WASHINGTON, D.C. - A high school teacher in Washington State with a passion for environmental education and the founder of a land conservation group in New Jersey today received 2002 Environmental Excellence Awards from International Paper and The Conservation Fund.

The awards, each accompanied by a $10,000 grant from the International Paper Company Foundation, were presented at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. The Honorable James Connaughton, chairman of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, delivered the keynote address. Presenting the awards were George O'Brien, IP's senior vice president of Forest Resources and Wood Products, and Patrick Noonan, chairman of The Conservation Fund.

"These awards recognize partnerships between conservation and business, and they encourage a better understanding of the complex relationship between a clean environment and a healthy economy," Connaughton said.

The International Paper Environmental Education Award, formerly the Gene Cartledge Award for Excellence in Environmental Education, recognizes those who have shown special skill in encouraging a better understanding of the complex relationship between a clean environment and a healthy economy.

The 2002 honoree for the Environmental Education Award is Harlan Kredit, a high school teacher at Lynden Christian School in Lynden, Wash. Through Kredit's leadership and clear focus, he has developed a model environmental education program that is centered on long-term watershed restoration and incorporates student leadership and community involvement.

Kredit's classes have built and operated a salmon hatchery for 23 years. So far, 2,000 students have been involved in the project. To improve salmon habitat, his students have planted more than 15,000 trees and shrubs along the riparian zone of Fishtrap Creek, the stream that borders the high school campus. Additionally, his students completed stream surveys that form the basis for streamside restoration by local planning agencies. This year, as he has for the past 17 years, Kredit will spend his summer working as a park ranger/naturalist in Yellowstone National Park and teaching environmental education at The American Wilderness Leadership School in Wyoming on his days off.

"It is inspiring to meet individuals who have given such personal time and effort to make a difference for others," O'Brien said. "Harlan and Linda have set a standard that we should all strive to reach each day. At International Paper, we also have a strong commitment to conservation and the environment. We work hard to make a difference and we like to recognize others that do as well."

The International Paper Conservation Partnership Award, formerly the Alexander Calder Conservation Award, now in its 14th year, recognizes individuals who protect habitat in the United States through a partnership between business and conservation.

The 2002 award was presented to Linda Mead, executive director of the Delaware & Raritan Greenway in Princeton, New Jersey. This past year, under her dynamic leadership, the organization applied innovative and highly effective techniques to protect 14 properties worth more than $42 million. To accomplish this, Mead built strong, effective and productive partnerships with communities, public agencies, corporations and individuals.

Mead also founded the Delaware River Greenway Partnership, the Land Use Forum of Bucks County that resulted in a $59 million bond referendum in the southeastern Pennsylvania community and the Significant Natural Areas Protection Program. She is a cofounder of the Delaware River Sojourn, an eight-day annual canoe trip, highlighting protection of the Delaware River through corporate sponsorship and partnership with federal, state, and local agencies.

"Today we're celebrating the successes of two environmental and conservation heroes," Noonan said. "Harland and Linda remind us of how much we can achieve when we work together. Their accomplishments show us the power of partnerships and demonstrate the importance of innovation and personal commitment."

The Conservation Fund (http://www.conservationfund.org ) acts to protect the nation's legacy of land and water resources in partnership with other organizations, public agencies, foundations, corporations and individuals. Seeking innovative conservation solutions for the 21st century, The Fund works to integrate economic and environmental goals and to foster greater cooperation between the business and conservation communities. Since its founding in 1985, The Fund has helped its partners safeguard wildlife habitat, greenways, community "greenspace" and historic sites totaling more than 3.2 million acres throughout the nation. Headquarters are in Arlington, Virginia.

International Paper (http://www.internationalpaper.com ) is the world's largest paper and forest products company. Businesses include paper, packaging, and forest products. As one of the largest private forest landowners in the world, the company manages its forests under the principles of the Sustainable Forestry Initiative(R) program, a system that ensures the continual planting, growing and harvesting of trees while protecting wildlife, plants, soil, air and water quality. Headquartered in the United States, at Stamford, Conn., International Paper has operations in nearly 50 countries and exports its products to more than 130 nations.

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