Texas Master Naturalist Program receives Stephen Kellert Award
National award recognizes outstanding contributions to conservation; connecting people with nature
The Texas Master Naturalist Program received the 2024 Stephen Kellert Award from the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies for substantial contributions to connecting people with the natural world and conservation.
The award was recently presented at the agency’s 114th annual meeting in Madison, Wisconsin.
Established in 1998 as a partnership between the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, the Texas Master Naturalist program is the first naturalist program of its kind in the nation to be implemented on a statewide scale. It has served as the model for other states seeking to harness the power of volunteers for the benefit of natural resources.
Mary Pearl Meuth, Texas Master Naturalist assistant state coordinator with AgriLife Extension, Bryan-College Station, credited the recognition to the network of dedicated volunteers who promote and support the program.
“All that the program has accomplished to advance conservation and connect Texans with nature is made possible by our dedicated and passionate cohort of volunteers,” Meuth said. “I am so thrilled to see their ongoing contributions recognized at the national level.”
Recognizing more than 25 years of impact
The Texas Master Naturalist program develops a corps of well-informed volunteers through a rigorous curriculum and hands-on training. Those volunteers provide education, outreach and service dedicated to the beneficial management of Texas’ natural resources and natural areas within their communities.
Currently, the program is comprised of 49 chapters serving 213 counties across the state.
“On average, we have 6,000 active Master Naturalists contributing volunteer hours each year,” Meuth said. “Our volunteers help state agencies accomplish goals on a large scale.”
In 2023 alone, Texas Master Naturalists logged more than 553,000 volunteer hours on projects such as collecting research data, tagging monarch butterflies, leading guided hikes, developing educational curriculums, providing small-acreage land management consultations and more.
About the association and award
Founded in 1902, the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies is a non-profit organization representing wildlife agencies across North America to advance science-based wildlife management and conservation in the public interest.
Each year, the Stephen Kellert Award recognizes an individual, group or agency effort for outstanding conservation service that has a significant, ongoing and wide geographic impact.
