BETHEL — An Auburn school science teacher will present a program on Maine lakes and ponds at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 15, at Gould Academy.

Jim Chandler’s program, “Changing Nature of Lakes and Ponds,” will kick off the Mahoosuc Land Trust’s Changing Nature series, Jolan Ippolito of the Trust stated Monday in a news release.

She said Chandler, of North Pond, has been involved in lake uses for many years. He has been coordinating educational programs, overseeing watershed projects and is involved in the eradication of milfoil from Maine ponds.

Ippolito said Chandler is consulting teacher in science for the Auburn School Department and runs the Auburn Land Lab, a hands-on learning center.

“Jim will use his background in water-quality issues to discuss the nature of lakes, water-quality issues and improvement in Maine, aquatic invasive plant prevention and control, the impact of climate change and opportunities to get involved,” she said.

He will illustrate his program with hands-on experiences.

The program will take place at Gould Academy’s McLaughlin Auditorium on Church Street in Bethel. All community members are welcome.

Ippolito said Tuesday that the trust got the idea to launch a “Changing Nature” series of programs after University of Maine at Farmington biology professor Andrew Barton was the guest speaker at the trust’s annual meeting in October.

She said Barton spoke about his latest book, “The Changing Nature of the Maine Woods.” That gave the trust’s Outreach Committee the idea.

Upcoming speakers and programs, which start at 7 p.m. in the auditorium unless otherwise noted, include:

* Rick Karg on “The Changing Nature of Home Energy” on Feb. 26. Karg is the president of Residential Energy Dynamics.

* Ryder Scott on “The Changing Nature of Education for a Sustainable World” on March 26. Scott is the program director for the University of Maine’s 4-H Camp, where the event will be held. It is located at 17 Conservation Lane in Bryant Pond.

* George Jacobson on “The Changing Nature of Climate: Climate Variability and Maine Ecosystems” on April 30. Jacobson is professor emeritus at the University of Maine Climate Change Institute and a Maine state climatologist.

* Joanne Grohman on “The Changing Nature of Farming” on May 21. Grohman is the author of “Keeping the Family Cow.”

* Barbara Murphy on “The Changing Nature of Gardening: Gardening for Resilience” on June 4. Murphy is the University of Maine Cooperative Extension educator. The event will be held at the Rumford Public Library at 56 Rumford Ave. in Rumford.

* Bob Elliott on “The Changing Nature of the Ancestral Androscoggin: Glacial Features of Western Maine” on Sept. 24. Elliott is a naturalist and retired professor with the University of Maine Extension. The program will be followed on Sept. 27 with a field trip.

For last-minute cancellation questions or for more information on the full speaker series, call the land trust office at 824-3806 or visit www.mahoosuc.org.

tkarkos@sunjournal.com