FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE (10-26-06 )
Contact: Dana Putnam, PR/Events Coordinator
Phone: 706-828-2109

SOUTHEASTERN NATURAL SCIENCES ACADEMY
CELEBRATES TENTH ANNIVERSARY AND DEDICATES BUILDING

Southeastern Natural Sciences Academy marked its tenth year of service to the Central Savannah River Area and the entire region June 25, 2006 and officially celebrated its tenth anniversary, October 25, 2006 at Phinizy Swamp Nature Park .

After a warm welcome from Academy Board Chairman Jackie Blanchard, keynote speaker Braye Boardman stated:
“The development of the Academy truly is a grassroots effort that was started in 1996 with Dr. Eidson’s vision…You are now standing in the middle of a project that…links conservation and sustainable management to economic vitality. Many of you may not realize that you are now in the middle of what was once a trash dump. Through Dr. Eidson’s efforts and many others, the trash dump was turned into a series of manmade wetlands that provide tertiary treatment for Augusta’s wastewater…We now have a state of the art wetland treatment complex that incorporates a true urban gem—our very own nature park.” He added, “Cities throughout the southeast and the world envy what our community has—an abundant and affordable water supply. The Academy has been working hard over the last ten years to protect that resource for us and future generations.” Mr. Boardman was named to the Governor’s Savannah River Committee of Georgia by Sonny Perdue in 2005 and currently serves on the Academy’s Board of Directors.

Academy Founder, President, and CEO Dr. Gene Eidson discussed Academy milestones and highlighted Academy plans for the next ten years. He stated: “O ur future limiting resource, regionally and globally, will be water. To meet future demands and to remain economically competitive, we must provide education to encourage stewardship and conduct relevant research to create solutions. Our Savannah River at Risk Initiative is not only an excellent example of a forward thinking program, it is your investment in our future. I believe we are poised to take on the challenge of bringing together scientists, regulatory agencies, and the general public to work as a team. I believe we can play a pivotal role in encouraging Savannah River Watershed stakeholders to embrace the concept of adaptive management in order to balance our needs for water.

Building on our watershed, river, wetland, and ecological restoration research, we will develop a national K-12 Watersheds at Risk program, complete with traveling exhibits for schools. We will feature a Watersheds at Risk lecture series that informs stakeholders of sustainability issues and how each of us individually and collectively can do our part to conserve and wisely use our resources to grow our economy and maintain our quality of life. We will be a leader in training tomorrow’s scientists through innovative K-12 programming, ecology-related undergraduate and graduate courses, and mentoring Master’s and Ph.D. students.

Our research over the next decade will focus on three key areas: water resources, ecology-based technology, and ecological restoration. Our work will help shape water policy and turn brownfields into functional landscapes. We will develop research collaborations through strategic affiliations with universities and national laboratories. We will sustain our research and education programs through competitive research grants and innovative technology funding. We will seek alliances with forward thinking ‘green technology’ companies that provide investment funding for technology development. We built our programs on the public-private funding model and will maintain our community-based philosophy of cooperative conservation – which has served us well.” Dr. Eidson’s address closed with the reading of a letter received that morning from President of the United States , George W. Bush.

The Academy’s Administration Building , funded by the Knox Foundation, was dedicated as part of the night’s festivities. The Academy expressed gratitude to the Foundation for their generous donation, which allowed the Academy to build its Administration Building and unite Academy administrative staff with education and research staff as well as provide a venue for Academy programs. Jeff Knox spoke on behalf of the Knox Foundation.

In conclusion, Jim Gleason, Regional Sales Manager of the Ford Dealer Advertising Alliance and Cherry, Bekaert, and
Holland’s Doug Cates facilitated the drawing for the Academy’s 2006 Ford Escape Hybrid raffle. Kevin King of Bluffton , South Carolina was pronounced the winner.