Jim Dunn and Brian Auman received the PSO Conservation Award for 2025 based on their work to protect and restore the Robert Porter Allen Natural Area (RPANA) in Lycoming County, PA.

Jim and Brian have had the vision and determination to transform a combination of corn fields and degraded wetland into 70 acres of emergent wetlands and 100 acres of native grasslands and riparian woodlands.

Starting in 2017, using their combined expertise in county planning and landscape conservation, they obtained funding from multiple state and federal partners and placed the property into the hands of the Parks Department of Armstrong Township.

They have continued their efforts to restore the area to its natural potential including acquisition of a historic grant from the North American Wetland Conservation Act with support from Ducks Unlimited and the property has expanded to include a total of 250 acres of wetlands.

The area is now being overseen by the South Side Recreational Authority and managed in cooperation with Lycoming Audubon and the Pennsylvania Game Commission.

The RPANA is now a major birding destination of substantial ecological value, primarily because of Jim and Brian’s vision.