From burns to beer, monthly Conserveza sparks conservation collaboration
7 – minute read
On the first Friday of most months at the Naples Botanical Garden, conservationists from across Southwest Florida gather to share ideas, build relationships and strengthen the region’s conservation community.
What started as a simple networking idea has grown into “Conserveza” — a clever mash-up of conservation and “cerveza,” the Spanish word for beer. Over refreshments, professionals and students in the conservation field share meaningful conversations about land management and environmental stewardship. Of the three dozen attendees at the April event, 12 were Florida Gulf Coast University faculty, students or alumni. The meetup has become a vital space to connect, collaborate and learn.
Brian Bovard is associate dean and an associate professor in The Water School at FGCU. One of Conserveza’s original organizers, he says the casual, social format lowers barriers, helps strengthen relationships and spawns new partnerships.
“That consistent connection has been one of the biggest impacts of Conserveza,” Bovard says.
But it’s not the only impact the gathering has made in Southwest Florida.
Quod me nutrit me destruit
The Latin phrase “Quod me nutrit me destruit” — ‘That which nourishes me also destroys me’ — aptly captures the dual role of fire in ecosystems: It clears the way for new growth through destruction.
“Fire is the most effective land management tool we have,” says Julie Motkowicz (’20, environmental studies). She’s an environmental specialist for Conservation Collier, working in land acquisition and management. At April’s Conserveza, she was part of a small group discussing upcoming burns.
A prescribed fire or burn is a carefully planned and intentionally set fire used to manage land and ecosystems. It reduces the buildup of combustible vegetation, which can help prevent larger, uncontrolled wildfires and decrease risks to humans and human-dominated landscapes. A burn helps maintain the health of an ecosystem by promoting the growth of fire-adapted plants and recycling nutrients back into the soil.
“Conserveza has become a hub for practical, hands-on knowledge sharing, and prescribed fire is a great example of that,” Bovard says. “Rather than knowledge being passed in a top-down way, it’s more like a network of mentoring relationships.”
Trained professionals conduct burns under specific weather conditions to ensure safety and effectiveness. New professionals rely on seasoned pros like Maulik “Mo” Patel, who has worked at Collier-Seminole State Park southeast of Naples since 2003.
While there’s a lot of practical knowledge in people’s heads, “there’s no playbook, no blueprint,” Patel says. “I have to pass on the info from those who came before me.”
Patel played a key role in mentoring and teaching FGCU grad Eric Foht (’03, environmental studies) about prescribed fire. Foht, in his role as director of natural resources at Naples Botanical Garden, passed on his knowledge to Grace McCoy (’22, environmental studies), who did her first burn at the garden as an FGCU student during an internship at Conservation Collier. McCoy now works as a conservationist at Naples Botanical Garden. Patel, Foht and McCoy are regulars at the monthly Conserveza events.
“These are the types of relationships we hoped would happen through Conserveza, and it’s been exciting to see it unfold so organically,” Bovard says. “FGCU students who attend these events have the opportunity to learn directly from practitioners actively working in conservation. These interactions often lead to internships, job opportunities and meaningful mentorship connections.”
Notes from the field
In 2022, Sanibel Island, Fort Myers Beach and Pine Island bore the brunt of Hurricane Ian’s Category 4 winds and storm surge. Conserveza attendees came together soon after to discuss the data they’d successfully collected before and after the storm. But they went a step further to talk about what Bovard calls “data we wished we had gathered.”
“That conversation helped us identify gaps in our storm response and monitoring, and led to valuable insights that could improve preparedness and coordination for future events,” he says.
Such collaborative conversations strengthen individual efforts and make collective work more effective, ultimately benefiting both the environment and the residents of Southwest Florida.
“These conversations have also helped us better understand the skills and experiences our students need to be successful after graduation. By hearing directly from professionals in the field, we’ve been able to begin thinking more intentionally about how to align our curriculum with workforce needs, ensuring our students are not only well educated, but well prepared to contribute meaningfully in their future careers,” Bovard says.
“The environmental challenges we face are all connected. There is no boundary on disaster,” says Chad Washburn, vice president of conservation at Naples Botanical Garden and an FGCU courtesy faculty of Ecology & Environmental Studies. He and Bovard started Conserveza in 2021.
“There’s never an official line of communication between agencies. An event like this saves us time and money,” Washburn says. “Plus, we’re facing so many global challenges, and it can be depressing. Here, we can get together and talk through the issues and ask, ‘How are you facing the challenge of this invasive species that’s eating my budget?’”
Conserveza meets the first Friday of every month, “unless there’s a hurricane,” Bovard says. Interested conservation professionals in Southwest Florida can contact Brian Bovard at FGCU, as RSVPs are required to gain entrance to the garden.
“At Conserveza, we’re building relationships over time,” Bovard says. “That ongoing connection builds trust, sparks collaboration and helps us solve problems in real-time. It’s a rare space where land managers, scientists, educators and conservation professionals can drop titles at the door and just talk openly.”
