Welcome to the registration request page for AKN DoD Regional Training being held in-person at NAVFAC SW in San Diego, CA, January 30 – February 1, 2024. Training will run from 0800-1700 each day. Registration is open to all DoD users. Travel is required for this training.

Please fill out the questions below to submit your registration request. Submitting this form does not guarantee you a seat in the training.

Note: we have a cap of 25 people for this training; a waitlist will be created once all seats are filled. There will be additional training sessions in the future.

Travel Information: 
For attendees that need to travel by plane, San Diego International Airport – SAN is the closest airport. The classroom building address is: 750 Pacific Hwy, San Diego, CA 92101.

We do not have a block of hotel rooms reserved, but there are several options in San Diego that should offer a government per diem rate.

Stay tuned for week-of logistics.

Course Description:

On 24 Jun 2022, the Office of the Secretary of Defense issued a memo that endorses and requires the use of the Avian Knowledge Network (AKN) by each DoD Component. The power of the AKN and its tools are dependent on getting data uploaded and users trained on the system. In support of DoD’s use of the AKN, the DoD Legacy Program is funding regional, in-person, DoD AKN training sessions. Sessions will equip users with the knowledge and skills to utilize the data management system and decision-support tools within the system in support of DoD’s participation in the AKN.

Attendees will learn how the AKN system is organized, how to create project metadata and input data, how data sharing levels work, and how to visualize, analyze, and aggregate data for conservation purposes. Participants will leave with the capability to upload, archive, access, and use extensive avian data tools to assist in NEPA analysis and assessing impacts of readiness and non-readiness activities directly supporting the military mission.

This training session will take place over three days. Two days will be classroom instruction on the AKN system and focus on DoD’s coordinated and comprehensive approach. The third day will include a field component where attendees will complete a field survey with standardized sampling methods and return to the classroom to directly input data into a DoD “Project” within the AKN.

Instructors include engineers and biologists from Point Blue Conservation Science, Klamath Bird Observatory, and U.S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center – Environmental Laboratory.

There is no cost for this training except for participant travel expenses.

For any questions, please email the DoD AKN Team at DoDAKN@erdc.dren.mil.