Read the article in Yellowhammer News
Adams and Reese Counsel Blake Hardwich participated in a recent “Women in the Woods” event, which empowers Alabama female state government leaders to have a deeper understanding of industries such as forestry, conservation, and wildfire management.
Hardwich was one of 40 government leaders to participate in outdoor festivities hosted by the Alabama Forestry Association (AFA), the Alabama Forestry Commission (AFC), the Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources (DCNR), and the Alabama Association of Resource Conservation & Development Councils (RC&D).
This year’s theme was “Working Together” to showcase how the different organizations work together across the state to keep Alabama growing and thriving in its communities, environment, and economy.
The government leaders toured Week’s Bay in Baldwin County as AFC executives discussed their land management plan and conservation efforts by controlled burns at the Gulf State Park. “Women in the Woods” participants were also trained in “Firearms Safety 101” hosted by DCNR at the City of Orange Beach Shooting Range. This allowed DCNR to showcase one of the many programs available to Alabama’s citizens that promote outdoor recreation and appreciation of the state’s abundant natural resources.
“Women in the Woods” coincides with Alabama’s Woods to Goods Week, which is celebrated during the third week of October and proclaimed by Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey each year. This is the third year AFA has hosted “Women in the Woods.”
Members of “Women in the Woods” include: Vilma Sneed – Smurfit Westrock; Jennifer Fidler – Alabama House of Representatives; Hope Brasell – Deputy Chief Of Staff, Senate President Pro Tempore; Sara Elizabeth Burnham – The Bloom Group; Twinkle Cavanaugh – Alabama Public Service Commission; Alyson Cauthen – EBW Development; Terri Collins – Alabama House Representatives; Susan DuBose – Alabama House of Representatives; Christy Edwards – Court of Civil Appeals; Stephanie Fuller – ForestryWorks®; Donna Givens – Alabama House of Representatives; Emily Ham – International Paper; Blake Hardwich – Adams and Reese LLP; Frances Holk-Jones – Alabama House of Representatives; Leigh Hulsey – Alabama House of Representatives; Jane Hutcheson – Cosby Company; Tera Johnson – Office of US Senator Katie Britt; Elizabeth Langley – Chris Langley Timber & Mgt, Inc.; Charlsi Lee – Lieutenant Governor’s Office; Emily Lyons – B.R. Mosley Land Co.; Lora McClendon – PowerSouth Energy; Laura Jean McCurdy – Ag & Industries; Mary Martin Mitchell – Alabama Department of Revenue; Lillian Parker – Buchanan Timber and Forestry; Catherine Reaves – Alabama Port Authority; Robin Ricks – Manufacture Alabama; Jeana Ross – Alabama House of Representatives; Connie Rowe – Lieutenant Governor’s Office; Charlanna Skaggs – AL Department of Conservation and Natural Resources; Cyndi Tidwell – F & C Logging; Susan Wilhelm – Alabama Department of Finance; Kelli Wise – Supreme Court of Alabama; Sarah Wooten – RC&D; Chris Ziebach – Camille Place, Founder; and Anna Morgan Duke – Alabama Forestry Association.
At Adams and Reese, Hardwich advises clients on legislative and regulatory issues facing Alabama businesses. She currently serves as Executive Director of the Energy Institute of Alabama, a nonprofit which promotes reliable, affordable, and clean energy to help grow Alabama's economy, create high-paying jobs, and build public support for Alabama’s energy industry. She is also Executive Director of the Coosa Alabama River Improvement Association, an organization working to improve business opportunities on Alabama waterways through economic development, navigation improvement, and recreational improvement programs.