Honoree Receives Audubon/Toyota TogetherGreen Fellowship
New York, NY: A Bainbridge Island, Washington woman is the recipient of a new national fellowship designed to advance the work of individuals with outstanding potential to help shape a brighter environmental future.
Barbara Sacerdote is one of only 40 people selected from competitors nationwide for the TogetherGreen Conservation Leadership Program, part of a new conservation initiative of the National Audubon Society with support from Toyota. Fellows receive specialized training in conservation planning and execution, the chance to work and share best practices with gifted conservation professionals, and assistance with project outreach and evaluation. Each Fellow will also receive $10,000 towards a community-focused project to engage local residents in conserving land, water and energy, and contributing to greater environmental health.
Sacerdote will focus her efforts on harnessing the power of the Web for conservation, by developing an interactive, online version of Audubon Washington’s “Guide to Bird and Community Conservation”. The printed publication is a layperson’s conservation planning and action tool for protecting special areas throughout Washington State. The online version of the Guide will provide Audubon chapter members with an interactive, guided program, maps of bird populations layered with county data land use, and links to other data in the public domain. The activists can track their work, assess threats, and act to end or diminish these threats.
A pilot version of the printed Guide to Bird and Community Conservation is being tested by the Pilchuck Audubon Chapter. The Chapter is designing and implementing a conservation plan around Port Susan Bay. Located at the mouth of the Stillaguamish River in Snohomish County, the area is critical habitat for tens of thousands of migrating birds, up to 16 species of raptors, large flocks of wintering ducks, Trumpeter and Tundra Swans, and Snow Geese. Port Susan Bay is one of only four sites in Puget Sound that regularly supports more than 20,000 shorebirds in a season.
The interactive Guide to Bird and Community Conservation will be available for the 20,000 Audubon members in Washington State who are, or wish to become, conservation activists.
A skilled fundraiser, Sacerdote is currently the Development Director for Audubon Washington. After holding Development positions at the Rural Development Institute, Pacific Northwest Ballet, and the Tacoma Art Museum, Sacerdote switched mid-career to the field of conservation.
“Barbara is the kind of person who can make a real difference in the health of our environment and the quality of our future,” said Audubon President John Flicker. “Each of our TogetherGreen Fellows demonstrates exceptional environmental understanding and commitment, combined with tremendous potential to inspire and lead others. Together, they represent the talented and diverse leadership the environmental community will need to tackle the huge challenges and opportunities confronting us now and in the years to come.”
“I believe individual action is the greatest force for conservation in America today. As we confront concerns of transcendent importance today - the very survival of the human race and of the planet - it is up to each of us to take personal action to turn the tide in our favor. My project is small in the grand scheme of things, but I hope to provide individuals with a user-friendly tool to protect the 74 Important Bird Areas we have in Washington State. It is up to us to take personal responsibility for these landscapes and ensure they continue to provide our native and migrating birds with relatively abundant food, water, and shelter. After all, these are the basics we need for our own families.”
Sacerdote has been affiliated with Audubon Washington since April 2008. Half of the TogetherGreen fellows come from within Audubon’s far-reaching national network; half channel their environmental efforts through other organizations.
Sacerdote received a Masters degree in arts administration from Columbia University and a Bachelors degree in marketing and journalism from Southern Oregon University. In the past, Sacerdote has served on several Northwest Development Officers Association committees, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, and the Seattle Public Schools Alliance for Education.
“Toyota believes in the power of grassroots efforts to develop the environmental leaders of tomorrow,” said Patricia Salas Pineda, Group Vice President, Toyota Motor North America. “These 40 TogetherGreen Fellows will receive invaluable training for the future while immediately making a difference today with on-the-ground community projects.”
A complete list of TogetherGreen fellows can be found online at www.TogetherGreen.org/fellows.
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