Richard Casale (‘75, Natural Resources Management) has spent more than four decades protecting California’s natural resources and agricultural industry. He worked for the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) as a district conservationist for 43 years until his retirement in 2017. Following retirement he worked as a NRCS wildfire restoration contractor, assisting California communities recover from devastating wildfires. Casale has served thousands of Californians over his career with their natural resource management needs. He has written numerous technical articles and publications including the soon to be released, “Post-Wildfire Restoration Guide” for NRCS.

Casale is a Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control (CPESC), a certification program he co-founded 40 years ago. Today, there are over 20,000 certified CPESC professionals worldwide. He has received numerous awards including one presented to him in Washington D.C. for pioneering volunteerism in the USDA. In 2017 he was awarded a Natural Environmental Award by the California State Assembly and Lifetime Achievement Award by EnviroCert International, Inc.