BIRMINGHAM, Alabama — Texas A&M Forest Service’s John Hawkins received the 2020 Forest Stewardship Program Field Forester Award from the USDA Forest Service in Birmingham, Alabama today.
The award was presented at the Southern Group of State Foresters Summer Meeting. The award recognizes a forester who has worked to preserve, protect and enhance private forestlands through the Forest Stewardship and Rural Forestry Assistance programs.
“The Forest Stewardship Program is a vital resource for private landowners, who own approximately 86% of forested land in the South,” said Scott Phillips, Southern Group of State Foresters (SGSF) Chair and South Carolina State Forester. “It is important to recognize those who go above and beyond, so SGSF is proud to have hosted the FSP award presentation to Mr. Hawkins, who exemplifies a spirit of service to southern forest owners.”
Hawkins has spent his career assisting rural private landowners in achieving sustainable management of their forestlands throughout Texas, Arkansas and Oklahoma. As District Forester in New Boston, Texas, during the past year, Hawkins has written 25 Forest Stewardship Plans on almost 3,492 acres, as well as provided 907 other assists to landowners. Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, Hawkins was able to find ways to continue providing conservation education programs and assisting landowners with their forest management needs.