Growing Together: Conversation with Adam Putnam, Chief Executive Officer, Ducks Unlimited

Ducks Unlimited CEO Adam Putnam is a fifth-generation Floridian and a graduate of the University of Florida where he obtained a bachelor's degree in Food and Resource Economics. He has also been awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree and served as a Rodel Fellow at the Aspen Institute. In 2010, he was the E.T. York Distinguished Lecturer at the University of Florida. Putnam and his wife of 20 years, Melissa, reside in Memphis, Tenn. with their four children.

He is a hunter, angler, conservationist, and third-generation farmer who owns Putnam Groves Inc. Putnam Groves is a family owned and operated citrus farm and cattle ranch located in Central Florida.

How did your educational experiences at the University of Florida impact your path to leadership? 

I consider myself to be a land grant baby – I was a 10-year 4-H'er, grew up on a family farm, got a degree from the University of Florida, and truly benefited from all three legs of the stool - teaching, research, and Extension. I truly believe the U.S. land grant model should be replicated around the world. It’s a path to food security and helps produce the next generation of young leaders.

How do Ducks Unlimited’s key priorities align with or benefit from land-grant universities’ research, education, and/or Cooperative Extension programs?

Ducks Unlimited (DU) relies on science to guide our conservation efforts and conserve habitat across North America. Similarly, many land-grant universities conduct research that directly applies to our mission and helps advise investments in habitat while also facilitating direct involvement in on-the-ground conservation practices. The challenges and opportunities in conservation have always overlapped substantially with those in agriculture, but as society’s expectations have evolved to include sustainability practices, these priorities are nearing total alignment. In many ways, DU’s outreach to producers is modeled after extension services.

How have colleges of agriculture and natural resources at land-grant universities helped Ducks Unlimited strengthen its impact and serve your stakeholders?

• DU has 31 college chapters at land-grant universities. We’re training and developing the next generation of conservationists.
• DU educates students and connects them with our science and conservation staff. We recruit staff from wildlife, agriculture, and engineering programs across the country to work with us; many students also go on to work for our important partners.
• Colleges of agriculture and natural resources are often our best partners in research and education on critical conservation issues.

Research: If you could ask land-grant university researchers for help with one critical issue, what would it be? 

Resourcing future generations with practical skills for working in natural resources, especially the skills to collaborate and communicate with landowners, with policy makers, and with the public and private sector.

Education: What advice would you give to students interested in pursuing majors aligned with the Ducks Unlimited work or other conservation efforts? 

• There is a wide variety of career opportunities available for people with strong work ethics, who want to get their hands dirty, and are passionate about the outdoors.
• Build relationships and gain hands-on experience leading projects while you’re in college, whether in the lab, field, classroom or extension setting.
• Consider joining your campus DU chapter to meet like-minded individuals and network with fellow students.

Cooperative Extension: What untapped partnership pathways could be valuable for Ducks Unlimited and Extension to explore?

DU is exploring much more work understanding social and economic values of conservation practices for landowners and to work to tailor conservation programs to best suit the needs of producers. There is enormous collaborative potential to explore these topics with Cooperative Extension.

Based on your professional experiences as both Commissioner of Florida’s Department of Agriculture and CEO of Ducks Unlimited, what strategic opportunities among universities, state departments of agriculture, and non-profit organizations have the greatest potential for driving progress for agriculture and conservation?

We have the opportunity to convene representatives from each group to better harmonize our efforts and make sure we’re doing the things that landowners need and want. Farmers and ranchers are under increasing pressure to change the way they operate but receive no reward for being early adopters.

We must align priorities between state departments of agriculture, USDA, DU, and other partners. Farmers, ranchers, hunters, and anglers are our nation’s original conservationists, and anything we can do to remove barriers to co-operation represents progress.

“Growing Together: Conversations with CEOs” showcases Presidents and CEOs of national agricultural associations, commodity groups, and other organizations and explores their powerful synergies with land-grant universities. Through conversations with leaders, this new interview series examines how organizations strengthened their impact in partnerships with Colleges of Agriculture and Natural Resources’ research, education, and Cooperative Extension. These interviews also highlight emerging opportunities to leverage collaboration, drive innovation, and serve all Americans.