WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 14, 2021) –
This week, the National Wildlife Refuge Association announced the winners of the 2021 National Wildlife Refuge Association Refuge Awards.
All of the 2021 National Wildlife Refuge Association Refuge Awards winners will be celebrated at a reception and dinner on November 19th, 2021 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC. The event will also be streamed live on Zoom, Facebook, and YouTube allowing everyone to celebrate the accomplishments of the awardees.
The 2021 Refuge Awards program will be MC’d by Wayne Hubbard. Mr. Hubbard is the host and producer of the award-winning program: Urban American Outdoors, which is the first multicultural outdoors TV show in the country, which has been on air weekly since 2003.
Since 1994, the National Wildlife Refuge Association has honored the outstanding accomplishments by refuge managers, refuge employees, volunteers, Friends groups, and refuge advocates through our Refuge System Awards program. The National Wildlife Refuge System depends on the dedication of individuals and groups like this year’s award winners to manage, protect, promote, and enhance the world’s largest network of lands and waters set aside for wildlife conservation.
The National Wildlife Refuge Awards Program, sponsored by the National Wildlife Refuge Association, is designed to honor outstanding accomplishments by Refuge Managers, Refuge System employees, volunteers, Friends groups, and Refuge System advocates. Recognizing the excellence of these individuals and groups not only highlights the dedication and devotion of those who support the Refuge System but also raises awareness about the diversity of the National Wildlife Refuge System, the challenges it faces, and the innovative efforts across the country to meet those challenges.
The Refuge Awards Program began in 1994 when the program was first announced in the Association’s newsletter, the Flyer. The idea of the program was inspired by Bill Ashe, Northeast Representative, Board member, and, later, President of the National Wildlife Refuge Association. It began with two award categories: the Paul Kroegel Refuge Manager of the Year Award and the Volunteer of the Year Award. Ashe was given the task of implementing the program and developed the initial selection criteria and administered the selection process. He also successfully solicited the National Audubon Society (Audubon) to serve as a co-sponsor of the program.
The Employee of the Year Award was added in 1995 with a matching funds grant from the NFWF. However, the program continued to be co-sponsored by the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Audubon. The National Wildlife Refuge Association launched the Friends Initiative in October 1996 in cooperation with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). As the success of that initiative grew, a fourth award called the Friends Group of the Year Award was added in 1999. In that year, that award and the Volunteer of the Year Award were sponsored by the National Wildlife Refuge Association and NFWF, with the Paul Kroegel and Employee of the Year Awards sponsored by the National Wildlife Refuge Association and Audubon.
In 2000, Audubon discontinued its participation in the program. All four awards were co-sponsored by the National Wildlife Refuge Association and National Fish & Wildlife
Foundation until 2013. Currently, the National Wildlife Refuge Association is the sole sponsor of the program. Nominations are solicited from the USFWS, Friends Groups, other federal, state, and local government agencies, private individuals, and conservation organizations.
All awards were presented at the North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference by the Director of the USFWS until 2002. In 2002 and later, the Friends Group and Volunteer awards have been presented at the National Friends Conference (2002, 2003, 2005), the National Refuge Friends Advocacy and Media Boot camp (2004), or some other appropriate venue. All of the 2021 National Wildlife Refuge Association Refuge Awards winners will be celebrated at a reception and dinner on August 19th, 2021 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC. The event will also be streamed live on Zoom, Facebook, and YouTube allowing everyone to celebrate the accomplishments of the awardees.
For more information please visit https://www.refugeassociation.org/awards.
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As the leading independent voice advocating on behalf of the National Wildlife Refuge System, the mission of the National Wildlife Refuge Association is to protect, promote and enhance America’s wildlife heritage through strategic programs that serve the System and wildlife beyond its boundaries.
For more information, visit www.refugeassociation.org or contact Courtney Lewis, National Wildlife Refuge Association, 202-577-3200.