Annapolis, MD – Today, Chesapeake Conservancy announced that U.S. Senator Ben Cardin and U.S. Representative John Sarbanes are recipients of the 2024 Champions of the Chesapeake award, the organization’s most prestigious honor recognizing extraordinary leaders from across the Chesapeake for their significant and exemplary accomplishments that protect and restore our natural systems and cultural resources.

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The awards were presented at the 31^st Annual Maryland Land Conservation Conference convened by Forever Maryland, a nonprofit founded to promote and advance land conservation statewide through education, advocacy and outreach.

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“Chesapeake Conservancy and Forever Maryland celebrate two of the Chesapeake’s fiercest advocates in the United States Congress, U.S. Senator Ben Cardin and Congressman John Sarbanes. During their time in office, they championed funding for Chesapeake Bay restoration efforts and the important work of the Chesapeake Bay Program, led efforts to establish the proposed Chesapeake National Recreation Area which would bring National Park Service status to the nation’s largest estuary and fought for clean water, biodiversity, equitable public access to the Chesapeake Bay and land conservation,” said Chesapeake Conservancy President and CEO Joel Dunn.

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“Senator Cardin and Congressman Sarbanes have been stalwart advocates for conservation, connectivity, restoration and more. Maryland’s local land trusts and broad conservation community would not have been able to reach the state’s 30% conservation goal without the immense support they have brought to Maryland and the Chesapeake Bay watershed,” said Forever Maryland Executive Director Josh Hastings.

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“The Chesapeake Bay is one of our largest estuaries and the lifeblood of Maryland’s economy and culture. It has been an honor of a lifetime to spend my career working with partners like Congressman John Sarbanes and so many dedicated partners, like the Chesapeake Conservancy, to protect and preserve our treasured Bay,” said Senator Cardin. “Thank you, Chesapeake Conservancy and Forever Maryland for this award and for your continued commitment to the conservation of Maryland’s natural resources.”

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“It is an honor to be presented with the Champions of the Chesapeake award alongside my friend and longtime Bay advocate, Senator Ben Cardin,” said Congressman Sarbanes. “Like those who live and work across the watershed region, I share a passion for protecting our environment and know that preserving national treasures like the Chesapeake Bay is essential to addressing climate change, driving economic growth and ensuring the well-being of the next generation.”

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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.