FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Amanda Nickerson, Communications Specialist
Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests
(603) 224-9945, ext. 301

Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood to Deliver Keynote at Forest Society Conference

Saving Special Places focuses on land conservation

Living on Earth Host Steve Curwood to Deliver Keynote at Forest Society Conference Saving Special Places focuses on land conservation

Concord, N.H., March 28, 2007— Steve Curwood, executive producer and host of Living on Earth, the weekly environmental news and information program distributed by Public Radio International to 300 public radio stations, will be the keynote speaker at the sixth annual Saving Special Places conference in Londonderry, New Hampshire, on Saturday, April 14.

“The Forest Society is delighted and honored that Mr. Curwood accepted our invitation to address some of the most dedicated conservationists New Hampshire has to offer,” said Dijit Taylor, director of the Center for Land Conservation Assistance (CLCA), a program of the Forest Society that provides guidance for towns, organizations and individuals looking to permanently protect land

Curwood’s relationship with public radio goes back to 1979 when he began as a reporter and host of Weekend All Things Considered. He also hosted NPR's World of Opera. Steve has been a journalist for more than 30 years with experience at NPR, CBS News, the Boston Globe, WBUR-FM/Boston and WGBH-TV/Boston.

Curwood shared the 1975 Pulitzer Prize for Public Service as part of the Boston Globe's education team. He is also the recipient of the 2003 Global Green Award for Media Design, the 2003 David A. Brower Award from the Sierra Club for excellence in environmental reporting and the 1992 New England Environmental Leadership Award from Tufts University for his work on promoting environmental awareness. He is president of the World Media Foundation, Inc. and lectures in Environmental Science and Public Policy at Harvard University. He lives in southern New Hampshire with his wife and family and manages his own small woodlot.

The sixth annual Saving Special Places conference--presented by the CLCA, the University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension, and the NH Office of Energy and Planning, and locally co-hosted by the Southeast Land Trust of New Hampshire, and the town of Londonderry--will be held at Londonderry Middle School on April 14, 2007 from 8:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. The conference will host 250 conservationists from around the state. Attendees—including members of conservation commissions and other municipal officials as well as staff and volunteers with local and regional land trusts--will enjoy a day of networking, land conservation and fundraising workshops, and educational fieldtrips.

Also on tap is the annual presentation of the Sarah Thorne Award, given to an individual who has gone beyond working on their own conservation projects and endeavors to increase the capacity of others to permanently protect land and natural resources. It is the only statewide award that is given without regard to the recipient’s organizational affiliation.

Forest Society President/Forester Jane Difley challenges conference participants to attend each year and share how they have used what they’ve learned.

“To preserve the economic vitality and way of life we enjoy in New Hampshire today, we must permanently protect our working forests, wildlife habitat, water resources, farmland and important community landscapes across the state,” Difley said. “Attending the Saving Special Places conference is one way to turn your passion for that mission into action in your own community.” Saving Special Places – 2007 is primarily sponsored by Ransmeier & Spellman PC, with additional support from Kapala Kittredge Associates, NH Conservation Real Estate, Baldwin, Callen & Ransom PLLC, Crafts Appraisal Services, New England Forestry Consultants, The Trust for Public Land, Wiggin & Nourie PA, Benthien Associates, Dwight Keeler & Company Real Estate and Norton Asset Management, Inc.

Conference registration costs $55 and includes lunch. To learn more about the workshops offered or to register please visit the CLCA website, call Trish Churchill at 603-224-9945 or email signup@forestsociety.org by Monday April 9, 2007.

The Society for the Protection of New Hampshire Forests is the state’s oldest and largest non-profit land conservation organization. In order to preserve the quality of life New Hampshire residents know today, the goal of the Forest Society, in partnership with other conservation organizations, private landowners, and government, is to conserve an additional one million acres of the state’s most significant natural lands for trails, parks, farms and forests by 2026.

###