The British Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (BWRC) Symposium will take place on November 21st 2020. BWRC is a volunteer-run charity which aims to promote the welfare of wildlife casualties whilst in captivity and after release back into the wild, and to ensure that casualties are handled within the framework and spirit of the law.
This year's event has been created by Writtle University College lecturer and BWRC Chair, Terri Amory, in collaboration with fellow BWRC trustee Lucy Bearman-Brown from Hartpury University, and will feature a range of experts from throughout the sector.
The virtual symposium has attracted an outstanding selection of guests. The keynote speech will be delivered by the former Head of Animal Welfare of the World Association for Zoos and Aquariums (WAZA), Sabrina Brando, who will cover: 'An introduction to compassion awareness: Take care to give care'.
Other speakers include Neil Forbes, a leading bird vet, who will talk about vulture rehabilitation alongside a range of UK wildlife topics. The ethics of wildlife rehabilitation will be covered by Senior Lecturer at Swansea University, Dr Dan Forman. In addition, recent Bioveterinary Science graduates, Abigail O'Malley and Elliesha Lee, will be delivering presentations outlining the results of their projects, which were done as part of their placement at South Essex Wildlife Hospital.
Terri Amory commented: "We're delighted to welcome many leading voices within the sector to the 2020 BWRC Symposium, and hope that using a virtual platform will enable rehabilitators from all over the country (who can't always leave their patients to travel to attend conferences) to take part. This is a fantastic opportunity to come together to discuss new developments and share the latest research and statistics."
Bioveterinary Science course manager Nieky van Veggel said: "The fact that the conference will host two Writtle Bioveterinary Science graduates demonstrates the quality of placement projects undertaken by our Bioveterinary Science students."