Defensores de la Cuenca Co-Founder and Executive Director Abel Olivo Receives Champion of the Chesapeake Award
Featured image credited to Ken Nadali Photography
Bladensburg, Md. – At the Festival del Rio Anacostia, Chesapeake Conservancy honored Defensores de la Cuenca Co-Founder and Executive Director Abel Olivo as a 2024 Champions of the Chesapeake, the organization’s most prestigious honor recognizing extraordinary leaders from across the Chesapeake. Earlier this month, at the 31st Annual Maryland Land Conservation Conference convened by Forever Maryland, U.S. Senator Ben Cardin and U.S. Representative John Sarbanes were also named 2024 Champions of the Chesapeake.
Chesapeake Conservancy’s President and CEO Joel Dunn and Executive Vice President of External Affairs Mark Conway presented the award to Abel Olivo during the Festival del Rio Anacostia community festival on September 21, 2024. The festival, held during Hispanic Heritage Month, works to improve and promote the well-being of Latine residents in the Anacostia watershed.
“Abel Olivo and Defensores de la Cuenca are fostering the next generation of Chesapeake Bay advocates and conservation leaders,” said Conway. “People of Hispanic or Latin descent represent roughly 8% of the more than 18 million residents of the Chesapeake watershed. Abel’s leadership has enabled Defensores de la Cuenca to introduce thousands of Spanish speakers to outdoor experiences through tree plantings, trash clean-ups, professional development opportunities and more. As the only Latine-led organization to be a direct recipient of Inflation Reduction Act Forest Service Funds east of the Mississippi, Defensores de la Cuenca has emerged as a leader of conservation in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Abel is also an environmental justice champion and a valued member of the Stakeholder Advisory Committee for Chesapeake Bay Program’s Chesapeake Executive Council. Core to our mission, Chesapeake Conservancy applauds Defensores de la Cuenca’s efforts to ensure the outdoors are welcoming places for everyone to restore their mind, body and soul.”
“At Defensores de la Cuenca, we are building a network of Latino leaders who are taking action to support Madre Tierra. Through family-friendly events and educational initiatives, we create spaces that are welcoming and inviting, ensuring that Latin@/e participants have fun and make positive connections to nature,” said Olivo. “We share information about the myriad ways the environment impacts us and how we, in turn, impact the environment. This grassroots approach fosters a sense of ownership and responsibility, empowering our community to advocate for policies that reflect our values and needs.”
Olivo continued, “When Latino voices are included in environmental policymaking, the policies that emerge are more equitable, just and effective. Our perspectives bring a unique understanding of the interconnectedness of community health, environmental justice and economic sustainability.”
“Latino communities are often on the front lines of environmental issues,” said Olivo. “From living in areas disproportionately affected by pollution to working in industries that are most impacted by climate change, our communities bear a significant burden. Despite this, our voices are frequently overlooked in the decision-making processes that shape environmental policy. What we are building is essentially a movement. It is incredibly special to receive recognition from the Chesapeake Conservancy for the monumental work that we are undertaking to build capacity at the community level.”
The 2023 Champions of the Chesapeake were 14-year-old Girl Scout Nethra Purushothaman and philanthropists James and Sylvia Earl. Previous recipients include Rappahannock Tribe Chief Anne Richardson, U.S. Senator Barbara S. Mikulski, U.S. Senator Paul S. Sarbanes, U.S. Senator John W. Warner, Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, Virginia Governor Terry McAuliffe, National Park Service Director Jonathan B. Jarvis, Maryland State Senator Guy Guzzone, Pennsylvania State Senator Gene Yaw, Virginia Delegate David Bulova, National Park Service Chesapeake Bay Office Assistant Superintendent Jonathan Doherty, NOAA Fellow Kim Hernandez, Assistant Director U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Dr. Mamie Parker, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Watershed Manager Jason Fellon, Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection Regional Director Marcus Kohl, Keith Campbell of The Campbell Foundation, Dennis Chestnut, Mariah Davis, Anna Killius, Blacks of the Chesapeake Founder and President Vince Leggett, Chesapeake Bay Commission Executive Director Ann P. Swanson, Esri, Microsoft Corporation, Mt. Cuba Center, Mount Vernon Ladies’ Association, REI, River Rock Outfitter and Skyline Technology Solutions, Inc.