Imbalance of Power: How Shifts in State Government Undermine Wisconsin’s Conservation Legacy

media release: Virtual public issues forum cosponsored by Wisconsin's Green Fire, LWV-Wisconsin and local leagues around the state: Imbalance of Power: How Shifts in State Government Undermine Wisconsin’s Conservation Legacy

This virtual forum is presented by Wisconsin’s Green Fire (WGF), a nonpartisan organization whose mission is to advance science-informed analysis and policy solutions to address Wisconsin's greatest conservation challenges. The program is based on an issues paper published by WGF in 2022.

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Speakers include:

Fred Clark, WGF executive director: Fred has worked more than 30 years in Wisconsin conservation, including serving as the director of The Forest Stewards Guild, as a forest ecologist for Wisconsin Chapter of The Nature Conservancy and as a forester for the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources.  He was appointed by both Governor Doyle and Governor Walker to the Wisconsin Council on Forestry from 2004–2014. He served three terms as a Representative to the Wisconsin State Assembly from 2009–2014, representing Sauk and Columbia Counties.

Paul Heinen, WGF legislative liaison: Paul works closely with WGF work groups to share their expertise and knowledge with policy makers and their staff.  He coordinates with other conservation and environmental groups statewide. Paul started his career as a legislative aide to the Chair of the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee. He was the Legislative Liaison for the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) for over 34 years. He worked to pass hundreds of new laws including the acid rain law, recycling program, the first groundwater bill in the United States, the stewardship program, numerous deer and wildlife management program changes and air quality standards for the state. He has also directed legislative affairs for the Nature Conservancy of Wisconsin.

Mark Thimke, environmental attorney: Mark earned an undergraduate degree from UW Green Bay and a law degree from Duke University.  He worked as an environmental attorney from 1979–2021.  Mark served on numerous DNR advisory committees, including ones focused on the development of WI water quality regulations and PCB regulations. He was an advisor in the formation of the Remediation and Redevelopment Bureau within the DNR and helped develop and revise the DNR remediation and brownfields redevelopment rules.  He currently serves on the DNR PFAS advisory committee and the DNR Economic Development and Green Environment (EDGE) advisory committee.  He served as co-chair of the Wisconsin Brownfield Study Group from 1998–2022.