Lifetime Achievement Award

The Alaska Conservation Foundation established the Lifetime Achievement Award to celebrate the accomplishments of remarkable individuals who have devoted significant parts of their lives to effectively protecting and enhancing Alaska’s natural greatness, and to thank them for their tireless dedication and advocacy. Each recipient has made Alaska a more exceptional, wondrous place.

2008 Award Recipient

Tom Meacham of Anchorage, Alaska

Tom Meacham has practiced environmental and natural resources law in Alaska since 1971. Professionally, he has been in private law practice in Anchorage with two law firms and in a solo law office during that time. In public service, he was the Assistant Alaska Attorney General responsible for land and conservation issues during the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) enactment process in Washington, DC in 1976-82.  Since he arrived in Alaska courtesy of the US Army in 1967, he has been active as a legal volunteer on a variety of issues involving federal and state parks, wildlife, public land management and access, and water allocation.  He has been involved in public-interest litigation on snowmachine use in Denali National Park, mining claims in Chugach National Forest, and Board of Game issues.

In 1975, Tom was appointed by Gov. Hammond as the first non-hunter on the Alaska Board of Game.  He also served on the Alaska Water Resources Board, the Chugach State Park Citizens Advisory Board (including three years as chair), and as vice-chair of the Far North Bicentennial Park Task Force. Tom is a co-founder of the Hans Van Der Laan Brooks Range Trust, the Alaska Quiet Rights Coalition, the Friends of Bicentennial Park, and the Chugach Park Access Coalition.  Over the past four decades, he has authored numerous well-written letters to the editor on topics ranging from the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act (ANCSA) and ANILCA, to access to public lakes, and wolverine trapping in state parks.  His invaluable efforts on behalf of Alaska’s public resources have been instrumental in protecting this wonderful state.

2006 Award Recipient

Dr. Richard K. Nelson

Dr. Richard Nelson is a cultural anthropologist and creative nonfiction writer whose work focuses on human relationships to the natural world. Nelson has lived in Alaska for the better part of the last four decades.   During this time, Nelson has become one of Alaska’s most famous conservationists, both professionally through his books which include Hunters of the Northern Ice,  Shadow of the Hunter, Make Prayers to the Raven, and The Athabaskans; and personally through his service as a board member of the Sitka Conservation Society for the last twenty-five years and willingness to speak about the value of Alaska’s wildlife, waters and wildlands for just about any conservation organization that needs a hand.

Nelson’s work has always focused in on the personal, including The Island Within, a personal journey into the natural world surrounding his home, which received the John Burroughs Award for nature writing.  One of his more recent projects is Encounters, a weekly, half-hour radio series broadcast on public radio stations throughout Alaska, which explores the natural world and human relationships to the environment in Alaska.  As one fan states, “Nelson will leave you more curious about our Earth and motivated to find your own way to participate in preserving America's wild places.”

Dr. Nelson’s full career as an anthropologist, writer, and journalist has been guided by Alaska’s amazing places, wildlife, waters and peoples. As a man, he has lived according to his values with respect for the world of wildlife, waters and wildlands which sustain him. For the last four decades, Nelson has brought Alaskans and Americans closer to the natural world with an unparalleled whit and respect. Alaska Conservation Foundation is honored to present his with the highest honor we can bestow the Lifetime Achievement Award.

2004 Award Recipients

Peg Tileston

Peg Tileston has been guiding Alaska’s conservation movement ever since the pioneering activist set down roots in the state more than three decades ago. She helped launch a number of environmental organizations; among them are Alaska Center for the Environment, the state’s largest grassroots conservation group, Trustees for Alaska, Alaska Conservation Foundation, and Alaska Common Ground. She helped establish National Wildlife Federation’s Women’s Environmental Network (AWEN). Since its inception in 1994, AWEN has created networking opportunities and training workshops that empower women and further their involvement in the conservation movement. Her tireless effort and enthusiasm within Alaska’s conservation community have been nothing short of astounding.

Lowell Thomas, Jr.

Lowell Thomas, Jr.’s lifelong dedication to Alaska’s wildlife and parks has made and continues to make an indelibly important contribution to Alaska. As Alaska State Senator and Lieutenant Governor, Lowell worked diligently to protect and preserve Alaska’s wildlife, wilderness, ecosystems, and sustainable communities for present and future generations. He was instrumental in the establishment of Chugach State Park and stepped forward when the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was threatened. For decades, he has been a significant supporter of many conservation groups and efforts, including the National Parks Conservation Association, Alaska Conservation Foundation, Boy Scouts of America, and Alaska Pacific University’s Nordic skiing program. As a pilot and author, Lowell has shared his passion for the environment with many others.

 James and Mary Lou King

James G. and Mary Lou King are lifelong conservationists living in Juneau. Jim worked as a biologist with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service for most of his career, advocating wildlife conservation in Alaska, and was instrumental in establishing nine national wildlife refuges protecting over 23 million acres. Jim’s specific passion is birds, and he has been an innovator in the field waterfowl population surveys, developing schemes to measure migratory bird populations throughout the state. Mary Lou taught high school for six years before moving to Juneau in 1958. Following their marriage, she and Jim lived in Interior Alaska, returning to Juneau in 1964. Her volunteer work coordinating the Seaweek Program led her to write about the trails in Juneau in her book 90 Short Walks Around Juneau.