CEMML program manager receives award from National Military Fish and Wildlife Association

a woman explains restoration efforts to a group of people in Hawai'i.

CEMML’s Lena Schnell explains habitat restoration efforts for the endangered plant Vigna o-wahuensis to members of the Hawaii Watershed Partnership. Photo courtesy Lena Schnell.

May 14, 2026

BY JODI PETERSON

Lena Schnell, a senior program manager with CEMML, was recently honored with the Military Natural Resource Conservation Research Award from the National Military Fish and Wildlife Association. The association helps the Department of Defense comply with federal regulations protecting natural resources, while supporting the military mission. The award, presented at NMFWA’s 2026 conference, recognizes individuals whose research improves natural resource management on DoD lands.

Lena Schnell has spent 23 years with CEMML in support of Pōhakuloa Training Area helping to safeguard rare wildlife and plants. Photo courtesy Lena Schnell.

Schnell has worked for CEMML for 23 years at Pōhakuloa Training Area, an Army facility on the Big Island of Hawaiʻi. A botanist by training, she developed monitoring programs for federally listed plant and wildlife species at PTA, supporting adaptive management and Endangered Species Act compliance while maintaining military readiness. Schnell also managed a large interdisciplinary team focused on the recovery of imperiled native wildlife such as the Hawaiian hoary bat, the nene (Hawaiian goose), and the band-rumped storm petrel. “Her leadership has been pivotal in safeguarding rare and threatened plants and animals at PTA, and her innovative recovery-driven strategies have been featured in Army communications and outreach initiatives,” wrote CEMML’s Dominic Goshert, botanical monitoring specialist, who nominated Schnell for the competitive award.

PTA is home to nearly 50 rare plant species, including more than two dozen federally listed as threatened or endangered. Schnell has worked to conserve these plants through seed collection, propagation, outplanting, and habitat restoration. One of the major threats to rare Hawaiian plants is non-native grazing animals such as goats and sheep. Schnell helped implement long-term management of these invaders, which has “significantly improved habitat quality for native species across PTA and contributed to broader ecosystem recovery,” wrote Goshert in the nomination. Schnell also has worked with the US Fish and Wildlife Service to develop a biosecurity plan to help control harmful invasive species on Army lands in Hawaiʻi. In 2023, she helped gain official recognition for a new plant species, a daisy-like type of pamakani now known as Tetramolopium stemmermanniae.

Cross-agency collaboration is a priority for the US Army Garrison at PTA; hence, Schnell and her colleagues work closely with other partners such as the US Geological Survey, the Hawaiian Division of Forestry and Wildlife, and the Plant Extinction Prevention Program to support species recovery planning and implementation. “I am grateful to lead the team at PTA,” said Schnell after receiving the award, “and it is through their innovation and creativity that we continue to improve threatened and endangered species management and natural resources conservation at this facility.”

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