AGM and Invited Speaker (NL Members Only)

Nature London President, Jennifer Evans, will chair the Annual General Meeting.

Please use the registration form above. Registration closes at noon on the day of the meeting. A confirmation will be sent to the email address you enter. The reminder emails will include the link needed to join the meeting on Zoom.

The business portion of the AGM will include:

• approval of the minutes of the 2025 AGM;
• a review of the 2024-25 Annual Report;
• elections for the Board of Directors.

The three documents will be on the website (see ABOUT US – OFFICIAL STATEMENTS AND REPORTS) by January 31, 2026. The E-Newsletter will contain the links. To receive hard copies of these documents, email Cathie Penalagan, Recording Secretary, recordingsecretary@naturelondon.ca.

Nominations for the Board of Directors must be made in writing and received by Don Taves, Past President and Chair of the Nominating Committee, pastpresident@naturelondon.ca, by Thursday, February 12th. As noted in the Nature London bylaws, “Nominations for the Board of Directors may be proposed in writing to the Chairman of the Nominating Committee by any member of the Corporation before the date of the annual meeting, provided that prior agreement of the nominee has been obtained.”

Please note that a quorum of 30 members is required to transact business at the AGM.

A short break for coffee and cookies follows the business part of the meeting. William Van Hemessen is our invited speaker.

Rare fungi of Carolinian Canada

This presentation will explore the fungal diversity of Ontario’s Carolinian Zone. From mushrooms to lichens to molds, the diversity of fungi is expected to outnumber plants by about 5 to 1. In one of Canada’s most botanically diverse regions, the diversity of fungi continues to surprise a small but passionate group of researchers and citizen scientists. 

Biography

William Van Hemessen is a naturalist based in Waterloo Region with a lifelong interest in the diversity of life in Carolinian Canada. He has a master’s degree in ecology and evolutionary biology from Western University and a bachelor’s degree in planning from the University of Waterloo. He has given numerous presentations and workshops on natural history, and regularly leads field trips for the Field Botanists of Ontario and other organizations. In his professional life, William is an environmental scientist at a consulting engineering firm.