Pictured is Benina Montes of Burroughs Family Farms, the recipient of the 2020 California Leopold Conservation Award. Pusher HQ
There’s still time to nominate a California farmer, rancher, or forestland owner for the 2025 California Leopold Conservation Award®! Each year, the Leopold Conservation Award recognizes a standout steward of working lands and their ethical relationship with the land they manage.
Reading your conservation stories is one of the true highlights of our year, and we can’t wait to learn about more amazing land and resource stewards across California. The application deadline date is July 18, 2025. Click here for Sand County Foundation’s application form. Email applications to award@sandcountyfoundation.org. Please contact us if you’d like to mail in your application: eepstein@suscon.org.
The Award
Sand County Foundation and national sponsor American Farmland Trust present Leopold Conservation Awards to private landowners in 28 states. In California the $10,000 award is presented with Sustainable Conservation and California Farm Bureau Federation.
Given in honor of renowned conservationist Aldo Leopold, the award recognizes landowners who inspire others to consider conservation opportunities on their land. In his influential 1949 book, “A Sand County Almanac,” Leopold advocated for “a land ethic,” an ethical relationship between people and the land they own and manage.
For more information on the award, visit www.leopoldconservationaward.org. If you have any questions about the process, including specific application questions, please feel free to reach out: eepstein@suscon.org.
Past recipients of the California Leopold Conservation Award. Paolo Vescia