<html xmlns:v="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" xmlns:o="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" xmlns:w="urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:word" xmlns:m="http://schemas.microsoft.com/office/2004/12/omml" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/TR/REC-html40">
<head>
<meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<meta name="Generator" content="Microsoft Word 14 (filtered medium)">
<!--[if !mso]><style>v\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
o\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
w\:* {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
.shape {behavior:url(#default#VML);}
</style><![endif]--><style><!--
/* Font Definitions */
@font-face
{font-family:Calibri;
panose-1:2 15 5 2 2 2 4 3 2 4;}
@font-face
{font-family:Tahoma;
panose-1:2 11 6 4 3 5 4 4 2 4;}
/* Style Definitions */
p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal
{margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";}
a:link, span.MsoHyperlink
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:blue;
text-decoration:underline;}
a:visited, span.MsoHyperlinkFollowed
{mso-style-priority:99;
color:purple;
text-decoration:underline;}
p.MsoAcetate, li.MsoAcetate, div.MsoAcetate
{mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-link:"Balloon Text Char";
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:8.0pt;
font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";}
p.MsoNoSpacing, li.MsoNoSpacing, div.MsoNoSpacing
{mso-style-priority:1;
margin:0in;
margin-bottom:.0001pt;
font-size:11.0pt;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";}
span.EmailStyle17
{mso-style-type:personal-compose;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";
color:windowtext;}
span.BalloonTextChar
{mso-style-name:"Balloon Text Char";
mso-style-priority:99;
mso-style-link:"Balloon Text";
font-family:"Tahoma","sans-serif";}
.MsoChpDefault
{mso-style-type:export-only;
font-family:"Calibri","sans-serif";}
@page WordSection1
{size:8.5in 11.0in;
margin:1.0in 1.0in 1.0in 1.0in;}
div.WordSection1
{page:WordSection1;}
--></style><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapedefaults v:ext="edit" spidmax="1026" />
</xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml>
<o:shapelayout v:ext="edit">
<o:idmap v:ext="edit" data="1" />
</o:shapelayout></xml><![endif]-->
</head>
<body lang="EN-US" link="blue" vlink="purple">
<div class="WordSection1">
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">PRESS RELEASE
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">June 25, 2013<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Contact:
<b>Jennifer Ceska, </b>770-540-7129,<b> </b></span><a href="mailto:jceska@uga.edu"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">jceska@uga.edu</span></a><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><b><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance Receives National Award<o:p></o:p></span></b></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Athens, Ga. – The Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance (GPCA, gpca.uga.edu) was recently presented with the 2013 Award for Program Excellence at the American Public Gardens
Association annual meeting in Phoenix, Ariz. Each year the Association honors one of its 500 members for innovation in developing programs and pioneering horticultural disciplines. GPCA joins recipients such as Missouri Botanical Garden, Smithsonian Institution,
and Chicago Botanic Garden.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">GPCA was created in 1995 by
</span><span lang="EN" style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">the State Botanical Garden, Callaway Gardens, the Atlanta Botanical Garden, the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ Nongame Conservation Section, the U.S. Forest
Service, and The Nature Conservancy of Georgia</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""> with the goal of creating a network for statewide conservation projects. The mission of GPCA is to facilitate partnerships among private
and government agencies that have the knowledge, land, and resources to implement high-priority, science-based plant conservation and education projects statewide. The plant conservation priorities of the GPCA developed from the Georgia Natural Heritage Program’s
Biotics database, and reflect the 'high-priority species' and 'high-priority habitats' outlined in the State Wildlife Action Plan (SWAP).<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Almost 20 years later, GPCA includes 31 gardens, organizations, universities, and agencies working together on more than 70 rare and endangered plant species throughout
Georgia. These organizations, ranging from the US Fish & Wildlife Service to Zoo Atlanta, Georgia Power to the Chattahoochee Nature Center, and Georgia Botanical Society to Georgia Native Plant Society, are supported by the Botanical Guardians, a team of citizen
volunteers recruited to help monitor and restore imperiled native plant populations. GPCA has been so successful in meeting conservation goals that several states have created their networks based on the Georgia model, including Alabama, North Carolina, Texas,
and Arizona.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">During the tenure of GPCA, critical mountain bog habitat has been restored to the point where multiple generations of rare plants have reproduced in the wild, a sure sign
of conservation success. More than 55 rare plant species have been brought into cultivation, into temporary safeguarding at gardens for study. And more than 27 rare species have been planted into wild safeguarding sites on protected lands. Two species have
been removed from the GPCA priority project list, because the populations on protected land are thriving in the wild in Georgia.<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">In support of GPCA for the 2013 Program Excellence Award, Peter White, Director of the North Carolina Botanical Garden, described the Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance
as “one of the best integrated conservation programs in the country, reaching across many individuals and institutions.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">“What you see in this program is robust and uplifting,” White added. “It is about plants in the wild. It is about plants in our hands, schools, and landscapes. It is about
plants in botanical gardens. It is about germplasm samples stored for future use and as a last resort for conservation. It is about graduate student projects and public involvement and education at all levels. It is about people and the good they can do when
they work together.”<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><u><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">GPCA Member Organizations:<o:p></o:p></span></u></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Atlanta Botanical Garden</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Augusta State University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Brenau University</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Callaway Gardens</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Chattahoochee Nature Center</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif""><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Columbus State University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Fort Valley State University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Botanical Society<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Department of Natural Resources<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Department of Transportation<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Exotic Pest Plant Council<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Native Plant Society<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Power<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Southern Botanical Garden<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Tech<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Georgia Wildlife Federation<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Station<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Kennesaw State University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Piedmont College<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Southeastern Technical College<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Shorter College<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The Nature Conservancy of Georgia
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">TNC at Fort Benning<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">North Georgia College and State University<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The State Botanical Garden of Georgia<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">The University of Georgia<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">USDA Forest Service<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">US Fish and Wildlife Service, Field Office<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Valdosta State University Herbarium<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Zoo Atlanta<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">
<o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Photo: Jennifer Ceska accepts the award on behalf of the Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance at the 2013 annual conference in Phoenix. (From left, Ray Mims, APGA board
member and Conservation Horticulturist of the U.S. Botanic Garden, D.C.; Jennifer Ceska; David Price, chair of the APGA Awards Committee and Director of Bok Tower Gardens, Fla.)
<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><i><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Times New Roman","serif"">Photo by Darrylee Cohen of Haute Photography (Phoenix, Ariz.)<o:p></o:p></span></i></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:12.0pt">###</span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><img border="0" width="417" height="278" id="Picture_x0020_1" src="cid:image003.jpg@01CE71A7.C437A020"></span><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><o:p></o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" align="center" style="text-align:center"><span style="font-size:12.0pt"><o:p> </o:p></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<div style="mso-element:para-border-div;border:none;border-bottom:solid windowtext 3.0pt;padding:0in 0in 1.0pt 0in">
<p class="MsoNormal" style="border:none;padding:0in"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
<p class="MsoNormal">Jennifer Ceska<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Conservation Coordinator<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">The State Botanical Garden of Georgia<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Center for Native Plant Studies<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Check us out on Facebook<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><span style="color:#1F497D"><a href="http://www.facebook.com/sbgcnps">www.facebook.com/sbgcnps</a></span><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">2450 S. Milledge Avenue<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Athens, GA 30506<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Cell 770-540-7129<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Lab 706-542-6448<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><a href="mailto:jceska@uga.edu">jceska@uga.edu</a><o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">SBG Plant Conservation Program<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Center for Native Plant Studies<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Georgia Plant Conservation Alliance<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Endangered Plant Stewardship Network<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">Georgia Native Plant Initiative<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal">- a Center for Plant Conservation, accredited garden<o:p></o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
<p class="MsoNormal"><o:p> </o:p></p>
</div>
</body>
</html>