{"id":31853,"date":"2019-10-23T12:00:10","date_gmt":"2019-10-23T16:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sfiprogram.org\/?p=31853"},"modified":"2023-03-22T12:13:18","modified_gmt":"2023-03-22T16:13:18","slug":"t-bently-wigley-wins-award","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/forests.org\/fr\/t-bently-wigley-wins-award\/","title":{"rendered":"T. Bently Wigley Wins the Dr. Sharon Haines Memorial Award for Innovation and Leadership in Sustainability"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"SharonRICHMOND, VA<\/b> \u2014 The Sustainable Forestry Initiative Inc. (SFI) announced the 2019 SFI Dr. Sharon Haines Memorial Award For Innovation and Leadership in Sustainability at the\u00a0SFI Annual Conference today. Dr. T. Bently Wigley, retired Vice President of Forestry Programs at the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement (NCASI), is this year\u2019s winner.<\/p>\n

\u201cBently\u2019s contributions to wildlife and forestry science is extensive and will be influential for decades to come. He was instrumental in setting the precedent for robust, well-designed, and impactful research within the forestry sector, which has contributed significantly to our ability to communicate values of forest management for environmental outcomes with diverse stakeholders and regulatory agencies,\u201d said Darren Miller, Vice President, Forestry Programs at NCASI. \u201cBently truly was as an ambassador for the forest sector.\u201d<\/p>\n

SFI and International Paper created this award to celebrate Dr. Sharon Haines. Sharon was International Paper\u2019s Director of the Office of Sustainability before her sudden passing in 2007.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe award pays tribute to Sharon\u2019s legacy by recognizing exceptional people like Bently who are leaders when it comes to forward-thinking approaches to sustainability and fostering collaboration,\u201d said Tom Cleves, International Paper\u2019s vice president of global citizenship.<\/p>\n

\u201cBently was always among the first people I would contact when seeking guidance or engagement on scientific investigations,\u201d said Paul Trianosky, Chief Conservation Officer at SFI. \u201cHis counsel helped guide the establishment of SFI\u2019s Conservation Impact Project, and specifically contributed to building understanding of conservation outcomes associated with implementation of the SFI standards.\u201d<\/p>\n

The SFI Conservation Impact Project<\/a> is focused on measuring the biodiversity maintained and recovered, the water purified, and the carbon sequestered on forests certified to the SFI Forest Management Standard or managed under the SFI Fiber Sourcing Standard.<\/p>\n

These conservation impact projects represent a significant opportunity to quantify and communicate the positive conservation outcomes associated with the almost 370 million acres\/150 million hectares of SFI\u2011certified forestland in the U.S. and Canada and the tens of millions more acres positively influenced by the SFI Fiber Sourcing Standard.\u00a0Results of the SFI Conservation Impact project will also be considered in the SFI Standard revision process as part of SFI\u2019s commitment to continual improvement and adaptive management.<\/p>\n

Wigley joined NCASI in 1990 as a forest wildlife scientist. Prior to that he was an Associate Professor in Forest Wildlife Ecology at the University of Arkansas-Monticello. He holds a Ph.D. in wildlife ecology and botany from Mississippi State University.<\/p>\n

\u201cScientists like Bently have helped the SFI community understand how the SFI Standards address critical conservation issues. It is a pleasure to recognize Bently for the Sharon Haines Memorial Award as both Sharon and Bently dedicated their professional lives to sustainability leadership in the forest sector,\u201d said Kathy Abusow, President and CEO of SFI Inc.<\/p>\n<\/div><\/div><\/div>

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