Beatrice "Bettie" Willard (December 19, 1925 – 7 January 2003) was an American

botanist Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

who specialized in studies on the ecology and botany of high

alpine Alpine may refer to any mountainous region. It may also refer to: Places Europe * Alps, a European mountain range ** Alpine states, which overlap with the European range Australia * Alpine, New South Wales, a Northern Village * Alpine National P ...

tundra, as well as arctic

tundra In physical geography, a tundra () is a type of biome where tree growth is hindered by frigid temperatures and short growing seasons. There are three regions and associated types of tundra: #Arctic, Arctic, Alpine tundra, Alpine, and #Antarctic ...

. Willard's studies influenced public policy with her studies, which centered on plant life at high altitudes. Willard was responsible for the establishment of the

Beatrice Willard Alpine Tundra Research Plots The Beatrice Willard Alpine Tundra Research Plots were established in 1959 along Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado, above the treeline in an alpine tundra habitat. The plots were used by Beatrice Willard of the Institut ...

above the treeline in

Rocky Mountain National Park Rocky Mountain National Park is a List of national parks of the United States, national park of the United States located approximately northwest of Denver in north-central Colorado, within the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains. The park is s ...

, now listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. In later years she was an adviser to U.S. presidents

Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 until his resignation in 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 36th vice president under P ...

and

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

as the first woman on the

Council on Environmental Quality The Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) is a division of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, Executive Office of the President that coordinates federal Natural environment, environmental efforts in the United States ...

(CEQ).

Biography

Beatrice Willard was born December 19, 1925, the daughter of

Stephen Stephen or Steven is an English given name, first name. It is particularly significant to Christianity, Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is w ...

and Beatrice Williard, living in

Palm Springs, California Palm Springs (Cahuilla language, Cahuilla: ''Séc-he'') is a desert resort city in Riverside County, California, United States, within the Colorado Desert's Coachella Valley. The city covers approximately , making it the largest city in Rivers ...

and Sierra Nevada during her childhood. Her father was a noted landscape photographer. She developed an interest in natural studies by the time she was twelve. From an early age she was encouraged by her parents to read about plants, animals, and the environment around her. She was awarded a B.A. in biological sciences from

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

in 1947, then attended the

National Park Service The National Park Service (NPS) is an List of federal agencies in the United States, agency of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, within the US Department of the Interior. The service manages all List ...

Yosemite Field School. However, she was unable to get a job with the Park Service and took work as a high school teacher, first in

Salinas, California Salinas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Salt pan (geology), Salt Flats") is a city in the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Monterey County, California, Monterey County. With a population of 163,542 in the 2020 Census, Salinas is ...

, then in

Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California. It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County, with a population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is ...

, and finally at Tulelake High School in California. In 1952 she began working as a seasonal interpretive ranger at

Lava Beds National Monument Lava Beds National Monument is located in northeastern California, in Siskiyou County, California, Siskiyou and Modoc County, California, Modoc counties. The monument lies on the northeastern flank of Medicine Lake Volcano, which is the largest ...

and

Crater Lake National Park Crater Lake National Park is a national park of the United States located in southern Oregon. Established in 1902, Crater Lake is the fifth-oldest national park in the United States and the only national park in Oregon. The park encompasses t ...

. During the 1950s Willard was awarded a

Ford Foundation The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a $25,000 (about $550,000 in 2023) gift from Edsel Ford. ...

grant to study alpine ecology in Europe. She earned her M.A. in 1960 and her Ph.D. in 1963, both in botany/plant ecology at the University of Colorado, advised by John Marr, founder of the

Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research The Institute of Arctic and Alpine Research (INSTAAR) is a scientific institute that is part of the University of Colorado Boulder. Its research mission is to " evelopscientific knowledge of physical and biogeochemical environmental processes at ...

. She wrote ''Land Above the Trees: A Guide to American Alpine Tundra'' (1972, revised 1996, with coauthor-illustrator Ann Zwinger), ''A Guide to the Mammoth Lakes Sierra'' (1959, with Dean Rinehart and Elden Vestal), ''A Roadside Guide To Rocky Mountain National Park'' (1990, with Susan Quimby Foster), and ''Plants of Rocky Mountain National Park'' (2000, with Linda H. Beidleman and Richard G. Beidleman). In later years she directed the Thorne Institute in

Aspen, Colorado Aspen is the List of municipalities in Colorado#Home rule municipality, home rule city that is the county seat and the List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous municipality of Pitkin County, Colorado, United States. The city population ...

and was active in the Rocky Mountain Chapter of the

Sierra Club The Sierra Club is an American environmental organization with chapters in all 50 U.S. states, Washington, D.C., Washington D.C., and Puerto Rico. The club was founded in 1892, in San Francisco, by preservationist John Muir. A product of the Pro ...

and with the Colorado Open Space Council. Willard promoted the establishment of

Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument The Florissant Formation is a sedimentary geologic formation outcropping around Florissant, Teller County, Colorado. The formation is noted for the abundant and exceptionally preserved insect and plant fossils that are found in the mudstones an ...

. As a member of the CEQ she advised on the design of the

Trans-Alaska Pipeline System The Trans-Alaska Pipeline System (TAPS) is an oil transportation system spanning Alaska, including the trans-Alaska crude-oil pipeline, 12 pump stations, several hundred miles of feeder pipelines, and the Valdez Marine Terminal. TAPS is one o ...

. After leaving the CEQ in 1973 she joined the

Colorado School of Mines The Colorado School of Mines (Mines) is a public research university in Golden, Colorado, United States. Founded in 1874, the school offers both undergraduate and graduate degrees in engineering, science, and mathematics, with a focus on ener ...

and established the school's environmental sciences program, earning a

United Nations Outstanding Environmental Leadership Award United may refer to: Places * United, Pennsylvania, an unincorporated community * United, West Virginia, an unincorporated community Arts and entertainment Films * ''United'' (2003 film), a Norwegian film * ''United'' (2011 film), a BBC Two fi ...

References

1925 births 2003 deaths American botanists American ecologists American environmentalists American women environmentalists American women botanists American women ecologists Colorado School of Mines faculty Stanford University alumni University of Colorado alumni People from Palm Springs, California Educators from California 20th-century American women scientists 20th-century American scientists Activists from California American women academics 21st-century American women {{Botanist-stub