Wednesday Nite at the Lab
press release: WN@TL goes hybrid both with Zoom and with in-person (Room 1111) presentations. The zoom registration link is still go.wisc.edu/240r59. You can also watch a live web stream at on YouTube.
On September 21 Michael Menon, Airport Wildlife Hazards Program Manager with the Bureau of Aeronautics of the Wisconsin Department of Transportation; and graduate student at the Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies, will speak on “At the Intersection of Wildlife & Aviation.”
Description: In this talk I will be bringing to light the topic of wildlife hazard mitigation at airports, including an introduction to the problem as well as an exploration of what scientists & airport personnel are doing to keep aviation safe. I will also briefly touch on my graduate research projects at Wisconsin on wildlife in & around airports.
Bio: I moved to Wisconsin from the Georgia coast. Prior to that I was in Dubuque, Iowa for a few years. Before living in Iowa, I lived in Athens, Georgia. I received my BA in Political Science from the University of Georgia. I currently work for the Wisconsin DOT at the Bureau of Aeronautics where I work on improving safety at airports through the mitigation of wildlife hazards to aviation. While aviation has always been a part of my career, my interest in natural resource conservation developed after graduating college when I had the opportunity to work for several summers in New Zealand, Australia, and Fiji for the University of Georgia’s Discover Abroad program which focuses on sustaining human societies and the natural environment. I am excited to be able combine my aviation background with my interest in natural resources as I pursue my graduate degree at the Nelson Institute under the guidance of David Drake. My thesis research focuses on identifying the driving factors behind wildlife presence in the airport environment and modeling wildlife strike probability. I like to spend my spare time traveling, hiking, and birding. Madison is an awesome place, and I feel very fortunate to have landed here!
Explore More: https://wisconsindot.gov/