Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo and Aquarium’s Director of Conservation Genetics, Dr. Edward E. Louis, Jr., was selected to receive two prestigious international awards this year: the Conservationist of the Year Award from the John Muir Association and the J. Sterling Morton Award from the Arbor Day Foundation.
Dr. Louis was presented with the Conservationist of the Year Award during the John Muir Birthday – Earth Day Celebration at the John Muir National Historic Site in Martinez, California on Saturday, April 20. The John Muir Association’s Conservationist of the Year award honors an individual who has excelled in environmental protection and made significant contributions to the advancement of conservation. The John Muir Association is dedicated to continuing John Muir’s mission of environmental preservation.
On May 24, Dr. Louis will formally accept the J. Sterling Morton Award from the Arbor Day Foundation. The award recognizes an individual who has had a positive impact on the environment due to his or her lifelong commitment to tree planting and conservation. The Arbor Day Foundation is the largest nonprofit membership organization dedicated to planting trees through replanting forests, Tree City USA and community tree recovery.
Dr. Louis has empowered entire communities in Madagascar in the protection of wildlife and restoration of habitats. Since his initial visit to Madagascar in 1998, Dr. Louis developed programs resulting in over 2.5 million trees planted in Madagascar, discovered more than two dozen animal species, supported 74 graduate students from Madagascar, employed 181 full-time and 207 part-time Malagasy people, including 107 women’s association members, and engaged more than 3,000 Malagasy citizens and 141 volunteers from 20 countries in planting trees and monitoring lemurs.
Dr. Louis has been awarded over 100 grants, including IUCN’s Save Our Species, National Geographic Society, and Arbor Day Foundation. His research has resulted in over 160 scientific publications and 19 book chapters and has been featured in multiple environmental documentaries, including with the BBC. Dr. Louis’ experience and expertise makes him a critical resource for helping determine the IUCN’s red list status of lemur species. To learn more about his research, visit OmahaZoo.com/Conservation-Genetics and MadagascarPartnership.org.
To support this work, visit Donate.OmahaZooFoundation.org/Give and designate “Madagascar Biodiversity Project.”
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