2024 Speakers and Workshop Leaders
2024 Speakers and Workshop Leaders
Read about the 13th annual Yampa Valley Crane Festival speakers, workshop leaders, bird walk leaders and more.
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Keynote Speaker
![LizSmith](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/LizSmith.png)
Dr. Liz Smith
Dr. Liz Smith is a native Texan where she encountered her first Whooping Crane family at the age of ten as they wintered within the protected coastal marsh ecosystem. Her motivation to follow a scientific career was based on a love and curiosity of the natural world and how she could contribute to save it. She earned her B.S. and M.S. degrees at Corpus Christi State University and a Ph.D. at Texas A&M University in biology and wildlife sciences. Liz served as Research Scientist at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi for 17 years working with her graduate students on coastal habitat assessment and conservation planning. Liz joined the International Crane Foundation in 2011 as Senior Whooping Crane Scientist as well as the Texas and North American Program Director until her retirement in 2022. She continues working as an ICF Sr. Research Associate using crane behavior to both assess habitat health and educating human communities on ways to share coastal habitat with cranes.
Additional Speakers
![Forsberg_Michael](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Forsberg_Michael.png)
Michael Forsberg
![Floyd_Ted](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Floyd_Ted.png)
Ted Floyd
Ted Floyd is the longtime Editor of Birding magazine and the author of many essays, articles, and books about birds and nature. Ted and his family have been involved with the Yampa Valley Crane Festival since the festival’s inception, and he’s looking forward to watching cranes and other wildlife with you again in 2024!
![Floyd_Andrew](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Floyd_Andrew.png)
Andrew Floyd
![Karschner_Meg](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Karschner_Meg.png)
Meg Karschner
Colorado Crane Conservation Coalition welcomed Megan (Walker) Karschner as its new executive director in April 2024. Meg has lived and worked in the Yampa Valley for the past 15 years, promoting sustainability through education and other nonprofit, community-based efforts. Meg comes to CCCC after serving for the past year as an adjunct faculty member for Sustainability Studies at Colorado Mountain College. Previously, Megan taught at Steamboat Montessori and served both as a Naturalist and as the Director of Youth Programs for Yampatika. A graduate of Colorado Mountain College’s Outdoor Education and Sustainability Studies programs, Megan earned a master’s degree from Western Colorado University in Environmental Management, with a focus on building sustainable and resilient communities.
Over the years Megan has worked as a professional tutor, instructing college students in topics such as sustainability, biology, ecology, and environmental science. She has served as a 4-H leader, taught beekeeping workshops, provided educational and service-learning programming at the Bear Park Permaculture Center, and created a business, Meg’s Eggs, that sells eggs, honey, and jam to consumers.
![Strycker_Noah](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Strycker_Noah.png)
Noah Strycker
Noah Strycker is a writer, photographer, and bird man based in Eugene, Oregon. He has been called a “Travel Pioneer” by the BBC and “Birdman of Razzmatazz” by Newsweek. In 2015, during a quest spanning 41 countries and all seven continents, he set a world record by finding 6,042 species of birds (more than half the world’s total) in one calendar year. He has written several bestselling books, including Birding Without Borders and is Associate Editor of Birding magazine. Noah also guides in the polar regions for Quark Expeditions and Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions, literally spreading the joy of birds from pole to pole.
![Tebbel_Paul](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Tebbel_Paul.png)
Paul Tebbel
![Weiss_Rebecca](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Weiss_Rebecca.png)
Rebecca Weiss
Workshop Leaders
![Arington_Julie](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Arington_Julie.png)
Julie Arington
![Becea_Chris](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Becea_Chris.png)
Chris Becea
Chris Becea of Morning Light Photography will be presenting a Crane photography classroom workshop for the 2024 Crane festival. He has been volunteering for CCCC ever since he fell in love with photographing Sandhill Cranes and realized the importance of protecting this bird and their habitats. Chris’ passion for photography started young, and his love of the outdoors soon found him photographing nature and wildlife, so he chose to pursue a career photography. Although he left photography as a career after the digital revolution, it never left him so in 2015 he decided to pursue his passion as a career once again. Chris holds a degree in Fine Arts as well as his B.S. in History and secondary education. Visit his online art store to see some of his work – www.morninglightphotography.store
Chris resides in Steamboat Springs Colorado and can often be found in the backcountry hiking, fishing, backpacking, skiing, snowshoeing, and of course taking photographs to share with the world.
![Bonnifield_Ellen](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Bonnifield_Ellen.png)
Ellen Bonnifield
![Gelling_Erin](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Gelling_Erin.png)
Erin Gelling
![IMG_0004](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/IMG_0004.jpg)
Liz Leipold
Liz Leipold, MS OTR, C-IAYT, has a BS in Biology, MS in Occupational Therapy, and is a Certified Yoga Therapist. Liz teaches yoga for “Health and Wellness” to all ages and abilities in the Steamboat community. She interweaves science with an emphasis on education, health, and having fun into classes as well as offering variations to postures and movements so that anyone can participate.
Liz began offering “Crane Yoga” early in the development of CCCC and loves supporting the Rocky Mountain Sandhill Cranes, as well as helping to educate others about these amazing birds and their environment. Come join Liz in an experiential “Crane Yoga” class focusing on the life, culture, body language, and dance of our beautiful Sandhill Cranes. Please bring a mat, blanket, or chair to sit on outside.
![Orce_Joanne](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Orce_Joanne.png)
Joanne Orce
Joanne was voted Best of the Boat Artist 2023 and designed the 2023 SSWSC Winter Carnival poster. Joanne attended Pratt Art Institute in Manhattan for illustration. She has paintings in collections around the world and welcomes commissions.
Joanne is also a mom to 3 children and an athletic coach.
![Vail_Karen](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Vail_Karen.png)
Karen Vail
![Wither_Cindy](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Wither_Cindy.png)
Cindy Wither
![NaturesEd](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/NaturesEd.png)
Nature’s Educators
Bird Walk Leaders
![Chip](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Chip.png)
Chip Clouse
![Floyd_Ted](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Floyd_Ted.png)
Ted Floyd
Ted Floyd is the longtime Editor of Birding magazine and the author of many essays, articles, and books about birds and nature. Ted and his family have been involved with the Yampa Valley Crane Festival since the festival’s inception, and he’s looking forward to watching cranes and other wildlife with you again in 2024!
![Floyd_Andrew](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Floyd_Andrew.png)
Andrew Floyd
![Luke_Forrest](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Luke_Forrest.png)
Forrest Luke
![Reishus_Allan](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Reishus_Allan.png)
Allan Reishus
Allan has a special interest in waterfowl, raptors and cavity nesting birds. He started a string of nest boxes for mountain bluebirds over 30 years ago and continues to build, install, monitor and clean the boxes for his blue friends. He has installed nesting structures for kestrels and Canada geese in the Steamboat/Craig area. Most recently he installed a number of towers and platforms for ospreys, which has been a success story. The outdoors is where Allan wants to spend his days.
![Strycker_Noah](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Strycker_Noah.png)
Noah Strycker
Noah Strycker is a writer, photographer, and bird man based in Eugene, Oregon. He has been called a “Travel Pioneer” by the BBC and “Birdman of Razzmatazz” by Newsweek. In 2015, during a quest spanning 41 countries and all seven continents, he set a world record by finding 6,042 species of birds (more than half the world’s total) in one calendar year. He has written several bestselling books, including Birding Without Borders and is Associate Editor of Birding magazine. Noah also guides in the polar regions for Quark Expeditions and Antarctic Logistics & Expeditions, literally spreading the joy of birds from pole to pole.
![Weiss_Rebecca](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Weiss_Rebecca.png)
Rebecca Weiss
![Williams_Paul-and-Lisa](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Williams_Paul-and-Lisa.png)
Lisa and Paul Williams
Lisa Williams moved to the Yampa Valley in 1968 and Paul Williams arrived 6 years later. Birding is second nature to Lisa. She has shared her enthusiasm with Paul and all others who go on walks and hikes with her. Paul helps her spot birds on walks while continuing to learn new identification techniques. Lisa enjoys sharing her knowledge with her fellow bird watchers and continues to try to master the challenge of identifying birds by listening to their songs. She co-led bird walks for over a decade, with Nancy Merrill, at the Nature Conservancy’s Carpenter Ranch property in Hayden. Paul enjoys being part of the support team when he participates on bird walks. He often joins the crane viewings for the early morning fly-ins. He’s in charge of bringing along the spotting scope which comes in handy when birds cooperate and sit long enough to be brought into focus. Both Lisa and Paul have been part of the Yampa Valley Birding Club, CCCC and the Crane Festival since their inception.
Bird Walk Special Assistants
![LauralW](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/LauralW.png)
Laurel Watson
Laurel Watson, curator of the Hayden Heritage Center Museum since 2010, will be assisting with the ‘History and Bird Walk’ at Mt Harris. She originally hails from the East Coast coming to the Valley over 30 years ago. She studied at Regis University obtaining a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Science with an emphasis on history and a minor in secondary education then went on to obtain a Master’s Degree in American History. She wrote the book Yampa Valley Sin Circuit and has written several articles for newspapers and magazines on local history topics. She has served on the Board of Historic Routt County and has taught at both Colorado Northwestern Community College and Colorado Mountain College. She is passionate about our local area history and is currently working on a book about the coal mining towns that no longer exist along Hwy 40 in West Routt County.
Entertainment
![Miller_Heidi](https://coloradocranes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/Miller_Heidi.png)