Announcing the Recipient of the 2026 Gregory Award

SAF is pleased to announce that our 2026 Gregory Award recipient is Ramón Guadarrama León, a Mexican forest engineer from Zitácuaro, Michoacán. He specializes in forest landscape restoration, biodiversity conservation, and community-based natural resources management. Graduating from the Universidad Autónoma Chapingo, his undergraduate research centered on identifying forest declines in the Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve using a combination of remote sensing technologies and field-based data gathering.

The Gregory Award commemorates the legacy of G. Robinson (Bob) Gregory, a pioneer in forest economics and resource development, who always thought of himself as a forester. Gregory had a special interest in helping low- and middle-income countries develop their forests thoughtfully for the good of society. The Gregory Award is a special scholarship that allows us to bring an outstanding student or
early-career professional from one of these countries to the SAF National Convention each year. At Convention, the awardee has the chance to network with foresters in all disciplines of the sector, gaining knowledge and making connections that will benefit their home country upon return. 

Every year, applicants from around the globe show us their passion for and knowledge of issues affecting the forestry sector. This year, 125 applicants from 34 countries put time and energy into applying for the prestigious award. As with every year, we faced the difficult challenge of narrowing the field to one recipient. León stood out for the strong connection between his passion for forest research and his engagement of local communities.

León currently serves as the project coordinator at the Fondo de Conservación del Eje Neovolcánico AC. He implements and leads initiatives in forest restoration, environmental monitoring, and local capacity building across protected areas in central Mexico. Much of his experience is built from direct collaboration with ejidos, land-share plots where land is owned by the government but managed communally by locals, and Indigenous communities. He supports all of this work with his knowledge of remote sensing and geospatial information systems, as well as field monitoring.

We are so honored to bring León to the SAF National Convention in Tacoma, Washington this year. All our 2026 applicants were amazing, and we’re overjoyed to have the opportunity to keep sharing SAF with the world through the Gregory Award. Each and every Gregory Award recipient brings something new with them to SAF; we’re grateful to give something back to them.

If you are interested in supporting the Gregory Award for future awardees, please consider a charitable donation to the Gregory Award fund HERE.