COLUMBUS, OH - Ohio is a charter member of the new Natural Resources Leadership Council of the States (NRLCS), a bipartisan organization that for the first time brings together heads of state agencies charged with conservation, resource management and outdoor recreation.
Sam Speck, director of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) and Ohio's representative on the council, said the new organization will strengthen partnerships between the states while helping coordinate state activities and federal programs to enhance the management and conservation of America's natural resources.
The NRLCS brings state leaders together for a valuable exchange of ideas and experiences, Speck said. It also provides a national forum to foster better understanding of the challenges and accomplishments of state natural resources agencies.
Speck also serves on the NRLCS executive committee, representing a six-state Great Lakes region that includes Ohio, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin
The idea for the new organization came from an October 2001 natural resources summit, organized by The Conservation Fund, a national non-profit organization headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, that is dedicated to land and water conservation in America. With support from the Richard King Mellon Foundation, The Conservation Fund brought together natural resources directors from 45 states last fall to discuss innovative partnerships and multi-state collaborations, stewardship and management of public lands and opportunities to work more collaboratively with the federal agencies.
State directors met again in April 2002 to establish a formal organization, and in late July the NRLCS received approval to officially organize under auspices of the National Governors Association. Greg Walcher, executive director of the Colorado Department of Natural Resources was elected council president.