Rhett Johnson of Andalusia recently was recognized as founder emeritus of the Longleaf Alliance.

The award was presented at the 11th Biennial Longleaf Conference Awards Luncheon in Savannah.

Johnson grew up in the longleaf piney woods of South Carolina. He earned a bachelor’s degree from North Carolina State in wildlife biology, and a master’s in forest management from Clemson. His professional interests and expertise include threatened and endangered species, multiple-use forest management, wildlife management, fire ecology, and longleaf pine management and restoration.

He has sered in many professional leadership postitions, including chair of the Southeaster SAF and president of the Alabama Wildlife Federation.

He is a regional leader in promoting forest and wildlife management practices based on sound ecological principles. He is the director emeritus of Auburn University’s Solon Dixon Forestry Education Center.

He is the co-founder, along with Dean Gjerstad, of The Longleaf Alliance, and has served as its president and a board member.

In presenting the award, Robert Abernethy,

Said, “It seems like everywhere I go in the longleaf range, I meet Rhett’s students. Whether they attended Auburn and went through Forestry School at the Solon Dixon Center, or studied under him at a Longleaf Academy, field trip, or just a walk in the woods. We are all Rhett’s students because you cannot have just a walk in the woods iwht Rhett. Every moment you spend in the woods with Rhett is a forestry and wildlife lesson.