A Brief History/Timeline of the A.T. MEGA-Transect and the A.T. Environmental Monitoring Community Project May 3rd and 4th, 2000 - A scoping workshop for
Monitoring the Appalachian Trail Environment (PDF, 14 pp., 900 KB) is held at the North Carolina Arboretum in Asheville, North Carolina.
2003 - The Appalachian Trail (A.T.) Environmental Monitoring Portal Community concept is devised as a component of a collaborative NSF proposal with the Cornell Lab of Ornithology for using the Trail as an environmental monitoring MEGA-Transect. Though the proposal wasn't funded, a component of the proposed project - The A.T. Environmental Monitoring Community on the NBII Portal, moves forward with support of the National Biological Information Infrastructure -- Southern Appalachian Information Node (NBII-SAIN).
October 2003 - a National Park Service (NPS) Vital Signs Selection workshop is held between the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC), the Appalachian National Scenic Trail Park Office, the NPS Northeast Temperate Network (NETN), and others
June - December 2004 - The A.T. Portal Community project is ramped up with the initial focus on Documenting Inventory and Monitoring Practices along the Trail. Marketing, communication, and outreach is increased so as engage Federal, State, and NGO partners along the full length of the Trail.
January 2005 - A meeting is held at the University of Tennessee with the NBII-SAIN A.T. Portal Community project leads, key Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) directors, and Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere (SAMAB) personnel to discuss potential for collaboration and support from SAMAB and NBII-SAIN.
January 2005 - the A.T. Vital Signs Report is released (note: this is a 22MB .pdf file): A.T. Vital Signs Report
May 2005 - An Appalachia Science Interest meeting sponsored by the USGS, NPS, and FWS is held in Virginia.
July 2005 - the Appalachian Trail Conference officially changes its name to the Appalachian Trail Conservancy to better convey the ATC's efforts to manage and protect the Trail environment and resources as well as the footpath.
February-October 2006 - Efforts are launched and carried out for the A.T. Symposium and the initial structure/governance is established with key stakeholders. Initial thematic working groups are established to begin formulating research areas and questions, and planning and communication is facilitated by the A.T. Environmental Monitoring Portal Community.
November 2006 - the Appalachian Trail Environmental MEGA-Transect Symposium is held at the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, WV.
