Know a Nebraska rancher, farmer or
forester who goes above and beyond in the care and management of natural
resources? Nominate them for the 2019 Nebraska Leopold Conservation Award®.
Sand CountyFoundation, the nation’s leadingvoice for conservation of private land, presents the Leopold Conservation Award to private landowners in 14 states for extraordinary achievement in voluntary conservation. In Nebraska,the $10,000 award is presented with Alliance for the Future of Agriculture in Nebraska (AFAN), Cargill and the Nebraska Environmental Trust.
Given in honor of renownedconservationist Aldo Leopold, the award recognizes landowners who inspire others with their dedication to land, water and wildlife habitat management on private, working the land. In his influential 1949 book, “A Sand County Almanac, ”Leopold called for an ethical relationship between people and the land they own and manage.
Nominations may be submitted on behalf of a landowner, or landowners may nominate themselves. The application can be found here.
The application deadline date is March 1, 2019. Applications must be postmarked by March 1, and mailed to:
Leopold Conservation Award
c/o AFAN
5225 S. 16th Street
Lincoln, NE 68512
Selected recipients must be
available for an Earth Day press conference, summer video production, and fall
award ceremony.
The 2018 recipient of the award was RuJoDen Ranch from Chadron.
The winners of the 2018 Leopold Conservation Award were the O’Rourke family of Chadron, Nebraska. The RuJoDen Ranch was formed in 1950 by Jim O’Rourke’s grandparents, Frank and Jerene. Jim, his wife Lora and their children now steward the land with an array of conservation techniques.
The Leopold Conservation Award Program in Nebraska is made possible thanks to the generous support of Cargill, AFAN, Nebraska Environmental Trust,Audubon Nebraska, Nebraska Game & Parks, Rainwater Basin Joint Venture,Sandhills Task Force, Tri-State Generation & Transmission Association, andWorld Wildlife Fund-Northern Great Plains.
