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Gail Achterman Papers, 1975-2012

Overview of the Collection

Creator
Achterman, Gail L.
Title
Gail Achterman Papers
Dates
1975-2012 (inclusive)
2003-2011 (bulk)
Quantity
1.35 cubic feet, (4 boxes)
3.22 Gbytes, (3 files)
Collection Number
MSS Achterman
Summary
The Gail Achterman Papers consist of materials created by Oregon State University Institute of Natural Resources' creator and director Gail Achterman. Achterman led the institute from 2003 to 2011 and was renowned in the areas of natural resources and environmental law and policy. The collection chiefly consists of journals related to the Institute of Natural Resources and educational materials she shared during her time as director, as well as items pertaining to the Gail Achterman Willamette Legacy.
Repository
Oregon State University Libraries, Special Collections and Archives Research Center
Special Collections and Archives Research Center
121 The Valley Library
Oregon State University
Corvallis OR
97331-4501
Telephone: 5417372075
Fax: 5417378674
scarc@oregonstate.edu
Access Restrictions

Collection is open for research.

Languages
English
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Biographical Note

Gail Achterman was born in Portland, Oregon on August 1, 1949 to Walter and Patricia Achterman. She attended and graduated from Stanford University with a bachelor’s degree with honors in economics. She went on to attend the University of Michigan to receive a law degree as well as a master’s degree in natural resource policy and management. She began working in Washington D.C. for the Office of Solicitor for the U.S. Department of Interior.

In 1978 she returned to Oregon and joined the Stoel Rivers, LLP law firm, specializing in natural resource and environmental law. She held a position there until 1987, when she assumed a position as the natural resources assistant to the governor of Oregon. In 2003, she began working at Oregon State University as the director of the Institute of Natural Resources (INR). She held this position with INR until 2011. Between 2007 and 2011, Achterman was also the chairperson of the Oregon Transportation Commission. In this position, she helped spread awareness about transportation laws, as well teaching others about the effects that motorized vehicles have on the environment. After retiring from Oregon State, she began her Willamette Strategies legacy project. The focus of this project is to promote awareness of our relationship with the Willamette Valley. Gail Achterman passed away on January 28, 2012.

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Content Description

The Gail Achterman Papers are composed mainly of documents related to Achterman’s extensive outreach throughout Oregon. The collection includes notes from meetings, speeches, reports, and notebooks of her time as director of the Oregon State University Institute of Natural Resources (INR). This collection also houses her master’s thesis, notebooks on the Willamette project, as well as some of her personal rowing journals.

A sizable portion of this collection is made up of the notebooks Achterman kept while she was director of the Institute of Natural Resources. These notebooks include potential project ideas that she considered, research proposals, and notes for presentations and speeches and from meetings with various individuals. These notebooks span from September of 2003 to July of 2011.

Notably, this collection also contains her masters of science thesis on the judicial control over land classification policy as well as information on the courses that she helped develop or change during her time as INR director. It also houses the files on the proposal for the Natural Area of Hayden Island , which has been named the Gail Achterman Natural Area.

The speeches include a digital  video recording of a 2011 presentation by Achterman on the long-term impacts of a higher population on the Willamette Valley.  The born-digital recording is available for viewing in the Special Collections and Archives Research Center Reading Room.

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Use of the Collection

Preferred Citation

Gail Achterman Papers (MSS Achterman), Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center, Corvallis, Oregon.

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Administrative Information

Arrangement

The Gail Achterman Papers are arranged into 5 series: 1. Master's Thesis, 1975; 2. Speeches, 2003-2011; 3. Environmental Action Materials, 1995-2012; 4. Journals, Notebooks and Planners, 2003-2011; and 5. Project Notes, 1987-2012.

Acquisition Information

The materials were donated to Special Collections and Archives in 2016 by Christopher Achterman.

Processing Note

A flashdrive that was received with the collection included 73 files (in 18 folders) that totaled 3.22 Gbytes.  Only 3 of those files (3.22 Gbytes) have been described as part of the collection.

Related Materials

The Special Collections and Archives Research Center holds many collections documenting research and public policy pertaining to natural resources in Oregon and the region. Some photographs of Gail Achterman can be found in The Oregon Chapter of the Wildlife Society Records (MSS Wildlife). Achterman also appears in A Century of Oregon Forestry: Challenge, Change, and Opportunity, a DVD produced by the College of Forestry and the Oregon Forest Resources Institute that is part of the College of Forestry Moving Images (FV 061) . Her course lecture "Water rights: Law and ecology," is available in the Fisheries and Wildlife Department Films and Videotapes (FV 243).

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Detailed Description of the Collection

Names and SubjectsReturn to Top

Subject Terms

  • Environmental policy--Oregon.
  • Environmental protection--Planning.
  • Research institutes--Oregon.

Corporate Names

  • Oregon State University--Research.
  • Oregon State University. Institute for Natural Resources.
  • Oregon Transportation Commission.

Geographical Names

  • Willamette River Valley (Or.)
  • Willamette River Watershed (Or.)

Form or Genre Terms

  • Born digital.
  • Digital moving image formats.

Finding Aid Authors: Maya Bergmann, Ruth Vondracek, and Elizabeth Nielsen.
2019

CC Attribution
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

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