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Lauren Weisenberger pollinating Hesperomannia arbuscula. (photo courtesy of the Oʻahu Army Natural Resources Program)

Lauren Weisenberger, with the Oʻahu Army Natural Resources Program, Pacific Cooperative Studies Unit of the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, was honored with the David Given Award for Excellence in Plant Conservation for her exceptional contributions to conservation of rare plants in Hawaiʻi. She was presented with the award during the 6th Congress of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) in Honolulu.

Weisenberger’s research on critically rare Hawaiian plant species has guided restoration of viable populations of critically endangered plants from a few remaining individuals. She was a lead author of the Hawaiʻi Strategy for Plant Conservation, a regional complement to the Global Strategy for Plant Conservation. Weisenberger has made extraordinary and lasting contributions to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species and their conservation in Hawaiʻi. She is a volunteer member of the Advisory Council for Laukahi: The Hawaiʻi Plant Conservation Network and a member of the Hawaiian Plant Specialist Group of the IUCN Species Survival Commission.

Weisenberger received her PhD from the Department of Botany at UH Mānoa.

More about the David Given Award

The David Given Award was established by the Species Survival Commission of the IUCN in 2012 to enhance the profile of plant conservation and encourage outstanding efforts of young plant conservation professionals. This award is named for the late David Given to honour his outstanding contributions to global plant conservation.

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