The Wyss Foundation has awarded fellowships to two students at the University of Michiganí¢â‚¬â„¢s School of Natural Resources and Environment (SNRE) as future leaders in Western land conservation issues.

The 2010 Wyss Scholars (listed with their SNRE field of academic study) are: Amanda Barker (Environmental Policy and Planning) and Brittney Van Der Werff (Behavior, Education and Communication).

í¢â‚¬Å“While the University of Michigan is not located in the Wyss Foundationí¢â‚¬â„¢s Intermountain Western focus area, SNRE was chosen to host Scholars because of its national reputation and the extraordinary reputation of its alumni who work in leadership positions in conservation agencies and organizations across the Western United States,í¢â‚¬  said Steven L. Yaffee, an SNRE professor and director of the Ecosystem Management Initiative, which is based at SNRE.

Barker and Van Der Werff will be recognized at a reception and dinner Wednesday, March 17.

The Wyss Scholars Program for the Conservation of the American West was designed to identify and nurture a generation of leaders on Western land conservation issues. This is the third year SNRE students have been eligible for a Wyss Scholars fellowship; other schools participating in the program are the University of Montana, Yale University and Northern Arizona University.

The Wyss Foundation administers the program; SNRE fellows are chosen during the first year of their masterí¢â‚¬â„¢s program and are selected based on dedication, need and merit.

The program covers up to half of the tuition and expenses of earning a masterí¢â‚¬â„¢s degree. Half of the award is made during the masterí¢â‚¬â„¢s program; the remainder is available for Scholars who enter qualifying employment. Scholars are also awarded up to $5,000 to cover their summer research or internship to provide conservation work experience. For the purposes of the Wyss Scholars program, the American West is defined as eastern Oregon, Idaho, Wyoming, Montana, Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada or Colorado.

About the U-M School of Natural Resources and Environment:
The School of Natural Resources and Environment's overarching objective is to contribute to the protection of the Earth's resources and the achievement of a sustainable society. Through research, teaching, and outreach, faculty, staff and students are devoted to generating knowledge and developing policies, techniques and skills to help practitioners manage and conserve natural and environmental resources to meet the full range of human needs on a sustainable basis.
http://www.snre.umich.edu

About the Wyss Foundation:
The Wyss Foundation is a private, charitable foundation dedicated to land conservation in the Intermountain West. It supports a variety of conservation and community organizations, as well as scholarships and fellowships to support the next generation of leaders on western land conservation.
http://www.wyssfoundation.org/

About the Ecosystem Management Initiative:
The mission of the Ecosystem Management Initiative is to promote sustainable natural resource management through ecosystem-based teaching, research and outreach through a series of interconnected strategies.
http://www.snre.umich.edu/ecomgt/index.htm