“We’re proud to present the Leopold Conservation Award in partnership with the Timber Producers Association to honor the voluntary conservation work of private landowners, such as Gerry Mich, in Wisconsin,” said Dr. Brent Haglund, President of Sand County Foundation.
Mich applied his expertise to conservation enhancements on 213 acres in Shawano and Outagamie Counties. There, he restored swamp white oak to the land and used pine and oak as buffer zones to stop soil erosion into the Wolf River. Mich and his family further enhanced wildlife populations by adding a pond and leasing 30 acres to a farmer neighbor whose corn and soybean crops provide winter forage for turkey and deer populations.
Mich serves as a role model for the conservation community. He is a co-founder and Executive Director of a landowner organization called Wisconsin Family Forests. He also serves as chair of the Wisconsin Woodland Owners Association, Wolf River Chapter.
Paul DeLong, Wisconsin Chief State Forester, in his supporting letter of recommendation, said the recognition of Mich for the Leopold Conservation Award serves a “dual purpose.”
“Gerry’s personal efforts to restore his land and help others do likewise deserve praise,” DeLong wrote. “At the same time, and more to Gerry’s purpose in applying for the award, the recognition could advance the environmental causes he’s dedicated himself to.”
Given in honor of famed conservationist Aldo Leopold, the Leopold Conservation Award recognizes extraordinary achievement in voluntary conservation. In his influential book, A Sand County Almanac (1949), Aldo Leopold called for an ethical relationship between people and the land they own and manage, which he called “an evolutionary possibility and an ecological necessity.”
“We look to recognize those who produce much more than quality grain, beef or wood products, the Leopold Conservation Award acknowledges those who also produce clean water and diverse habitat,” said David Allen, Sand County Foundation Vice President. “Gerry Mich is an excellent example of what this award is about.”
The Leopold Conservation Award will be presented every other year in Wisconsin, beginning in 2006, by Sand County Foundation and the Timber Producers Association of Michigan & Wisconsin. The award was presented in the Legends Club Room at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis.
For more information, visit www.leopoldconservationaward.org, or contact Brent Haglund, bhaglund@sandcounty.net, 608-663-4605 x24.
ABOUT SAND COUNTY FOUNDATION
Sand County Foundation (www.sandscounty.net) is a private, non-profit conservation group dedicated to working with private landowners to improve habitat on their land. Sand County’s mission is to advance the use of ethical and scientifically sound land management practices and partnerships for the benefit of people and their rural landscapes. Sand County Foundation works with private landowners because the majority of the nation’s fish, wildlife, and natural resources are found on private lands. The organization backs local champions, invests in civil society and places incentives before regulation to create solutions that ensure and grow. The organization encourages the exercise of private responsibility in the pursuit of improved land health as an essential alternative to many of the commonly used strategies in modern conservation.
ABOUT THE LEOPOLD CONSERVATION AWARD
The Leopold Conservation Award is a competitive award that recognizes landowner achievement in voluntary conservation. The award consists of a crystal depiction of Aldo Leopold seated on a horse and a check for $10,000. In 2006, Sand County Foundation will present Leopold Conservation Awards in Wisconsin, Nebraska, Wyoming, Colorado, Texas, and California. Sand County Foundation plans to offer awards in four additional states in 2007.
ABOUT THE TIMBER PRODUCERS ASSOCIATION OF MICHIGAN & WISCONSIN
The Timber Producers Association of Michigan and Wisconsin is an organization established in 1940, serving professional landowners, resource managers, loggers, truckers and converting facilities, while promoting public understanding that our Lake States Forests are an important sustainable source or natural resources.
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