Bill Iwen Environmental Justice Award Celebration

media release: Midwest Environmental Advocates is pleased to announce that Paul DeMain of Hayward, Marco Marquez of Milwaukee, and Lee Donahue of the La Crosse area have been selected to receive the 2024 Bill Iwen Environmental Justice Award. 

The Bill Iwen Environmental Justice Award was established in 2019 by Midwest Environmental Advocates, a nonprofit environmental law center, to recognize and honor community members who are working to advance environmental justice in Wisconsin. This year’s award recipients will be honored at a virtual celebration on October 22 at 7 p.m. Register here.

“We are pleased to honor these outstanding environmental justice leaders,” said MEA Executive Director Tony Wilkin Gibart. “They are leading the way toward a more just and equitable future by advocating for the rights of all people to live in a clean and healthy environment.” 

Paul DeMain, also know by his Ojibwe name, Skabewis, is a citizen of the Oneida Nation of Wisconsin. His connection to water began in childhood, when he spent significant time around the Wisconsin River and Lake Wausau. This early bond with water deeply influenced his lifelong commitment to environmental protection. As the former board chair of Honor the Earth, Paul advocated for protecting northern Wisconsin and the ceded territories from oil pipelines and other environmental threats. During his 40-year career as a journalist, he edited and published the national Native newspaper ‘News from Indian Country’ and produced shows for ‘Indian Country TV.’ Throughout his career, Paul has worked to highlight the interconnectedness of environmental health and cultural survival.  

Marco Marquez, a Milwaukee native, works closely with high school students across the state who are passionate about protecting our environment and protecting our future. He is the Wisconsin state director for Action for the Climate Emergency (ACE), where he works to educate, inspire, and support Wisconsin youth to become agents and leaders of change in the fight for climate justice. He also serves as a mentor with Wisconsin Badger Boys State Program, a leadership development program that trains and inspires high school students to become active and engaged citizens in their own communities. 

Lee Donahue lives on French Island in the town of Campbell, a small community adjacent to the city of La Crosse. For four years, Lee and thousands of other Town of Campbell residents have been unable to drink their tap water due to toxic PFAS contamination. As a town supervisor, Lee has worked tirelessly to draw attention to this environmental and public health emergency and to advocate for a permanent source of safe drinking water for her constituents. In addition, she is actively engaged in advocating for new environmental health protections, including a statewide groundwater quality standard for PFAS.