• Project No. and Title: WERA1012 - Managing and Utilizing Precipitation Observations from Volunteer Networks (from WDC43)
• Dates: 05/17/2022 to 05/19/2022
• Contacts: [Russ Schumacher] [Noah Newman]

This authorizes the annual meeting: .
The meeting will be held on 05/17/2022 at YMCA of the Rockies. :

Admin Advisor: Eugene Kelly (Eugene.Kelly@ColoState.EDU)

Good day to our past WERA 1012 attendees,<br /> <br /> It's time to make attendance and travel plans for our annual WERA 1012 conference: 'Managing and Utilizing Precipitation Observations from Volunteer Networks.' We will meet in person this year after a two-year hiatus." We will return to 'YMCA of the Rockies' at the edge of picturesque Rocky Mountain National Park http://www.ymcarockies.org/. But wait! ... you don't have to miss out if you are not able to travel to Colorado. We will offer a virtual ZOOM option at a reduced registration rate (does not include snacks or hot sauce).<br /> <br /> The year’s conference will be held from Tuesday, May 17 through Thursday, May 19, 2022. Arrival on the evening of Monday, May 16th is recommended. The conference will end at lunchtime on Thursday. There is more information, including on-line registration and lodging registration on the conference web site: https://media.cocorahs.org/wera/2022/<br /> <br /> The conference is open to anyone with an interest in volunteer weather observer networks or in citizen science networks and issues in general. It's a great opportunity to network with CoCoRaHS staff, coordinators from around the U.S. and Canada, NWS staff, and CoCoRaHS users.<br /> <br /> WERA 1012’s purpose is to offer a forum where attendees can discuss and strategize how to manage, educate, maintain, and improve volunteer weather observer networks used to collect valuable precipitation data in the U.S., the U.S. Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico, the Bahamas, and Canada. This includes the National Weather Service Cooperative Observer Network, the Community Collaborative Rain, Hail and Snow Network, Nebraska’s NERain, CoCoRaHS Canada, the CoCoRaHS Bahamas Rainfall Network as well as other existing local, regional and state/provincial volunteer networks. <br /> <br /> This year’s meeting will focus on several interrelated areas of interest, but not limited to:<br /> <br /> State of the Networks<br /> - COOP Network update<br /> - PRISM updates<br /> - CoCoRaHS Website update/mapping<br /> - QC update<br /> - NRCS partnership<br /> - NE Rain/ Hi DEN, others<br /> <br /> CoCoRaHS Special Projects<br /> - Ice Accretion<br /> - Forest Monitoring<br /> - ET gages<br /> - Condition Monitoring<br /> - The CoCoRaHS Dashboard<br /> <br /> Recruitment/Retention/Engagement<br /> - Strategies for Urban and Rural recruitment/sustainability<br /> - Filling in the map in your state<br /> - Master Gardeners/Master Naturalists<br /> - Engaging Teachers/ sustaining participation over the long run (case examples)<br /> - International participation/<br /> - possible Tribal update<br /> - All things drought<br /> <br /> If you have suggestions for sub-topics within these areas or other areas you would like explored, or if you might be interested in giving a specific presentation please contact our chairpersons (contact info below). We will be working to fill out the agenda by mid-April. <br /> <br /> The registration fees for the conference are In Person: $150.00 ($160.00 after April 17th) and Virtual: $75.00 ($80.00 after April 17th).<br /> <br /> Regarding lodging, YMCA of the Rockies room rates include three meals per day (this year again includes our selected buffet in our own private dining room) and use of many facilities. Our off-peak daily rates are as follows: One adult per room - $155; Two adults per room - $108 each adult; Three adults per room - $92.32 per adult. https://www.reseze.net/servlet/SendPage?hotelid=1330&skipfirstpage=true&page=949395 . There is ground transportation available from Denver International Airport for $65 one-way ($115 round trip). <br /> <br /> As you consider your attendance at this meeting, please note that for those of you who work at a Land Grant University, you may qualify for travel funds from your Agricultural Experiment Station Director.<br /> <br /> For reference, our committee is: WDC43: Managing and Utilizing Precipitation Observations from Volunteer Networks https://www.nimss.org/projects/18627. Eugene Kelly is listed as the administrative advisor for this committee.<br /> <br /> Although the meeting is only two months away, we urge you to register early via the conference web site: https://media.cocorahs.org/wera/2022/ Please note that the special room rates are available through April 15th and can also be reserved through the conference web site. The preliminary conference agenda will be coming out in April. For information on past meetings, please click here: http://cocorahs.org/Content.aspx?page=wera1012 <br /> <br /> This should be another great meeting. If you have not attended our meeting before, we hope that you will check us out and join us in May! <br /> <br /> Sincerely, <br /> Henry Reges (past chair) for<br /> Jon Meyer , Peter Goble <br /> WERA 1012, 2022 Chairpersons<br /> jon.meyer@usu.edu ; Peter.goble@colostate.edu<br /> <br />