The Upstate Update: May 2021

The Upstate Update is a digital newsletter curated and shared each month that offers insights into Upstate Forever's recent work, highlights upcoming events and volunteer opportunities, and shares other conservation and advocacy news.

We post the Upstate Update here on the Upstate Forever blog each month. If you would like to receive the Upstate Update directly in your email inbox, please sign up for the mailing list.

The special edition Spring/Summer 2021 Upstate Advocate has arrived!

While we chose not to host our annual ForeverGreen Luncheon this February due to COVID-19, we still wanted to celebrate these incredible local people who have dedicated their lives to making their communities greener, cleaner, and more just. You can click here to read the special edition of the Upstate Advocate, our twice-yearly print publication, celebrating this year's honorees or click the links below to learn more about each of these conservation champions. 

BRAD WYCHE EXTRAORDINARY ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Dr. David L. Hargett, for his visionary 10-year tenure as Executive Director of Lake Conestee Nature Preserve

MARJORIE E. SCHMIDT STEWARDSHIP AWARD
Judy Cromwell, for her quiet, lifelong dedication to the protection of the Upstate’s greenspaces 

TOMMY WYCHE LAND CONSERVATION CHAMPION AWARD
Dr. J. Drew Lanham, Alumni Distinguished Professor of Wildlife Ecology at Clemson University, for decades of teaching, research, and writing that have made the field of conservation more accessible and inclusive

ENVIRONMENTAL EQUITY & JUSTICE AWARD
Sustaining Way, for their work to cultivate a thriving, sustainable, and equitable environment in Greenville’s Nicholtown and surrounding communities

LAND PLANNING & POLICY CHAMPION AWARD
Ginny Stroud, former Community Development Administrator with the City of Greenville, for her dedication to neighborhood revitalization, improvement, and affordable housing in Greenville

CLEAN WATER CHAMPION AWARD
The Southern Environmental Law Center, for their work to defend the Clean Water Act, mitigate the effects of coal ash pollution, and hold Kinder Morgan accountable for a huge gasoline spill in Anderson County

View this month's Upstate Update

Also in this month's update:

• A celebration of the iconic Grant Meadow
  On the final day of Earth Month, we were joined by the Grant family, South Carolina Conservation Bank, and others to celebrate the recently expanded protection of Grant Meadow in Pickens County. Read more
   
• Celebrate Land Trust Day with us
  Each June, Mast General Store hosts Land Trust Day in celebration of the work of land trusts like Upstate Forever. This year, Mast General is donating 20% of the Greenville store's sales on Saturday, June 5 to UF! While you're shopping, you can stop by our table in the store from 10 am - 5 pm to chat with our team about UF's conservation work.
   

• Dive deeper into The Color of Law
  Did you attend Impact Greenville's recent virtual event with Richard Rothstein, author of the critically-acclaimed book The Color of Law? You can join an online book club to discuss specific chapters from the book about redlining and intentional government residential segregation. Click here to learn more and register for each remaining session

View this month's Upstate Update

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