UNIONDALE, NY / ACCESS Newswire / January 30, 2025 / Marquis Who's Who has honored Alton Perry for excellence in the field of forestry and conservation. Mr. Perry is a professional committed to community outreach and environmental advocacy for over three decades. As the director of the Sustainable Forestry and Land Retention Project at the Roanoke Cooperative, his work teaches landowners how to make their properties thrive. It shows his community a greener way of living.

In 1982, Mr. Perry began his career in conservation when he received an Associate of Science in forest technology from Wayne Community College, a public community college in Goldsboro, North Carolina. Soon after, he started work with the North Carolina Forest Service (NCFS) as a southern pine beetle technician.

Mr. Perry would serve the NCFS for 30 years, beginning in Wake County in 1982 and moving to Raleigh in 1983. During his time with the NCFS, he held the positions of Wake County ranger and assistant ranger. In 2006, he became an outreach coordinator, focusing on community engagement and educating others on the importance of forestry conservation.

In 2013, Mr. Perry transitioned to the next stage of his career. Retiring from his position with the NCFS, he joined the Roanoke Electric Cooperative. This rural cooperative is one of 26 in North Carolina that provides electricity to its member-owners. One of its subsidiaries, Roanoke Economic Development Inc., performs community-based programs, including the Sustainable Forestry and Land Retention Project.

Mr. Perry has also worked as a management consultant with the cooperative. His responsibilities include outreach to forest landowners, providing technical assistance and offering resources to landowners for conservation and forestry implementation. This project emphasizes aiding African American forest landowners to facilitate land retention and build family wealth through forest management.

Mr. Perry considers one of his most significant accomplishments to be the positive changes he has observed impacting landowners from various environmental and economic perspectives. Many of these landowners started developing their lands from scratch. After participating in Mr. Perry's program, they successfully implemented economic streams on their properties and saw them thrive.

Expanding his environmental outreach beyond his local community, Mr. Perry created a YouTube video called "Forest Champion: Alton Perry | Keeping Forests." In August 2022, his work received further publicity when he was featured in the Daily Herald. He has also assisted environmental research by helping with a survey outreach for African American family forest owners in the Southeastern United States, which Oxford Academic published in November 2023.

In 2023, Mr. Perry was included in the Sustainable Forestry Initiative published as "Black Faces in Green Spaces: The Journeys of Black Professionals in Green Careers." This initiative, which featured 22 distinguished individuals, explores the lives of African American professionals in environmental-related careers to raise awareness of jobs in the forest and conservation sector.

Mr. Perry's contributions to his community and the field of conservation received recognition in March 2024 when he was added to the prestigious list of Marquis Who's Who individuals. His work was also featured in the Sixth Edition of Marquis Who's Who Insight, where he discusses his perspective as an advocate for forestry and conservation.

Mr. Perry currently serves as the director of the Sustainable Forestry and Land Retention Project at the Roanoke Cooperative. While he plans to retire in the next five to 10 years, he is dedicated to continuing his advocacy for conservation and forestry. Mr. Perry strives to empower landowners to take good property stewardship further, helping them understand their importance to conservation and the economy.

Through years of service, community outreach and advocacy, Mr. Perry's work has had an impact throughout his local community and beyond. His life and teachings showcase the possibility of a greener, more sustainable and prosperous world.

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SOURCE: Marquis Who's Who