Celebrating 30 Years of Impact: Salato Wildlife Education Center Honored with KAEE Award

This year, the 2025 KAEE Excellence in Environmental Education Awards proudly recognize the Salato Wildlife Education Center as the recipient of the Outstanding Community Partner Award. As the Center celebrates its 30th anniversary, this award honors not only a legacy of environmental education but also Salato’s continued innovation in connecting people with nature. Among its many achievements, the Center’s newest exhibit, Healthy Hunting Grounds, stands out as a powerful example of community engagement, educational excellence, and conservation impact.

Since 1995, the Salato Wildlife Education Center has welcomed over 200 school groups annually, offering immersive, hands-on learning experiences through wildlife encounters, outdoor education classes, and interpretive programming. Located in Frankfort, Kentucky, Salato has long served as an important resource for environmental education, engaging tens of thousands of visitors each year in learning about native species and ecosystems. Its latest initiative, the Healthy Hunting Grounds exhibit, expands this mission by addressing an important and often misunderstood aspect of wildlife conservation: the role of regulated hunting.

Healthy Hunting Grounds is designed to reach 40,000 to 50,000 visitors annually, with a projected audience of over half a million people over the next ten years. Built around three central themes, the exhibit educates the public on hunting’s critical contributions to conservation efforts, its connections to physical health and well-being, and the importance of ethics and safety in outdoor recreation. Visitors learn how hunting funds habitat protection and wildlife management through license sales and excise taxes, and how these practices support public lands and benefit all wildlife, not just game species.

The exhibit also highlights the many health benefits of outdoor activity, local food sourcing, and mental wellness that hunting can provide. By framing hunting in this broader context, Salato reaches a diverse audience and helps bridge cultural and knowledge gaps. A strong emphasis is placed on responsible and ethical practices, reinforcing the legal and safety standards that ensure hunting remains a sustainable and respectful tradition.

The exhibit invites visitors to crawl through a fox’s den tunnel, explore a duck blind and tree stand, identify bird calls, touch animal pelts and tracks, and interact with a dynamically lit oak tree. A rotating wildlife art display, lift-and-drop stations, sliders, and a personal stories kiosk all contribute to a highly engaging and memorable experience. These elements are thoughtfully designed to appeal to different learning styles and age groups, while reinforcing key messages about the North American Model of Wildlife Conservation.

Healthy Hunting Grounds reflects Salato’s commitment to inclusive, science-based education and its ability to adapt programming to address current environmental and societal challenges, including habitat loss and public health issues.

As it enters its fourth decade of service, the Salato Wildlife Education Center continues to lead the way in environmental education across Kentucky. The Healthy Hunting Grounds exhibit is a powerful tool for building understanding, sparking curiosity, and strengthening public support for conservation. For its innovative approach and continued dedication to community partnership,

Salato is a truly deserving recipient of the 2025 Outstanding Community Partner Award.

We’re excited to celebrate the Salato Wildlife Education Center along with our other award winners at this year’s KAEE Conference. Awards will be presented during our Annual Awards Luncheon on Friday, November 14, from 12:00 to 1:30 PM CT at the Owensboro Convention Center.

Honoring Wesley Bullock: 2025 MK Dickerson Outstanding Educator Award Recipient

We are thrilled to announce that Wesley Bullock has been named the recipient of the M.K. Dickerson Outstanding Educator Award as part of the 2025 KAEE Excellence in Environmental Education Awards. This award honors educators who go above and beyond to advance environmental education in Kentucky, and Wesley’s contributions embody that mission in every way. For more than a decade, he has been a dedicated and visionary leader in EE, consistently investing in the growth of educators, the strength of programs, and the future of the field.

Wesley’s career in environmental education spans multiple roles within his agency and continues in his current position as Executive Director for the Kentucky Environmental Education Council. His colleagues describe him as a transformative force, someone whose leadership has reshaped how environmental education is practiced and valued across the state. One of his most impactful achievements has been his stewardship of the Professional Environmental Educator Certification (PEEC) program. Through years of careful refinement and expansion, Wesley has helped certify dozens of environmental educators and raised the bar for professional excellence in EE. His work with this program has had a ripple effect, strengthening not only individual educators but also the classrooms, nature centers, and communities they serve.

Wesley has also cultivated a workplace that reflects the very heart of environmental education. He models the values of curiosity, lifelong learning, collaboration, and stewardship in everything he does. He encourages his staff to integrate EE principles into their own roles, while also prioritizing professional development and fostering a sense of shared purpose. Whether working with AmeriCorps members, leading PEEC cohorts, or facilitating conversations around equity and inclusion, Wesley is known for living the values he teaches and encouraging others to do the same.

Beyond his agency, Wesley is a respected and influential voice in Kentucky’s environmental education community. He is known for his collaborative spirit, mentorship, and commitment to strengthening partnerships across the state. His work has helped to build a more connected and resource-rich EE network in Kentucky, expanding opportunities for learning and collaboration at every level.

Wesley Bullock may not teach in a traditional classroom, but he is unquestionably an educator, an educator of educators. His quiet, consistent, and values-driven leadership has helped shape the philosophies, practices, and confidence of environmental educators across the Commonwealth. We are honored to celebrate his achievements and recognize him as the 2025 recipient of the M.K. Dickerson Outstanding Educator Award. Congratulations, Wesley, and thank you for your remarkable contributions to the field of environmental education.

We are honored to have Wesley Bullock and our 2025 award winners as part of the KAEE network. We look forward to celebrating them at this year’s KAEE Conference. Awards will be presented during our Annual Awards Luncheon on Friday, November 14, from 12:00 to 1:30 PM at the Owensboro Convention Center.

Celebrating Dr. Joseph Baust: KAEE’s 2025 Lifetime Achievement Award Recipient

We are overjoyed to announce that Dr. Joseph Baust has been named the recipient of the 2025 KAEE Lifetime Achievement Award. This award recognizes extraordinary contributions to the field of environmental education, and Dr. Baust’s career, spanning more than four decades, has truly shaped the way Kentucky and beyond think about, teach, and live out environmental stewardship.

Throughout his career, Dr. Baust has been a visionary leader. At Murray State University, where he served as an Emeritus Professor and Director of the Center for Environmental Education, he inspired countless students and colleagues. His leadership extended far beyond the classroom. He has served as President of both the North American Association for Environmental Education and the Kentucky Association for Environmental Education, and he chaired the Kentucky Universities Partnership for Environmental Education, bringing together eight public universities to strengthen environmental learning across the state.

The impact of his work is both wide-reaching and deeply felt. He has been recognized with

prestigious honors such as the Kentucky Earth Day Award and the Walter E. Jeske Award. Over the course of his career, he has secured more than $4.8 million in grants and contracts, funding programs that expanded environmental literacy and access to education. One of his most notable achievements was creating a sustainability program in Bregenz, Austria. This long-standing initiative has given professionals from government, business, and education a global perspective on sustainability, enriching their work and deepening their understanding of how interconnected our world truly is.

What makes Dr. Baust’s legacy especially remarkable is his belief in a holistic approach to learning. He has always emphasized that the arts are just as important as the sciences in understanding the world around us. His collaborations with artists like Peter Yarrow and Josh White Jr. demonstrate his commitment to creating experiences that are joyful, creative, and deeply meaningful. For Dr. Baust, environmental education is not just about facts and figures—it is about connection, perspective, and a shared sense of responsibility for the web of life.

KAEE is honored to recognize Dr. Joseph Baust with this year’s Lifetime Achievement Award. His vision, dedication, and passion have left an indelible mark on our community and the field of environmental education as a whole. His work has inspired generations and will continue to guide and influence us for many years to come.

We are honored to have Dr. Baust and our 2025 award winners as part of the KAEE network. We look forward to celebrating them at this year’s KAEE Conference and to hearing Dr. Baust’s insights as part of our Excellence in EE Panel. Awards will be presented during our Annual Awards Luncheon on Friday, November 14, from 12:00–1:30 PM at the Owensboro Convention Center.