Friday, December 19, 2008

Dear friends of Ag Council,

We are now accepting nominations for the Agricultural Council of California’s 2009 COOPERATIVE LEADER AWARD.

This very special award is presented annually to individuals who have made substantial contributions to agricultural cooperatives in California through their leadership, involvement and commitment. Examples of contributions include, but are not limited to:

• Innovation in productivity
• Environmental stewardship
• Sustainability
• Proven leadership

We recommend that you provide enough information for the steering committee to evaluate your nominee according to the selection criteria. Background information and support letters play an important role in the committee's evaluation process.

Please send your nominations to the Agricultural Council at your earliest convenience. The final date for submitting your nomination is close of business (5pm) on January 16, 2009. We will recognize the recipient at a special luncheon held during our 2009 Annual Meeting.

Click here to download the official nomination form.

Cooperative Leader Award Call for Nominations

We are pleased to invite nominations for the 2009 Agricultural Council of California – Cooperative Leader Award. Nominations are due by January 16, 2009, and award will be presented during the Agricultural Council of California Annual Meeting on Tuesday, March 3, 2009.

The Award
The purpose of the Award is to publicly recognize and honor one who clearly has made significant contributions to agricultural cooperatives, or has demonstrated leadership and personal commitment beyond the normal expectations of a person serving the cooperative sector.

Contributions may include leadership accomplishments, activities that improve and/or promote cooperatives, special efforts to mobilize membership, or a life’s work in service to cooperatives. Recognition may also include innovation in productivity, environmental stewardship, sustainability and/or proven leadership.

Nomination and Selection Process
We welcome nominations from member organizations that are well-acquainted with the leader and can attest to their qualifications.

Selection Criteria
The leader(s) we seek to recognize may be working as a cooperative farmer or professional who has demonstrated excellence in productivity, innovation and/or environmental sustainability. The Cooperative Leader Award recognizes an individual leader who demonstrates a commitment to agriculture and cooperatives and:

• Displays leadership attributes in their involvement and contribution to agriculture and cooperatives; or
• Advances innovative and effective solutions to significant positive media and public relations for agriculture and cooperatives.

Selection Process
The selection process has several stages, over the next several months:

• Each member organization of the Agricultural Council of California is allowed one nomination.
• Nominees are candidates for a two-year period. A nomination submitted last year and not selected for an award will remain that organization’s nominee for this year. If not selected within two years, a nomination must be re-submitted to remain eligible.
• After nominations are received (due January 16, 2009), Ag Council staff and/or committee members will conduct an initial review of the nominations, and perform interviews as needed.
• An independent selection committee composed of cooperative farmers and professionals, who are knowledgeable about the industry, will review the nominations and select the award winner, who will be announced at the Agricultural Council of California Annual Meeting on March 3, 2009.

Past Award Recipients
Past Recipients of the Agricultural Council of California – Cooperative Leader Award represent a variety of backgrounds and experiences. What they have in common is that they are implementing innovative and effective models for addressing important issues to agriculture. Please see the distinguished list below.

Submitting Nomination Materials
Please use the official nomination form and additional pages describing circumstances and achievements that qualify this nominee for the award. Place the name of nominee at the top of each additional page submitted to assist the Awards Selection Committee.

Deadline for Nominations
Completed nomination materials — both online and mailed submissions — must be received no later than January 16, 2009 at 5 p.m.
If you have any questions about the awards or nomination process, please contact:

Emily Robidart, Vice President
Agricultural Council of California
1225 H Street
Sacramento, CA 95814-1910
(916) 443-4887
Emily@agcouncil.org

Thank you for your participation!

Past Recipients of the Co-op Leader Award

1993
Robert E. Collins
Leland H. Ruth

1994
William F. McFarlane
George L. Seitz

1995
Guido Lombardi
David L. Zollinger

1996
Frederick S. Montgomery
Gerald D. Marcus

1997
Robert C. McInturf
William F. Allewelt, Jr.

1998
John H. Kautz
Robert N. Hines

1999
W. Howard Isom
Russell L. Hanlin

2000
Dennis Merwin
Steven W. Easter

2001
Gerald L. Barton
Robert G. Taylor

2002
Dorcas H. McFarlane
Walter F. Payne

2003
Pete J. Penner
Ronald A. Schuler

2004
Fred Starrh
Timothy Lindgren

**Please note: Historically, two awards were given for The Cooperative Leader Award. In 2005, members of Agricultural Council changed the number of recipients to one. Please submit only one nominee for this prestigious award. **

2005
Gene Bays

2006
Jim Mast

2007
Gene Lundquist

2008
Wayne Allen