Capital Soup

Florida News Straight From the Source

You are here: Home / Archives for Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida

Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida

FWC Biologist Kipp Frohlich Receives Rodney Barreto Employee of the Year Award for Imperiled Species Work

Posted on

The nonprofit Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida has announced Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC) biologist Kipp Frohlich as its 2017 – 2018 Rodney Barreto FWC Employee of the Year.

The award was presented to Frohlich at the FWC’s public meeting on Feb. 7. 

“We are honoring Kipp Frohlich today for many reasons, including his effective work over the past year bringing forward for Commission approval a plan to create 13 new Critical Wildlife Areas for protection, and improve five existing areas,” said Foundation Board Chair Richard A. Corbett. “These fragile nesting and roosting colonies for pelicans, herons, egrets, terns, plovers and other colonial shorebirds are located around the state and have been stressed by nearby human activity. Kipp and his FWC colleagues held 14 public workshops, working with federal agencies and many local stakeholders to strike a balance between conservation and nearby recreation. Formal designation and management improvements for all 18 were approved unanimously by the Commission.” 

During his 30-year career, Frohlich has worked to resolve potential conflicts regarding the management of imperiled species. This includes representing FWC on Manatee Recovery Teams, working to improve stakeholder and partner participation in sea turtle conservation, and representing FWC on the Panther Recovery Implementation Team. While working to achieve consensus on these often-contentious conservation issues, Frohlich has earned the respect and trust of stakeholders and partners.      

As deputy director of the FWC’s Division of Habitat and Species Conservation, Frohlich played a key role in developing FWC’s scientifically robust Imperiled Species Management Plan for 57 priority rare and endangered species in Florida. Development of the ISMP required involvement of diverse stakeholders and wide-ranging partner engagement. He was intricately involved in the legal and policy elements of the plan, and continues to support implementation of the plan. 

“I’m very honored to receive this award,” Frohlich said. “FWC is a family and everything cited by the Foundation required the teamwork of many passionate people with whom I’m honored to work.”

The Rodney Barreto FWC Employee of the Year Award is named for its first recipient, Miami native and entrepreneur Rodney Barreto, who served as chair of the FWC for seven of his 10 years as Commissioner. Mr. Barreto currently serves on the Board of the Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida and other conservation organizations.

The nonprofit Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida supports the work of the FWC and other public and private conservation organizations, with offices in Tallahassee and St. Petersburg. The Foundation has raised and given away more than $26 million for conservation and outdoor programs for youth since its founding in 1994. For more information about the Foundation, visit wildlifeflorida.org and our social media sites.

FWC’s Scott Sanders Receives Humphrey Award for Career Achievement

Posted on

Parks and nature preserves have often been called America’s great gift to the world. They are, but by themselves, they’re not enough to ensure a lasting future for American’s wildlife. How privately-owned lands are managed has a huge impact on wildlife populations. 

Fortunately, America has an equally remarkable legacy of wise land management by private landowners. In Florida, in fact, more than 3.3 million privately owned acres are enrolled in Florida’s Wildlife Best Management Practices for Agriculture and Silviculture. One of the leaders in this effort, Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s (FWC) Scott Sanders, was honored this week for a career devoted to working with private landowners to improve wildlife habitat. 

Sanders was presented the 2017-2018 Louise Ireland Humphrey Achievement Award by the Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida at the FWC’s public meeting Feb. 7. Named for the late conservationist, Red Hills landowner and former FWC Commissioner Louise Ireland Humphrey, the award was created to recognize outstanding service and achievement by FWC staff over the course of their careers.

“We are honoring Scott Sanders today for his career-long dedication to wildlife management on private lands,” said Foundation CEO Andrew Walker. “He has been one of Florida’s most consistent advocates within government for acknowledging the needs and perspectives of private landowners on conserving fish and wildlife. He led the team that created the Wildlife Best Management Practices now in place for 3.3 million acres of private Florida lands.” 

Sanders was also an early advocate for “adaptive management,” helping develop and promote a quantifiable approach to land stewardship that adapts the latest scientific information and on-the-ground practices to specific landscapes, adjusting management strategies as needed to maximize habitat quality while meeting the landowner’s other needs. Entire landscapes have benefitted from this landowner-by-landowner approach: Florida’s once-threatened longleaf pine ecosystem, for example, has increased from 2 to 4 million acres during Sanders’ career.  

“It’s a great honor to receive the Louise Ireland Humphrey award,” Sanders said. “Working with private landowners for so many years has been very rewarding and has benefitted fish and wildlife everywhere in Florida.”

The nonprofit Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida supports the work of the FWC and other public and private conservation organizations, with offices in Tallahassee and St. Petersburg. The Foundation has raised and given away more than $26 million for conservation and outdoor programs for youth since its founding in 1994. For more information about the Foundation, visit wildlifeflorida.org and our social media sites.

FWC Investigator Paul Hein Receives Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation Award

Posted on

Monroe County resident Paul Hein, a law enforcement officer with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), has received the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation Award for Marine Conservation.  
Investigator Hein was honored at the December FWC Commission meeting in Gainesville for his exemplary performance conserving marine resources and ensuring public safety through enforcement of state Boating Under the Influence regulations. Fish & Wildlife Foundation CEO Andrew Walker made the presentation on behalf of the GHOF. 
“Investigator Hein was nominated by his colleagues in recognition of his dedication, teamwork in and outside FWC, and overall record enforcing state conservation and boating laws,” Walker said. “His undergraduate and graduate training in biology and ecological restoration and conservation enhances his ability to work with the public and numerous partner organizations and outdoor recreation groups.” 
In addition to collaborating daily with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office and Florida Highway Patrol, Investigator Hein regularly assists the U.S. Coast Guard and U.S. Border Patrol with migrant landings and search-and-rescue missions in coastal waters. He’s also worked with youth on Islamorada and donates fish to the Florida Keys Wild Bird Rehabilitation Center for food for the birds. He’s been honored as the Coastal Conservation Association’s 2016 Officer of the Year and, along with five of his colleagues, by Mothers Against Drunk Driving for efforts to prevent boating under the influence. He’s also a member of the FWC’s first south Florida dive team and a certified Drug Recognition Expert. 
“Investigator Hein’s performance since joining the FWC in 2014 has been outstanding,” said Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation Executive Director Greg Jacoski. “His work ethic, conservation knowledge, and judgment and skill working with the public make him a strong conservationist of marine resources and protector of safety on the water.” 
Investigator Hein will be receiving a $1,000 honorarium and a two-night stay at a Guy Harvey Outpost as part of the Award. 
The Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation, in partnership with the Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida, created the Guy Harvey Marine Conservation Award to recognize sworn and non-sworn FWC employees who distinguish themselves through exemplary service and dedication to public safety and acts or accomplishments toward the conservation of Florida’s marine resources. Investigator Hein is the second FWC staff member to be honored, following Officer Philip Stone’s recognition earlier this year for his success protecting Florida’s sea turtle populations. 
About Guy Harvey
Guy Harvey is a unique blend of artist, scientist, diver, angler, conservationist and explorer, fiercely devoted to his family and his love of the sea. His childhood passion for the ocean and its living creatures not only inspired him to draw, but fueled a burning interest that prompted a formal education in marine science. Having graduated with honors in marine biology from Aberdeen University in Scotland in 1977, Harvey returned home to Jamaica to resume his education, earning his Ph.D. from the University of the West Indies in 1984. Though he gave up a budding career as a marine biologist for that of a highly acclaimed artist, Harvey has continued his relentless pursuit to unravel the mysteries of the sea, traveling the world to better understand the habits and habitats of the marine wildlife he paints. For more information, visit GuyHarvey.com. 
About the Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation
The Guy Harvey Ocean Foundation conducts scientific research and hosts educational programs aimed at conserving the marine environment. The GHOF also funds affiliated researchers working to better understand our ocean ecosystem, and educators helping to foster the next era of marine conservationists. The GHOF will help ensure that future generations can enjoy and benefit from a properly balanced ocean ecosystem. 
About Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida
The Fish & Wildlife Foundation of Florida is a nonprofit organization that raises funds to enhance the conservation work of the FWC and other public and private partners. FWFF also supports the Florida Youth Conservation Centers Network, which annually provides more than 120,000 youth with formative outdoor experiences via summer camps, school programs and other activities. For more information, visit WildlifeFlorida.org or call 941-809-7805.