Janice Gardner wins Jim McDonough Award

Janice Gardner, the executive director of Sageland Collaborative and a tireless advocate for wildlife, has received the Jim McDonough Award for her contributions to the state of Utah and across the Intermountain West.

The award is an annual recognition created in honor of Jim McDonough, who has been a leader in the Northeast Section and New England Chapter for many years. Like Gardner, the award winners must be members of TWS—both the national organization and the local chapter where they live—as well as Certified Wildlife Biologists®. Award winners are recognized for involvement in the Society as well as being a “true professional.”

“I am beyond grateful to The Wildlife Society for recognizing our community because it is so important we celebrate the wins in our work,” Gardner said. “I feel honored to receive the Jim McDonough Award and be part of an impressive list of other wildlife professionals who have received this recognition.”

Gardner has worked in the field of natural resources for more than two decades, including a stint as an environmental consultant. During this time, she helped to conserve the greater sage-grouse (Centrocercus urophasianus) lek in Henfer, Utah, from development and helped residents around Salt Lake City’s Miller Park ensure that nesting and breeding birds would not be disturbed by ongoing restoration work. She’s also served on the board of directors at Great Salt Lake Audubon.

In her current role at Sageland Collaborative, she launched the Riverscape Restoration program that heals riparian systems and reintroduces beavers (Castor canadensis); the Rosy-Finch Project, a multi-state effort including community science surveys to study the elusive alpine bird; and the Intermountain West Shorebird Survey, a monitoring program that monitors critical habitat for migratory birds at Great Salt Lake and beyond.

“There is no single individual in the state of Utah more qualified for this honor, as Janice’s distinguished service to wildlife conservation has been felt by everyone that works in this sector,” said Austin Green, a conservation biologist at Sageland Collaborative, in his nomination letter for Gardner. Nomination letters also poured in from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program, the Utah Department of Natural Resources, Great Salt Lake Audubon and Utah’s Hogle Zoo touting her strong yet empathetic leadership skills and commitment to inclusivity in wildlife management and conservation.

Gardner has been involved in TWS since her undergraduate days when she was a part of the University of New Hampshire’s student chapter. TWS left a lasting impression on her and helped her develop her professional identity as a wildlifer. “I am deeply invested in keeping the profession we love strong because our wildlife and lands need us,” Gardner said. “I encourage us all to support The Wildlife Society because of how they are supporting our hard work in return.”

For Gardner, one of the many highlights of her job is the people she works with. While working in conservation can be challenging—and the setbacks often discouraging—having positive and uplifting collaborators motivates her to keep fighting to protect the natural world. “I am grateful that I work with an organization and team that invests in appreciating each other, through achievements big and small,” she said. “I am thrilled when I can uplift my peers in the community, and I am so humbled they nominated me for the Jim McDonough Award.”