News.bytes Extra, issue 298

Two from BLM California win 2007 national environmental education awards

Two BLM California employees are among the four winners in BLM’s 2007 "Excellence in Interpretation or Environmental Education" Awards competition.

The GOLD AWARD winner is Tammy Jakl. Tammy is an Interpretive Park Ranger with BLM Hollister Field Office's Fort Ord Project Office.  She received this award "for the wide variety of educational programs, activities, and materials she developed and presented about Fort Ord public lands, as well as the diversity of audiences she reached."

Among many other projects, Tammy was involved in a recent "punk rockers cleanup day" at Fort Ord.

At right: Tammy Jakl and dog among the wildflowers of Fort Ord

A SILVER AWARD winner is Joy Fatooh, a wildlife biologist with BLM's Bishop Field Office.  She won her award "for her contributions to the creation of In the Alabama Hills of Lone Pine, California:  Movie Road Self-Guided Tour, a guide to ten locations that served as the settings for classic Hollywood movies."

The brochure is online at BLM California's Bishop Field Ofice (this is a PDF file, 3.2 megabytes): "Alabama Hills of Lone Pine, California:  Movie Road Self-Guided Tour"

At right: Joy Fatooh preparing to play music with her sisters

According to the announcement:

Each of this year’s winners has done exceptional work with partners and communities to create meaningful interpretive and/or educational experiences and materials for public lands users.  Winners were selected from a slate of BLM nominees by a review panel comprised of BLM staff and partner-group representatives.

Our GOLD and SILVER award winners have been invited to attend the “Excellence in Interpretation” awards ceremony on November 8, 2007, to be held in conjunction with the National Association for Interpretation’s (NAI) 2007 National Interpreters Workshop. 

This year’s workshop will be held November 6-10, 2007, in Wichita, Kansas.  Winners of the U.S. Forest Service’s “Gifford Pinchot Award,” the National Park Service’s “Freeman Tilden Award,” the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ “Hiram M. Chittenden Award,” the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service’s “Sense of Wonder Award,” and NAI’s “Master Interpreter Award” will also be acknowledged during this ceremony.

The two other winners are:

SILVER AWARD winner:  Diane Drobka, Public Affairs Specialist, Safford Field Office, AZ, "for her contributions to the development, production, and marketing of the Southeastern Arizona Birding Trail MapGuide, an enthusiast’s guide to 52 birding sites in southeastern Arizona."

SILVER AWARD winner:  Brenda Wilkinson, Archaeologist, Socorro Field Office, NM, "for her efforts to tell the story of New Mexico’s historic Magdalena Stock Driveway Trail through web presentations, outreach to schools, and other approaches."

BLM California News.bytes, issue 298