Give Back program extended to students

As promised at the 2017 Annual Conference in Albuquerque, students are now eligible to nominate and be nominated for The Wildlife Society’s Give Back program.

Starting today, student members of TWS will have the option to nominate one individual for a free, six-month membership in the Society, complete with all the benefits of a full membership. With this new change to the program, any active wildlifer who is not already a TWS member is eligible to be nominated, whether a student or professional.

Originally intended to introduce professionals to the many benefits of a TWS membership, the expansion of the Give Back program comes exactly 11 months after its initial launch in December of last year. Since then, we have been able to showcase the TWS experience to hundreds of nominees. By including students, TWS hopes to reach even more potential members.

Nominees, should they choose to accept their gift membership from a TWS member, will experience all the same benefits as members, including but not limited to:

• Free online access to all TWS publications (The Journal of Wildlife Management, Wildlife Monographs and Wildlife Society Bulletin)
• Bimonthly issues of our magazine, The Wildlife Professional
• Weekly editions of the eWildlifer newsletter and TWS Talks, recorded presentations from the most recent Annual Conference
• Networking opportunities through the TWS Network Online Directory
• Ability to pursue certification opportunities
• A variety of members-only discounts, including $200 off TWS Annual Conference registration
• And much more!

Any current member who renews online will immediately be prompted to nominate a deserving individual for the Give Back program. If you renew through TWS’ paperless automatic renewal program or mail in a paper renewal form, you will receive an email after your renewal is processed with a link that can be used to submit your nomination.

The nomination process is easy:

• Provide the name and email address of the nominee.
• TWS will send an email on your behalf inviting the person to accept your gift.
• The nominee accepts the gift by simply providing a mailing address (to receive The Wildlife Professional magazine).
• The nominee receives a welcome email with member login information. You receive an email confirming that the person has accepted your gift so that you can stay in touch and continue to encourage your nominee to join at the end of the six months.

Before your renewal date sneaks up on you, start thinking about whom you can nominate. It may be a friend or peer at your university, a colleague you’ve worked with in the past, a TWS student chapter or local chapter member who isn’t a member of TWS at the main/international level, or anyone you believe would benefit from a TWS membership and would be a valuable addition to our wildlife science, management and conservation network.