Jeff Bingaman United States Senator from New Mexico

WASHINGTON - U.S. Senator Jeff Bingaman has introduced legislation recognizes Stewart Udall for his contributions as U.S. Interior Secretary and for advancing the important work of the Morris K. Udall Foundation.

The Morris K. Udall Foundation was established by Congress in 1992 to provide federal-funded scholarships to student seeking to pursue a career in environmental studies and to identify and educate new generations of leaders in Indian Country.

Bingaman’s bill would provide additional resources the foundation as well as rename it the Morris K. Udall and Stewart L. Udall Foundation, in recognition of the historic Interior Secretary's contributions.

“The Udall Foundation is an exemplary organization doing remarkable work and I am pleased to support additional resources to this agency.  In addition, Stewart displayed significant leadership in helping to enact much of the legislation that protects our environment and lands today as well as being one of the first people to point to problems in the environment. For these and many other reasons, he deserves inclusion in the Foundation on par with his brother, Morris,” Bingaman said.

The Morris K. Udall Foundation provides $5,000 scholarships for students interested in environmental and Native American issues.  Currently, the foundation awarded 80 scholarships a year.  Bingaman’s bill would make it possible for them to provide more.

Programs of the Udall Foundation include:

• U.S. Institute for Environmental Conflict Resolution.  This institute has played a quiet leading role to find common ground on issues as diverse as Everglades Restoration to the joint tribal-federal management of the National Bison Range Complex.

• The Native Nations Institute (NNI) a graduate educator and policy center for Indian Country.  NNI teaches a new way of governance on the reservations which embraces tribal identity as a core principle and smart business practices as a way to assist Indian nations rebuild their economies.  In the last 5 years, more than 2,000 Native American leaders have benefitted from its courses. New leaders emerging from the Foundation's education programs are beginning to take their places in Tribal governance.

• Parks in Focus aims to connect underserved youth to nature through the art of photography. 

Stewart Udall was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives from Arizona in 1954.  He served with distinction in the House for 3 terms on the Interior and Education and Labor committees.  In 1960, President Kennedy appointed Stewart Udall Secretary of Interior.  In this role, he oversaw the addition of four parks, 6 national monuments, 8 seashores and lakeshores, 9 recreation areas, 20 historic sites and 56 wildlife refuges to the National Park system.  During his tenure as the Interior Secretary, President Johnson signed into law the Wilderness Act, the Water Quality Act, the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act and National Trails Bill.

Stewart currently resides in Santa Fe, NM, and will turn 90 years old in the coming year.