Photo by Susan Salinger

"Birds are my passion," says Donal C. O'Brien Jr., Chair of Audubon's board of directors. "But I care about everything from blue claw crabs to African elephants, and I want to protect them all." And that is what he has dedicated most of his life to doing, with the greatest gusto.

After almost 25 years on the board of directors, including nearly 15 years as Chair, Donal is retiring this fall. Over this astonishing career, he has served with four Audubon presidents, and today he leaves an organization that is stronger and more effective than ever in its history.

The board has elected Carol Browner to succeed Donal as Chair. Prior to joining the Audubon board in 2001, Carol served eight years as the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, longer than any administrator in the history of the agency. A native Floridian who grew up near the Everglades, she led the Florida Department of Environmental Regulation for four years prior to heading the EPA.

Volunteer leadership is the hallmark of Audubon, and the board Chair is Audubon's top volunteer. Working through Chapters, Audubon Centers, State Boards, and the National Board, volunteer leadership has shaped our history. Women volunteers have been particularly important to Audubon. The first Audubon Society, the Massachusetts Audubon Society, was founded in 1896 by two determined woman committed to stopping the slaughter of birds for the millinery trade. In 1962 Rachel Carson published Silent Spring, launching the modern environmental movement by warning of the dangers of DDT to birds. Later that year the book was excerpted in Audubon, and Carson received the Audubon Medal in 1963.

As Audubon now embarks on its second century, we are committed to building the next generation of conservation leaders by connecting people to nature locally, in their communities. We are also committed to realizing Audubon's critical bird and habitat conservation goals by aligning the important work of our chapter volunteers with that of our state programs, our network of Audubon Centers, and with our national science, policy, and education staff.

As in our first century, thousands of volunteers will be pivotal to our success. Donal O'Brien inspired a quarter of a century of Audubon volunteers with his passion, dedication, and diplomacy. As we welcome Carol Browner as our new Chair, we are proud to have a determined woman who cares about the environment to lead us and to inspire that next generation of conservation leaders.