WASHINGTON, D.C. (April 9, 2021) –
Steve Berendzen, Refuge Manager at the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge Complex based in Alaska, was named the country’s outstanding Refuge Manager for 2021 by the National Wildlife Refuge Association in Washington, DC. This award recognizes outstanding accomplishments by a refuge manager (project leader) in the protection and management of our national wildlife refuges. The award is given each year in honor of Paul Kroegel, the first manager of the first refuge established in 1903 at Pelican Island, Florida. His dedication and effectiveness set a high standard for those who have followed.
Steve Berendzen has had a remarkable career in support of the National Wildlife Refuge System, working across the system from the Hawaiian Islands to the Alaskan Arctic. Steve has worked his entire career in the Refuge program beginning in 1985 and has worked in numerous regions at both the field and regional office level of the organization.
In his current role as the Refuge Manager of Arctic NWR, Steve is responsible for over 19 million acres of Refuge lands that include about 8 million acres of congressionally designated Wilderness. Steve manages not only the largest but also one of the most complex refuges in the System at a time of dwindling resources and unprecedented challenges.
Steve accepted his role as the Arctic NWR Refuge Manager after the passage of the 2017 Tax Act added the new purpose to the Refuge “to provide for an oil and gas program on the coastal plain”. Steve has done a masterful job at balancing this new legislated purpose with the original purposes established by the 1960 Public Land Order 2214 and the 1980 Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act. Aside from this new adaptive challenge of managing for multiple, diverse refuge purposes, Arctic NWR remains one of the most pristine conservation units anywhere and is internationally sought out by adventurers and explorers seeking solitude in magnificent landscapes as well as remaining an important symbol to those who may never visit in person.
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge covers approximately 19.64 million acres of land and water in northeastern Alaska. The original 'Arctic National Wildlife Range' was established in 1960 "For the purpose of preserving unique wildlife, wilderness, and recreational values..." In 1980 the Alaska National Interest Lands Conservation Act (ANILCA) re-designated the Range as part of the larger Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, designated much of the original Range as wilderness under the 1964 Wilderness Act, and provided four purposes that guide management of the entire Refuge.
The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is home to an incredible array of biodiversity. While the Arctic Refuge is perhaps best known for its resident polar bears, this landscape is also one of the few places on Earth where polar, brown (grizzly), and black bears can be found coexisting. More than 200 species of birds depend on the Arctic Refuge. Every winter, migratory birds travel from the Arctic Refuge to every state and territory in the United States, and some even venture to other continents! Hundreds of thousands of caribou roam the Arctic Refuge. The Porcupine Caribou Herd, the largest within the Arctic Refuge, returns to the refuge’s Coastal Plain each spring to calve and raise their young. In addition to providing habitat for bears, caribou, and migrating birds, the Arctic Refuge is home to wolves, muskoxen, and a multitude of other species of wildlife.
The National Wildlife Refuge System and the 2021 Refuge Awards winners will be celebrated at a reception and dinner on November 16th, 2021 at the Mayflower Hotel in Washington, DC. The event will also be streamed live on Zoom, Facebook, and YouTube allowing everyone to celebrate the accomplishments of the awardees.
The 2021 Refuge Awards program will be MC’d by Wayne Hubbard. Mr. Hubbard is the host and producer of the award-winning program: Urban American Outdoors, which is the first multicultural outdoors TV show in the country, which has been on air weekly since 2003.
Since 1994, the National Wildlife Refuge Association has honored the outstanding accomplishments by refuge managers, refuge employees, volunteers, Friends groups, and refuge advocates through our Refuge System Awards program. The National Wildlife Refuge System depends on the dedication of individuals and groups like this year’s award winners to manage, protect, promote, and enhance the world’s largest network of lands and waters set aside for wildlife conservation.
For more information about the 2021 Refuge Awards or for more information about the National Wildlife Refuge Association, please visit https://www.refugeassociation.org/awards.
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As the leading independent voice advocating on behalf of the National Wildlife Refuge System, the mission of the National Wildlife Refuge Association is to protect, promote and enhance America’s wildlife heritage through strategic programs that serve the System and wildlife beyond its boundaries.
For more information, visit www.refugeassociation.org or contact Courtney Lewis, National Wildlife Refuge Association, 202-577-3200.