Project Coyote Award Recipients

Celebrating and Honoring Caring, Compassionate Citizens

Every year, Project Coyote recognizes outstanding individuals who have helped promote compassionate conservation and peaceful coexistence on behalf of wild carnivores. These award winners serve as a reminder of the impact each of us can have as part of a united campaign to create a more humane world. We are grateful for the exceptional work each of our awardees has contributed to this crucial cause.

I hope you’ll take a moment to watch the special videos we have made to highlight our awardee’s achievements for wildlife and wildlands. I know you will be inspired.

For Wild Nature,

Camilla H. Fox
Founder & Executive Director

Force for Wild Nature Award: Dr. Martin Griffin

The Force for Wild Nature Award recognizes exemplary achievement in wildlife and environmental conservation.

Recognized as a champion of wildlands and wildlife, Dr. Martin (Marty) Griffin was instrumental in protecting thousands of acres of habitat in Marin and Sonoma Counties in California. He was the core founder of Audubon Canyon Ranch, which grew to include 5,000 acres of four wildlife sanctuaries; he founded Friends of the Russian River, the Griffin Russian River Riparian Preserve, Gina’s Orchard Preserve, and the Marin Environmental Forum. Marty was instrumental in purchases of key parcels of land which prevented the construction of a four-lane freeway and helped protect the wild watersheds surrounding the Point Reyes National Seashore from development. In addition, Marty helped establish a 19,000-acre wildlife preserve in Maui. He was elected a director of the Marin Municipal Water District, where he helped prevent construction of a coastal aqueduct from the Russian River and disposal of watershed lands by future boards, thereby preserving 22,000 acres of watershed and native plant habitats. He is the author of Saving the Marin-Sonoma Coast, the basis for the documentary Rebels with a Cause. He served as captain in the U.S. Army Medical Corps during World War II. He was a distinguished physician in the field of public health epidemiology who received the Governor’s Award for eliminating hepatitis B in the state hospital system. Marty continues to be a force for wild nature and we are honored to have him in our pack as a Project Coyote Ambassador. We wish Marty a happy birthday this month as he celebrates 99 years of making this a better planet for all.

Leader of the Pack Award: David R. Parsons

The Leader of the Pack Award recognizes innovative and pioneering leadership in wildlife conservation.

Project Coyote Science Advisory Board Member David (Dave) Parsons has achieved ground-breaking reforms for native carnivores. Dave has been part of the Project Coyote team since its inception, working tirelessly on predator conservation at the federal, state, and local levels. He served as the expert scientist in our successful coalition effort to ban coyote killing contests in New Mexico, providing invaluable testimony and sharing expertise with our bill sponsors, composing letters and Op Eds, and speaking at numerous venues to galvanize public support. Dave served as a wildlife biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from 1975-1999, and for his last nine years with the agency, he oversaw the reintroduction of the endangered Mexican gray wolf to the American Southwest. In addition to serving on Project Coyote’s Science Advisory Board, he is the Carnivore Conservation Biologist for The Rewilding Institute. Dave was a graduate advisor in the Environmental Studies Master of Arts Program at Prescott College, Arizona, from 2002-2008 (where he served as my graduate school advisor!). Currently, Dave advises Lobos of the Southwest, a coalition that includes Project Coyote and advocates for recovery of the Mexican wolf in the Southwest.

In advocating for the conservation of large carnivores and protection of biodiversity, Dave always emphasizes ethics, compassion and stewardship. He continues to be a leader in challenging efforts to delist gray wolves from the federal Endangered Species Act.

Wildlife Educator of the Year Award: Laura Honda

The Wildlife Educator of the Year award recognizes exceptional achievement in disseminating the message of compassionate coexistence to youth.

Project Coyote’s Wildlife Educator Laura Honda has dedicated her life to teaching students to become valuable and contributing members of their communities. Through our Keeping it Wild program, Laura educates young people about peaceful coexistence with carnivores, fostering respect and compassion for wildlife and contributing to students’ environmental and scientific literacy. Laura’s students have submitted letters to the editor and testified at California Fish and Game Commission meetings in support of the successful efforts to ban bobcat trapping and the awarding of prizes for killing fur-bearing and non-game animals statewide. Laura established the Green Team at her school; students in the program work to make their school zero-waste, energy efficient and water-wise, encourage fellow students to recycle and compost, and maintain a wildlife-friendly habitat in their schoolyard. She has won numerous awards for excellence in teaching, including the California Science Teacher of the Year Award, the National Earth Apple Award, the Terwilliger Nature Educator Award, and the Marin Humane Teacher of the Year Award.

Guardian of the Pack Award: Judy Paulsen

The Guardian of the Pack award recognizes exceptional achievement in promoting Project Coyote’s mission of fostering compassionate conservation and coexistence through community based actions and legislative policy efforts.

I was honored to present Judy Paulsen with Project Coyote’s Guardian of the Pack Award at our film screening of KILLING GAMES ~ Wildlife in the Crosshairs in Albuquerque, New Mexico, earlier this year. Below is an excerpt of my remarks about Judy and her many accomplishments during her tenure with Project Coyote.

Judy dedicated her passion, time and talents to Project Coyote for six years. With her many presentations and tabling events, she has reached innumerable citizens with our message of compassionate conservation and coexistence. She has also personally helped countless individuals address specific coyote conflict situations, likely saving the lives of many coyotes who would have been killed otherwise. I will never forget when I first learned about Judy after reading this New York Times article in which she talked about the brutality of greyhound racing – brutality not only to the greyhounds, but also to the coyotes they were trained to pursue. She has uniquely and compellingly made the link between abuse of both species at numerous venues, often with her beloved greyhound rescue Rowdy by her side. Judy has worked tirelessly to raise awareness about the dangers of traps and poisons to wildlife, and represented Project Coyote in the Trap Free New Mexico coalition. Working closely with our allies throughout the state, Judy contributed significantly to our recent victory in banning coyote killing contests in New Mexico. We’re grateful to Judy for serving our mission, and for making this a better world for coyotes and all persecuted carnivores in North America.

Thank you Marty, Dave, Laura, and Judy for your exceptional guidance and leadership in protecting our wildlife and wildlands!