On behalf of the Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) and British Columbia Fish & Wildlife, we are pleased to invite you to participate in the 16th Biennial WAFWA Deer and Elk Workshop being presented June 16th - 19th, 2025.
On behalf of the Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) and British Columbia Fish & Wildlife, we are pleased to invite you to participate in the 16th Biennial WAFWA Deer and Elk Workshop being presented June 16th – 19th, 2025. WAFWA represents 24 states, provinces, and territories and is a strong advocate for their authority to manage fish and wildlife within their borders.
The theme of this year’s event is ‘Modernizing deer and elk management in the face of changing values, technologies, diseases, and habitats.’
The Western States and Provinces Deer and Elk Workshop is a biennial meeting held in odd numbered years sanctioned by WAFWA. The workshop provides a forum where leading deer and elk managers and researchers share research results, management strategies, and emerging issues in the realms of deer and elk management throughout North America.
Coast Bastion Hotel
for more information about this location and reserving a room, click the button below.
Gain exposure for your organization to fish and wildlife professionals, to network, and to exchange information and ideas.
View the Sponsor Brochure for details.
Interested in nominating someone for the Wallmo Award at this year’s workshop? Visit the Wallmo Award page for more information.
This schedule is presented in Pacific Time.
Monday, June 16th
1:00 – 5:00 pm Mule Deer Working Group Meeting
1:00 – 6:00 pm Registration Open
1:00 – 6:00 pm Exhibitor Set Up
6:00 – 9:00 pm Welcome Social
Tuesday, June 17th
7:00 – 8:00 am Breakfast
8:00 – 10:00 am Welcome and Plenary
10:00 – 10:30 am Break with Sponsors & Exhibitors
10:30 – 12:00 pm Concurrent Sessions 1
12:00 – 1:00 pm Lunch
12:00 – 1:00 pm Business Meeting
1:00 – 3:00 pm Concurrent Sessions 2
3:00 – 3:30 pm Break with Sponsors & Exhibitors
3:30 – 5:00 pm Concurrent Sessions 3
6:00 – 8:00 pm Evening Event (tentative)
Wednesday, June 18th
7:00 – 8:00 am Breakfast
8:00 – 10:30 am Field Trip Plenary / Sessions 4
10:30 – 11:00 am Grab & Go Lunch
11:00 – 5:00 pm Field Trip
6:00 – 7:00 pm Poster Social (tentative) & Visit with Sponsors and Exhibitors
7:00 – 10:00 pm Closing Banquet & Awards
Thursday, June 19th
7:00 – 8:00 am Breakfast
8:00 – 10:00 am Concurrent Sessions 5
10:00 – 10:20 am Break & Exhibitor Breakdown
10:20 – 12:00 pm Final Session
The event will be at the Coast Bastion Hotel (11 Bastion Street, Nanaimo, BC V9R 6E4). Rooms for workshop attendees are available for a reduced rate of $229.00 CAD per night. Booking link for Coast Bastion Hotel: https://reservations.coasthotels.com/112016?groupID=4380507#/guestsandrooms.
Additional rooms are available at the Best Western Dorchester (70 Church Street, Nanaimo, British Columbia V9R 5H4) for a reduced rate of $169 (CAD) per night. Booking link for Best Western Dorchester: https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotel-rooms.62076.html?groupId=W18CE6T8.
Rates at both location are available until the cutoff date of May 16, 2025 or until the rooms are sold out, whichever comes first.
For attendees from the United States, or any other locations outside of Canada, please be advised that you will need to follow Canada’s entry and exit requirements. Additional identification such as a valid Passport or Passport card will be required. For U.S. Citizens, please find travel advisement here.
The workshop is in Nanaimo, which is on Vancouver Island in British Columbia. We highly recommend planning your travel earlier than usual to account for this. Additional information is forthcoming, but please find information about some of the common ways to travel to Nanaimo here.
For those requiring air travel, the closest airports are Vancouver (YVR), and Nanaimo Airport (YCD). Nanaimo airport supports 3 carriers (Air Canada, WestJet, and Pacific Coastal Airlines).
The British Columbia Fish & Wildlife invites you to submit an abstract for the 2025 Workshop!
The theme of this year’s event is ‘Modernizing deer and elk management in the face of
changing values, technologies, diseases, and habitats.’ The following Presentations are being requested: Plenary Presentations, 20-minute Contributed Oral Presentations, and Poster Presentations.
Please submit an abstract only if you plan to attend the meeting. Presenting authors must be registered for the conference on the day of their scheduled presentation.
Abstract Submission: The Call for Presentations will open in mid-November.
On behalf of the Western Association of Fish & Wildlife Agencies (WAFWA) and British Columbia Fish & Wildlife, we invite you to participate as a sponsor or exhibitor at our 16th Biennial WAFWA Deer & Elk Workshop. We hope you can join us! More information for sponsors will be posted in December.