Albert Morris Award

For an outstanding Ecological Restoration Project

This award commemorates the visionary work led by Albert Morris in creating the Broken Hill Regeneration reserves, commencing in 1936

[1]

The Albert Morris Award will be judged again this year –  and will be presented at the Society for Ecological Restoration Australasia dinner.

Download the 2018 call for nominations

Prize: Certificate and trophy

Criteria for selection:   Projects must demonstrate many of the following characteristics:

  • Innovation in terms of techniques or approaches
  • Strong ecological basis
  • Substantial progress along its trajectory to 5-star recovery
  • Monitored to quantify progress against original goals
  • Provides ecosystem services relevant to community
  • Reduction or mitigation of impacts from neighbouring areas
  • Secure conservation arrangements for the foreseeable future
  • Strong and growing links to environmental education programs
  • Potential to substantially influence the broader communities understanding of and need for continued uptake of ecological restoration

Eligibility:  Any individual, group of individuals or organisation in Australasia (see SERA website for geographical extent) is eligible from all biomes including terrestrial and aquatic.

NOMINATION AND JUDGING

Nominees or nominators need not be members of the Society but nominees must be communicated through an SERA member, and applicable criteria must be met in order for a nomination to be considered.

The SERA Awards Committee will select recipients of Awards I-III, based on the selection criteria and limited to 2000 words. The Albert Morris Award recipient will be selected by the Albert Morris Award Committee with representatives from the four initiating Partner organisations. The National Standards for the Practice of Ecological Restoration in Australia will be used as a judging guide for all awards (see http://seraustralasia.com/standards/contents.html).

Applicants are asked to structure their nominations using the selection criteria as subheadings and are encouraged to use images and data to demonstrate effect and benefit of their program (including before and after). Additionally, each submitted application should provide a one-minute video to summarise their work and outcomes. The Committee may also seek supporting evidence for a given nomination in the form of publications, site visits, photographs, letters of recommendation from independent referees, or any other appropriate documentation.

PRESENTATION OF AWARD

This year’s awards will be presented during an Awards Dinner at the biennial SERA Conference on Ecological Restoration to be held in Brisbane on the 27thof September, 2018. Recipients will be notified in advance of the conference.

All applications become the property of SERA and with approval may be used on the SERA website and at the Awards presentation.

Enquiries: info@albertmorrisaward.org 

Tein McDonald 0458 565 654

[1]Albert was assisted by a range of individuals and organisations particularly Margaret Morris, The Barrier Field Naturalists Club, Broken Hill City Council, The Mine Managers’ Association and the NSW government.

 

AABR also sponsors two awards that are given each year to outstanding students undertaking Conservation and Land Management Courses at TAFE.

Beverley Blacklock Prize

The Beverley Blacklock Prize is presented to the student with the highest marks in their CALM studies at Ryde TAFE.

Beverley Blacklock of Castlecrag in Sydney was an early adherent to the Bradley method and a notable force in keeping Castlecrag ‘native’ through bush regeneration and by using local native plants provided by her nursery in the gardens of Castlecrag. She integrated her love of landscape, architecture, history and nature and she had a strong sense of community values. She had a major influence on bush regeneration and her premature death in the 1980s was a sad loss to the industry.

(Thanks to Robin Buchanan for the text)

Mark Foster Memorial Award

The Mark Foster Memorial Award is presented annually to the outstanding student at the Central Coast Campuses of TAFE. It is sponsored by Marks friends Garon Staines and Paul Malligan.

Mark Foster died in January 2010 in a motorcycle accident near his home on the Central Coast. Mark, also known to many as Foz, is remembered as a great bush regenerator and friend of the earth. He worked for the National Trust and Total Earth Care in the 1990s, was a founding member of the Bushland and Rainforest Co-operative. He worked for northern Sydney councils as a bushcare trainer before running his own contracting business, Engedi Environmental Services, which principally operated on the Central Coast. He was an AABR member, gave generously to various charities and undertook much overseas aid work.

Mark’s departure was a loss for the industry, the bush and the planet. He had a deep intuitive knowledge regarding resilience  and the re-instatement of natural systems. He was a true believer in the Bradley inspired ‘good’ bush priority philosophy. He had a tremendous capacity for hard work and the sensitivity required for finer weeding. Mark always brought good cheer, laughs, energy and positivity to a site and was inspiring in his knowledge and love of rainforest and permaculture. He was a generous and humble soul in so many ways and is loved and missed by many.

(Thanks to Matthew Bailey for the text)