IGEL cultivates excellence for the environment

While no hurricanes made landfall along the Georgia coastline in 2001, contentious issues whirled furiously across the state that year. A new state flag supported by Governor Roy Barnes met with stiff opposition. Teachers resisted the education reform proposal to end tenure for newly hired teachers. Community groups, budget hawks, and environmentalists coalesced to fight the proposed construction of the Northern Arc in metropolitan Atlanta. 

Georgia environmental leaders contended with additional issues. Sewage spills and trash threatened the health of the Chattahoochee River and tributaries in the Atlanta region. The State of Georgia lacked agreements with Alabama and Florida to manage water flows in the Mid and Lower Chattahoochee River Basin. Improper water flows in this watershed could ruin the farming, business, and leisure industry from Southwest Georgia to Lake Lanier. 

In this climate of political and environmental rancor, Governor Roy Barnes authorized the establishment of the Institute of Georgia Environmental Leadership (IGEL) in 2002. IGEL would  support a network of statewide leaders to learn about and discuss regional and state environmental challenges. The annual program would select leaders, who represent the economic, ethnic, geographic, and institutional diversity of our state.

IGEL participants, fondly called IGElians, receive expert environmental education during immersive experiences at conservation areas, marshes, farms, historic sites, and waterways from Dawsonville to Coastal Georgia. Site visits, such as the Class of 2024 IGEL trip to Albany, Georgia, stimulate appreciation and concern for the biodiversity of our land. IGELians see the legacy of race and class with the environmental and economic health of Georgia communities. 

After the tour of her historic farm called Resora, Shirley Sherrod astounded this year’s class recounting her childhood, illegal firing by the United States Department of Agriculture, and hopes for the future of this former plantation in Albany, GA. Dr. Kier Klepzig and his associates at The Jones Center at Ichauway explained the conservation measures to IGELians during a hike on the property in southwest Georgia. Excursions at Resora, Jones Center, White Oaks Pastures, and other ecologically and historically rich sites prompt dynamic IGEL discussions. 

Rob Williams has managed world-class leadership development and complex environmental discussions as IGEL Lead Facilitator since 2002. The Senior Fellow at Georgia State University J. Mack Robinson College of Business observes, “There are so many spaces for action in society, but too few spaces for leadership and professional development.” IGEL group discussions build creative problem solving, trust, conflict resolution, and communication skills. Knowing “What happens at IGEL, stays at IGEL,” IGELians gain assurance about the sanctity of candid conversations. 

Years after her Class of 2017 program, Monica Thornton, the Executive Director of The Nature Conservancy in Georgia, continues to praise the benefits of IGEL. She widened her perspective of the Georgia Conservancy beyond the operations to include a focus on programmatic areas during her stint with the nonprofit organization. At The Nature Conservancy,  she takes a nuanced approach with groups having divergent interests. She says, “I think more about the win-win.”

Although times have changed, environmental challenges persist across Georgia. Extreme heat, for example, is contributing to rising sea levels along the Georgia Coastline and dramatic flooding in rural and urban areas. Deforestation destroys ecosystems that are vital for plants, wildlife, and our air quality. Proposed mining at the Okefenokee Swamp endangers one of Georgia’s greatest natural treasures. 

In a state renowned for a strong business environment, IGEL offers a unique opportunity for deep discussions, advanced skills, and creative solutions toward a better natural environment and a brighter future. Over 600 alumni from the corporate, government, research, advocacy, education, development, and design community have completed IGEL. Join the ranks of leaders, who have participated in the most respected environmental leadership program in Georgia. The application is now open for the IGEL Class of 2025 program until Friday, Oct. 11. Apply here.