annual Pinelands Short Course will feature 37 presentations, including 24 new programs that will explore the region’s unique history, ecology, culture and music.
Registration is now open for the daylong event, which will be held at Stockton University’s main campus in Galloway Township from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., March 8. The event is co-sponsored by the Pinelands Commission and Stockton University.
“From mosses to moths and birding to the Batona, this year’s Pinelands Short Course boasts an extraordinary variety of programs,” said Susan R. Grogan, the Commission’s executive director. “These programs will go a long way toward heightening awareness and appreciation of the Pinelands and why the region is so special and worthy of protection.”
“Stockton University is excited to host the 36th annual Pinelands Short Course, which showcases many of the amazing aspects of our home within the Pinelands National Reserve,” said Michael Palladino, provost and vice president for Academic Affairs at Stockton. “Stockton faculty and staff will also share their expertise in several workshops, including 'Indigenous Survival in the Pinelands,' 'Preserving the Pinelands’ History' and 'Birding in the Pinelands,' where attendees will examine the university’s ornithological specimens and then walk around Lake Fred to observe species in their natural habitat.”
An Overview of the Day
This year’s Short Course includes a variety of new presentations, including a panel discussion that includes Indigenous people with roots in Lenapehoking who grew up in the 1990s and 2000s experiencing the continued battle to reclaim their heritage that had been on the brink of extinction (“Inherited Generational Trauma”) and a hands-on workshop with materials supplied for making baskets from local flora (“Pine Needle Basketry for Beginners”).
Other new presentations include:
- Inherited Generational Trauma
- Pine Needle Basketry for Beginners
- Drawing the Pinelands
- Indigenous Survival in the Pinelands
- Quenching New Jersey’s Thirst: A Groundwater Mystery
- Women’s Experience in the American Revolution: Camp Followers to First Ladies
- The Obscure and Beautiful World of Swamp Pink
- Trees of the Pine Barrens; an Intro to Mosses
- Sam Hunt of the Pinelands
- Salty Hay from the Tidal Meadows
- Cranberry Farm Lost and Found
- Why Did New Jersey’s 2024 Drought Happen?
- NJ’s Best Kept Secret: Biodiversity
- Exploring Soils of the Pines
- This presentation takes place both inside and outside.
- Native Plant Gardening in the Pine Barrens
- Benthic Invertebrates of the Pinelands
- This presentation takes place both inside and outside.
- Moths of Whitesbog
- An Introduction to the Nature: Accessible for All Initiative
- Preserving the Pinelands’ History on Paper: Researching Stockton’s Special Collections
- Become a “Citizen Scientist” with the iNaturalist app
- This presentation includes a field trip.
- Community Science in the Watershed
- This presentation includes a field trip.
- Birding the Edwin B. Forsythe National Wildlife Refuge
- This presentation includes a field trip with transportation provided.
- Anomalies of the Pines Van Tour
- This presentation includes a field trip with transportation provided.
The day will also include popular presentations from the past, including:
- Raptors of the Pinelands
- This presentation will include live animals.
- Birding the Pinelands of Stockton University
- This presentation takes place both inside and outside.
- Geological History of the Pine Barrens
- No Wild Rivers in South Jersey: A Landscape Biography
- Batsto’s Sawmill: Preserving the Pine Barrens’ Industrial Past
- The People of Double Trouble Village
- A Pinelands Road Trip
- Seven Bridges Road: From Past to the Present
- An Intro to the Hidden Kingdom of Fungi
- This presentation has a special focus on Pine Barrens species.
- The Batona Trail
- Paddling in the Pines: An Overview of Kayaking and Canoeing in the NJ Pine Barrens
The event will also feature live musical performances by Valerie Vaughn and Jackson Pines.
