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Petersburg’s Karisa Garner wins Aldo Leopold Award PETERSBURG, Alaska –
Petersburg Ranger District
Wilderness Ranger Karisa Garner is the recipient of the national 2018 Aldo Leopold Award for Overall Wilderness Stewardship. Karisa is recognized for her excellence in wilderness stewardship because
she has successfully grown the Wilderness program through education, field monitoring, and bringing together staff, partners, and citizens around a common stewardship purpose.
Karisa found new ways to solve problems and steward the 610,030 acres in Tebenkof Bay, Kuiu, Petersburg Creek-Duncan Saltchuck (PCDS) and the Stikine-LeConte Wilderness area.
Some examples of Karisa’s award winning efforts include:
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bringing an aritist-in-residence to the Wilderness annually to elevate awareness of Tongass NF wild spaces;
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coordinating
with partners and implementing a large-scale invasive species monitoring and hand-removal project;
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maintaining an up-to-date Wilderness education plan with Leave No Trace and Wilderness Stewardship objectives;
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establishing a week-long field education program with Petersburg and Kake middle school students to monitor stream morphology; and
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leading a pilot program for Wilderness character monitoring.
For interviews and information to be used for publication, contact the Tongass Public Affairs Officer at 907-228-6201.
The mission of the U.S. Forest Service, an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is to sustain the health, diversity and productivity of the nation’s forests and grasslands
to meet the needs of present and future generations. The agency manages 193 million acres of public land, provides assistance to state and private landowners and maintains the largest forestry research organization in the world. Public lands the Forest Service
manages contribute more than $13 billion to the economy each year through visitor spending alone. Those same lands provide 30 percent of the nation’s surface drinking water to cities and rural communities and approximately 66 million Americans rely on drinking
water that originated from the National Forest System. The agency also has either a direct or indirect role in stewardship of about 900 million forested acres within the U.S., of which over 130 million acres are urban forests where most Americans live.
Karisa Garner leads selected “artist in residence” on multiple-day kayak trips in the Tebenkof Wilderness. # |
