Pass-it-Forward Recipients
Ginny Broadhurst
For our second Pass It Forward honoree, Nan McKay has selected Ginny Broadhurst. Nan notes the many years of tireless and effective work that Ginny has given to protecting Puget Sound. “Ginny excels both at developing strategies to address complex, systemic issues and building relationships and partnerships,” says Nan. “It’s a great pleasure to honor her in this way.”
Ginny is the executive director of the Northwest Straits Commission. The Commission works to protect and restore the marine resources of the state of Washington’s Northwest Straits, which includes the waters and shorelines of the Strait of Juan de Fuca, the Strait of Georgia, and northern Puget Sound.
The Northwest Straits Marine Conservation Initiative, authorized by Congress, is nationally recognized as an innovative approach to bring sound science and an ecosystem perspective together with citizens’ energy and entrepreneurship. Volunteers from seven county-based Marine Resource Committees select restoration and conservation projects that meet performance benchmarks, attract diverse partners, and engage large numbers of community members in the process. The Northwest Straits Commission coordinates these efforts and conducts regional projects. The Commission also brings together scientists and marine managers to help improve everyone’s efforts to save Puget Sound.
Prior to this appointment in 2008, she was the Commission’s Marine Program Manager for four years, overseeing regional restoration work and providing technical support to the Commission and seven Marine Resource Committees. Ginny received her master’s degree in Marine Affairs from the University of Washington and worked for the Puget Sound Action Team from 1991 to 2003 on wetlands protection policies, shoreline management, marine protected areas and land use management issues. She currently represents the Northwest Straits Commission on the Puget Sound Partnership’s Ecosystem Coordination Board and other committees working to protect Puget Sound. Ginny and her family live in Bellingham.
