Background on Minnesota Rivers
Three experts provided background information on Minnesota Rivers for participants who developed river-related questions at St. John's University on April 29, 2002. The panel was moderated by Dr. Derek R. Larson, assistant professor of history and director of the environmental studies program at the College of St. Benedict and St. John's University. The meeting was facilitated by Brian Stenquist, of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources.
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The Panelists
John O. Anfinson is employed by the National Park Service as a historian for the Mississippi National River and Recreation Area. His book, The River Have Wrought: the Upper Mississippi River to 1940, is scheduled for publication by the University of Minnesota Press in spring 2003. He was St. Paul district historian for the Corps of Engineers from some 20 years, is currently vice-chair of the board of directors of the Friends of the Mississippi, and has a Ph.D. in History from the University of Minnesota.

Bill Lamberts is originally from upstate New York, where he spent much of his youth hiking, canoeing, and camping in the Adirondack Mountains. He moved to Minnesota for graduate school to study about lakes in the department of Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior at the University of Minnesota. While working his way towards a doctorate in ecology, he had the opportunity to explore some of Minnesota's many lakes and rivers. Dr. Lamberts is an assistant professor in the Biology Department at the College of St. Benedict/St. John's University, where he teaches courses in aquatic ecology and environmental science.

Russel Snyder is a project manager with the St. Paul District Corps of Engineers. Mr. Snyder has been with the Corps of Engineers for 20 years and worked as a project manager for 12 years. As a design team leader, Mr. Snyder has worked on several award-winning projects, including the Corps Rochester Flood Control Project and the St. Paul Flood Control Project. Mr. Snyder holds a bachelor's degree in landscape architecture from Iowa State University and is a registered landscape architect in Minnesota.

Panel Moderator:
Dr. Derek R. Larson, assistant professor of history and environmental studies program director at the College of St. Benedict/St. John's University, is an environmental historian specializing in the history of environmental politics and of the American West. He earned his Ph.D. in history from Indiana University and holds master's degrees from Indiana and Yale universities. In addition to teaching a variety of courses in history and environmental studies, he is currently editing a conservation-themed issue of The Journal of the West and revising a book manuscript under the working title Preserving Eden: The Culture of Conservation in Oregon. Dr. Larson has taught at CSB/SJU since 1998.

Meeting Facilitator:
Brian Stenquist is a professional meeting facilitator. Brian has a full-time appointment within the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, where he not only offers his meeting facilitation skills, but also strategic planning, conflict resolution, and stakeholder participation services. Brian is the founder and director of a consulting firm known as Meeting Challenges, which allows him to serve a wider range of clients than just the DNR. Brian is a family man with two beautiful daughters, a wonderful wife, and an energetic sheltie. He lives in the Twin Cities but works around the state, the nation, and sometimes the world.