News Release
Jenny Richards, longtime naturalist at Shawnee State Park with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), has been named Environmental Educator of the Year by the Environmental Education Council of Ohio (EECO), a nonprofit organization dedicated to advancing environmental literacy and stewardship across the state. The EECO promotes leadership, collaboration, and innovation in environmental education, working toward a more informed and sustainable future.
The Director of EECO, Brenda Metcalf, underscored Richards’ enduring influence in environmental education, stating: “Jenny is truly amazing. We are thrilled to be able to recognize her incredible years of service to the natural world.” The ODNR Director, Mary Mertz, in her letter of support for the award nomination recognized Jenny for her “spirit of inspiration” and her “high-quality programming delivered beyond the classroom.” She went on to say that Jenny Richard’s work “aligns seamlessly with our mission at ODNR, and it strengthens Ohio’s broader environmental education network year after year.”
This prestigious award recognizes Richards’ nearly three decades of exemplary service in environmental education, during which she has inspired thousands of students, visitors, and emerging naturalists through immersive, place-based learning in Ohio’s Shawnee Forest region.
Often known as “the Loving Nature Lady,” Richards has built a reputation as one of Ohio’s most impactful and passionate field naturalists. For 28 years, she has translated ecological science into lived experience—guiding children and adults through forests, wetlands, and meadows while fostering a deep, personal connection to the natural world. Her teaching integrates forest flora-and-fauna, birding, wildflower identification, forest ecology, and sensory based “forest immersion,” to create transformative encounters that resonate far beyond a single visit.
Richards’ influence is measurable not only in program attendance, but in legacy: many of those she has mentored have gone on to careers in conservation, environmental science, and park service—an enduring testament to her role as both educator and catalyst.
A graduate of Ohio University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Geography, Richards furthered her studies in natural resources at Hocking College. In a rare and deeply rooted trajectory, she was raised on. It is the very Upper Twin Creek, Nile Township, Scioto County, Ohio, within the Shawnee State Forest landscape she now interprets, protects, and brings to life for others in her capacity as naturalist with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources,.
She explained, “My education began earlier, and differently. I learned the forest the way you learn a family: by living inside it. I am a generalist by necessity, drawn not to one branch of knowledge but to the whole, breathing organism—the larger story of the forest as a living, interconnected whole.”
This lifelong intimacy with place informs her distinctive teaching voice: authentic, experiential, and grounded in lived knowledge.
Richards has also been featured in regional and national media, including documentary and educational films highlighting Ohio’s Appalachian ecology and conservation. Her on-screen appearances for the Ohio Department of Natural Resources include: Ohio-Wild at Heart. 2025; and Ohio State Parks, a documentary about the Ohio State Parks having been named the best park system in the nation. Jenny Richards participated in the 2017 oral history project “Scioto Placemaking Stories” with The Center for Folklore Studies and Ohio Field School at the Ohio State University. Her voice brings comfort and inspiration, and her impact is widely recognized. In 2024, she earned an Employee of the Quarter award from ODNR.
Richards, a Blue Creek resident, is widely known for her innovative and unconventional outreach methods, including her hands-on wildlife programs—sometimes affectionately referred to as “snake therapy”—which challenge fear and foster understanding of often-misunderstood species.
Her work stands at the intersection of science, education, and cultural heritage, reflecting the unique ecology and traditions of Appalachia. By bridging generations and communities, she has helped cultivate not only environmental awareness, but a durable ethic of care for the natural world.
Jenny Richards represents the very best of environmental education. Her work exemplifies how deep knowledge, unbridled enthusiasm, passion, and community engagement can inspire lasting stewardship.
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