Al Gore Receives Lady Bird Johnson Environmental Award

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The LBJ Foundation presented former Vice President Al Gore with the 2018 Lady Bird Johnson Environmental Award on Tuesday, April 24 at a gala ceremony at The Metropolitan Club in New York. Alisyn Camerota, CNN anchor and co-host of CNN's "New Day," served as Master of Ceremonies, and Mark Updegrove, President and CEO of the LBJ Foundation, conducted a conversation with Vice President Gore.

As founder and chairman of The Climate Reality Project and Generation Investment Management, LLC, Al Gore was an early spokesperson on the dangers of global warming and its effects on the environment. His films, "An Inconvenient Truth" and "An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power" have been an awakening on the climate crisis and a call to action to help solve it in time.

By presenting former Vice President Al Gore with the Lady Bird Johnson Environmental Award, the LBJ Foundation continues Mrs. Johnson's legacy of generating awareness about the fragility of our environment and championing its protection and preservation for future generations.

"As Lady Bird did in the 20th Century, Al Gore's actions acknowledge this is far bigger than one political philosophy but about what affects and unites us all," said Larry Temple, Chairman, LBJ Foundation. "He is leading the conservation movement and elevating the public’s consciousness on the importance of acting to solve the climate crisis."

Lady Bird Johnson Environmental Award
The LBJ Foundation Board established the Lady Bird Johnson Environmental Award in 1992 in honor of the First Lady’s 80th birthday. It was created as a tribute to Lady Bird Johnson’s inspiring vision to preserve and protect the natural environment. The award honors outstanding achievements in the preservation, restoration, or improvement of the natural world that embrace Mrs. Johnson's style, energy, and commitment to her work. Past recipients include U.S. Senator John Chafee, Laurance Rockefeller, Patrick Noonan, Michael Dombeck, Governor Bruce Babbitt, Ted Turner, and Ken Burns.

Lady Bird Johnson was President Lyndon Baines Johnson’s partner in running one of the most active administrations in conservation since Theodore Roosevelt and Franklin D. Roosevelt. Among the major legislative initiatives enacted during LBJ’s presidency were the Wilderness Act of 1964, the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Program, the Highway Beautification Act, and many additions to the National Park system – a total of 200 laws relevant to the environment.

Select Environmental Laws Enacted During Johnson’s Administration

• The Wilderness Act
• The Clean Air Act and Water Quality Act
• The Highway Beautification Act
• The National Historic Preservation Act
• The Endangered Species Act
• The Wild and Scenic Rivers System
• The National Trails System
• The National Park Foundation
• The Wetlands Preservation Bill

LBJ Foundation
The LBJ Foundation is a nonprofit organization that was created by President and Mrs. Johnson to support the LBJ Presidential Library and the LBJ School of Public Affairs at The University of Texas at Austin. Through the fundraising efforts of its Board of Trustees, the Foundation provides support to the Library that enhances quality programming, expands educational outreach and exhibits, and administers grants for researchers and scholars. The Foundation supports the LBJ School in the outstanding education that it provides its graduate students in public policy and governmental affairs, community outreach, and the exploration of global initiatives. One looks to the past and the other to the future, providing an ongoing legacy for President Johnson’s accomplishments and his vision for our nation.