Leopold Conservation Award honors environmental improvement

FRANKFORT, Ky. (July 31, 2026) – Dr. James “Greg” Kuhns, of Louisville, is the 2026 Kentucky Leopold Conservation Award. The award honors farmers, ranchers, and forestland owners who go above and beyond in the management of soil health, water quality, and wildlife habitat on working land.

“For farmers, their number one asset is the land,” Agriculture Commissioner Jonathan Shell said. “It’s a given that because of this, some of the world’s best conservationists are farmers. This award is given to those who show great stewardship for our agricultural lands. Dr. Kuhns crafted the land ethics that were instilled in him at an early age into a lifelong passion. His dedication and forethought will inspire and help generations of farmers to come. Congratulations on an honor well deserved.”

Dr. Kuhns, who owns forest and farmland in Bullitt County, was presented with the award at the Kentucky Association of Conservation Districts’ Annual Convention on July 28. He receives $10,000 for being selected.

Sand County Foundation and national sponsor American Farmland Trust present Leopold Conservation Awards to landowners in 28 states. In Kentucky, the award was presented with the Kentucky Agricultural Council and the Kentucky Association of Conservation Districts.

“The Kentucky Agricultural Council is proud to once again partner in recognizing the exceptional stewardship and conservation work demonstrated by Dr. James Kuhns,” said Tod Griffin, Kentucky Agricultural Council Chairman. “The winner of the 2026 Leopold Conservation Award represents a lifetime of work to promoting good stewardship in his woodland and farming operations; his is a true conservationist.”

“Kentucky’s 121 conservation districts promote the sound management of all our natural resources, and we are excited to join in recognizing the well-deserving Dr. James Kuhns,” said Ted Jessup, Kentucky Association of Conservation Districts President. “This year’s Kentucky Leopold Conservation Award recipient is truly a steward of the land, and his dedication to conservation is an inspiration to us all.”

Given in honor of renowned conservationist Aldo Leopold, the award recognizes farmers and forestland owners who inspire others with their dedication to environmental improvement. In his influential 1949 book, A Sand County Almanac, Leopold called for “a land ethic,” an ethical relationship between people and the land they own and manage.

Kentucky landowners were encouraged to apply, or be nominated, for the award this year. Applications were reviewed by an independent panel of agricultural and conservation leaders from Kentucky. Among the many landowners nominated for the award were finalists James Benton of Campbell County, and Shane and Felicia Wells of Butler County.

About Dr. James “Greg” Kuhns

A land ethic was instilled in Dr. James “Greg” Kuhns from an early age.

He grew up in a family where conservation was taken seriously and frequently discussed. While working on his family’s farm and camping in its forests in his youth, he was further influenced by the Boy Scout’s ethics of conservation.

When Dr. Kuhns and his sister, Anne Van der Steur, inherited the cattle, hog, and tobacco farm their grandfather established in the 1890s, they were concerned about encroaching development, the health effects of tobacco, and environmental impacts of swine production. The siblings shared a moral obligation to steward the farm’s forests and to prevent water pollution from soil erosion.

Located among the steep slopes of Kentucky’s Knobs Region, where flooding is common, they phased out of hog production. They also shifted their farm’s focus from tobacco to timber stand improvement and prioritized improving their beef cattle herd’s genetics.

They sought the guidance and partnership of many experts to sustain the health of their land and the farm’s productivity. Dr. Kuhns joined organizations focused on agronomy, land, water, and timber management, including the Kentucky Woodland Owners Association Kentucky Natural Lands Trust, and Kentucky Conservation Committee.

Dr. Kuhns follows the best practices outlined in the Kentucky Forest Conservation Act and the federal Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP). He reseeded logging trails, and a Master Logger is present during harvest. Forest pools have been created for wildlife.

As a volunteer sampler of the Salt River Watershed Watch, Dr. Kuhns helped discover an e-coli contamination through bacteria sampling in Crooked Creek. As a result, he refenced his pastures to contain cattle from the creek.

Elsewhere on the farm, he’s initiated practices to suppress invasive plant species like Autumn olive and Honeysuckle vine. Riparian buffers have been preserved and expanded to prevent erosion, improve water quality and provide wildlife habitat. Milkweed patches provide breeding sites and way stations for the endangered Monarch butterfly. Prescribed burning prepare fields of forbs and wildflowers for other beneficial pollinators.

As rapid development in Bullitt County caused widespread loss of natural land and resources, the Kuhnses pursued a way to preserve some of their farm’s natural lands in perpetuity. Dr. Kuhns believed that converting some of their land to public ownership would be the best solution.

From this came the formation of the Knobs State Forest, established in 2006 with a 1,100-acre tract and expanded in 2018 with another 498 acres. Dr. Kuhns and his wife, Joan, sold another 700 acres of forestland to the Lincoln Heritage Boy Scouts Council to form Camp Crooked Creek.

Kuhns’ farm and Knobs State Forest are the origins of the Crooked Creek wildlife corridor that passes under Interstate 65, where motion-activated cameras have documented many species traversing a wildlife tunnel. These areas make up the eastern portion of a wildlife corridor that connects to the large natural land tract of the Fort Knox reservation.

With the support of his local historical society and county government, Dr. Kuhns is in the process of creating a historical park around a stone furnace that burned charcoal fuel to smelt iron ore in the 1800s.

Dr. Kuhns was named the Kentucky Tree Farmer of the Year in 2000 by the American Tree Farm Association. Such accolades arise from his innate desire to embrace ethical farming and forestry practices, preserve natural landscapes, and to benefit the public with access to forested areas.

For more information on the award, visit leopoldconservationaward.org.