Please join us in honoring Dan Wisniewski of Middleton, the winner of the 2017 Harold “Bud” Jordahl Lifetime Achievement Award.
Dan has dedicated over 40 years of his life to conservation through a career in state and local government and as a volunteer. He has influenced public policy that benefits land and water conservation in Wisconsin, while increasing communication and collaboration among a range of conservation groups and government agencies.
Through his roles with groups like Trout Unlimited, Northwoods Land Trust, Pheasant Branch Conservancy, the Dane County Parks Commission, and the Wisconsin Board of Commissioners of Public Lands—and through his keen ability to foster collaboration between a variety of conservation groups and government agencies—Dan helped secure funding for stream restoration and improved public access.
He helped direct an extremely successful local conservation program to secure Knowles-Nelson Stewardship Program funding. He initiated a program that identifies quality natural-area lands, which led to the sale of about 12,000 sensitive acres to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, and he played a key role in advocating for the 65,000-acre Wild Rivers Legacy Forest in northeast Wisconsin.
Dan is currently helping to build a Dane County Parks Endowment to better support the efforts of several thousand county park volunteers. Those who have worked with him talk about his passion for conservation and his savvy approach to fundraising and public policy advocacy.
“Dan has spent years—decades—working steadily and effectively on a variety of levels to conserve lands and waters and provide the public with access to them. His efforts have helped his communities, his state, and the nation to accomplish those goals.” — John (Duke) Welter, Trout Unlimited
