TWS 2021 Awards Season: Education Awards

The Wildlife Society is accepting nominations for awards through May 1, 2021. The Awards Program annually honors professional excellence, recognizes outstanding achievement, and highlights contributions to wildlife science and management.

The Wildlife Society presents three education-based awards each year: Excellence in Wildlife Education Award, Donald H. Rusch Memorial Game Bird Research Scholarship and Conservation Education Award. These awards recognize and celebrate educators and students who are dedicated to pursuing, supporting and enhancing conservation education.

The Excellence in Wildlife Education Award honors individual faculty members who have gone above and beyond to create a conducive teaching environment and continue to advance the field of wildlife education. Eligible faculty include those who have exceptional performance in teaching undergraduate and/or graduate students in wildlife-related topics. Eligible faculty must also have noteworthy experience with one of the following additional categories: teaching, advising, scholarship of learning and teaching, academic program development and educational leadership. For more information on the nomination criteria and process, click here.

The Donald H. Rusch Memorial Game Bird Research Scholarship was created to honor the late Don Rusch, a conservationist that played an important role in the study and advancement of game bird biology. He stressed the importance of using scientific research to better understand wildlife populations and make informed decisions regarding their management. This year, eligible individuals include graduate students who are currently enrolled in a doctoral program and are studying upland game bird or waterfowl biology and management. For more information on the criteria and application process, click here.

The Conservation Education Award honors individuals who utilize a wide variety of activities to support and stimulate the field of conservation education. The award is given to the following three categories annually on a rotational basis: Writing, Media and Audio-Visual Works, and Programs. The category being honored this year is the Programs category. The Programs category is aimed towards people who are involved in long-term projects that support conservation education that are usually, but not always, supported by either public or private organizations promoting the broad framework of goals and objectives. For more information about the criteria and the nomination process, click here.

All three award nominations/applications are due by Saturday, May 1, 2021 at 11:59 PM EDT. Please check individual awards websites for necessary submission materials and means of submission.

Learn more about TWS Awards

For questions, please contact awards@wildlife.org.