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Roland Clement Addresses the 111th Annual Meeting
See the whole speech - click here
The Audubon Society of Rhode Island, the state's first environmental
organization, celebrated 111 years of creating and sustaining
environmental awareness and promoting conservation when 200 members and
supporters gathered at the organization's annual meeting on Sunday,
October 26, at the Providence Marriott Hotel.
The meeting featured a provoking message from keynote speaker
Roland Clement, Audubon's first full-time executive director. He led
the independent Audubon from 1950-1958 before becoming the National
Audubon Society's headquarters biologist in New York City.
The Audubon Society of R.I. changed direction under Clement's
leadership, developing into an environmental organization concerned not
just about birds and wildlife, but also the protection of valuable
habitats.
Correlating the state of bird and human populations, Clement told
the audience, "Basically, the problem is that there are now too many of
us making too many demands on the planet's productive systems...we
transposed too much forest to agriculture, and we over-fished the
oceans...we cut corners and polluted the atmosphere, the waters, and
the land itself."
"The more humble function of environmentalists is to be the
ecological conscience of the human community...we will learn to green
the cities. We will also learn that survival is built on cooperation,
not on competition," Clement concluded.
Audubon also premiered a short film, Connecting People with Nature,
produced to promote the Society through the telling of the
organization's past and present with glimpses of the future. The
project was funded by The Howard Bayne Fund and produced by Paul
Erickson Studios, of Beverly, Mass.
At the meeting, the Society elected four new members for the 2008-2009 Board of Directors.
They are: Robert Parker, of East Greenwich, an attorney with the law
firm McIntyre, Tate & Lynch, LLP, is a strong advocate for
maintaining and expanding the state's permanent open space and
heightening the public's understanding and appreciation for the
critical necessity of that space. He has been successful in preserving
open space in his own town by advocating at town planning and zoning
board meetings against sprawl.
Suzanne Paton, of West Kingston, works for the U.S. Fish and
Wildlife Service in R.I., and serves as the Senior Biologist for the
R.I. National Wildlife Complex. She oversees all biological programs
for the five local National Wildlife Refuges, which have involved
numerous habitat restoration, research, and monitoring efforts and
coordination with a wide variety of partner organizations and
landowners.
Cynthia Warren, of Wickford, is an attorney with the law firm,
Cameron & Mittleman. She has extensive experience dealing with
governance issues in non-profits and drafting bylaws and policies.
Warren also has experience with land use issues from serving on the
North Kingstown Conservation Committee and testifying before
legislative committees at the State House.
Richard Wilkins, of Providence, is principal and owner of Concordia
Intel, a strategic consulting and market research firm working with
non-profits to create sustainable revenues. He has extensive experience
in strategic planning, plan execution, and generating revenue. His
expertise extends to strategic alliance development and management as
well as management of legal agreements and financial data.
Additionally, the Audubon presented its annual awards for Business,
Educator and Volunteer of the Year. The 2008 recipients are: Business
of the Year Award went to SolarWrights, an alternative energy company
under the guidance of founder and president Bob Chew, of Bristol.
SolarWrights is a socially and environmentally responsible business
serving the Northeast with attractive, efficient renewable energy
systems, including photovoltaic, solar thermal, and wind systems. Chew,
a solar designer and contractor, is nationally recognized in renewable
energy and green building design and construction.
The North Smithfield PTO, a model of support for children's
education, won the Audubon's Educator of the Year Award. The visionary
group had the foresight 10 years ago to start raising funds for
enrichment programs to enhance student learning. With input from
teachers, the PTO has funded science, arts, and other cultural
programs. Audubon has worked with the PTO each year since 1998,
providing hands-on, environmental-based education programs to North
Smithfield elementary classes.
Volunteer of the Year is Mary Jo Murray, a tireless octogenarian,
who has faithfully led group bird walks on Tuesday mornings in
Charlestown since 1990. A South Kingstown resident, Murray is a retired
schoolteacher. Besides being an avid birder, she has served on the
Audubon's Kimball Wildlife Sanctuary Committee. This marks her final
year of leading the Tuesday walks.
The Audubon Society of Rhode Island began in 1897, initially
protecting birds and their habitats. Today, the Audubon addresses a
comprehension mission in three areas - environmental education, land
conservation and advocacy. Counting more than 17,000 members and
supporters the Audubon staff teaches more than 33,000 school children
annually - many at the Environmental Education Center in Bristol - and
enlightens thousands of others through a wide array of nature-oriented
programs and special events.
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