North Coast environmental campaigner Dailan Pugh has won the prestigious Alan Strom Hall of Fame award at the annual NSW Environment Awards, presented by the Nature Conservation Council (NCC).
According to the citation, ‘Dailan’s environmental activities relate to forest conservation, but he has been involved in much more. He is well known to NCC and is one of the main spokespersons for the North East Forest Alliance and the North Coast Environment Council.
‘He is a passionate conservationist and artist awed by the vibrancy of the natural world, from deserts and rainforests to beneath the waves. Much of Dailan’s artwork has been published and exhibited and has won numerous awards.
‘His dismay at the carnage and degradation he has witnessed compels him to spend more time on activism than his art.
‘He was admitted in 2004 to the Order of Australia Medal for his services to forest conservation.
‘In the late 1980s Dailan became increasingly involved in forest conservation, preparing national park proposals for rainforests in the upper Clarence valley and co-ordinating legal proceedings to protect a key area of old-growth forest. He was co-founder of the North East Forest Alliance in 1989.
‘In the 1990s, Dailan primarily dedicated his time to forest conservation, being involved in site assessments, research, submissions, networking, blockades, public relations, lobbying and legal proceedings. He represented conservation interests on numerous state and federal government committees, including the Federal National Forest Policy Advisory Committee and NSW Resource and Conservation Assessment Council.
‘The frog Philoria pughii was named in 2004 in recognition of his work. In the early 2010s, Dailan again became increasingly diverted by his activism, focusing on preparing a marine park proposal for federal waters off Byron Bay, auditing logging operations on public and private lands, and working on major development issues around Byron Bay,’ the citation reads.
Other winners
- NCC Member Group Award: Climate change Balmain
Ziggi Megne Volunteer Award: Jason Wu and Carrie Tsai of Repower Coogee
- Rising Star Award: Nicola Groskops (Australian Youth Climate Coalition) and Amy Walburn of Fossil Free UNSW.
- Dunphy Award: Dr Emma Carmody of EDO NSW.
- Marie Byles Award for the most inspiring community action: Colong Foundation for its Wild Rivers campaign.
Nature Conservation Council CEO Kate Smolski said: ‘The environment movement in NSW would be nothing without the thousands of volunteers who work tirelessly to protect the places we love.
‘These awards recognise the work of some of the community’s most outstanding individuals and organisations. They also celebrate the achievements of the movement as a whole.’
The 2018 awards were presented by author and architecture critic Elizabeth Farrelly, NCC Chairman Professor Don White and Ms Smolski on Saturday, October 20.
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