The Joseph A. Piehuta Prize is an annual award established in 2009 by the Green Schools Alliance and the National Conservation Training Center in honor of Joseph “Joe” Piehuta who served in the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service from 1977 to 2009 and whose vision helped shape Sc3.

The Piehuta Prize recognizes an Sc3 Student Fellow who exemplifies the values and vision of “Joe” Piehuta through extraordinary, selfless leadership over time, contribution to the goals of Sc3, and commitment to the conservation community.

Joseph A. Piehuta was an extraordinary role model who, like many great leaders and visionaries, led from behind. He would quietly and modestly create the framework for projects to succeed, and others to shine.

Joe’s counsel and advice was the backbone of every team and working group in which he participated. He never sought recognition beyond the satisfaction that he felt from doing the best job possible to help his colleagues make a difference. He believed in under-promising and over-delivering and was always able to help people work through the complexities they brought to the table, determine and clarify a vision, and craft a clear a path to reach the end goal. The result was always elegant in its simplicity.