Dr. George Potts, a.k.a. “Energy Green Grandpa,” has been involved in American environmental education for more than 60 years.
In 1965 he developed the Energy Education Curriculum for the Wichita Public Schools, and in 1973 his work with the Ecology Club at Wichita North High won him the U.S. President’s Excellence Award for Outstanding Achievement in Environmental Protection Services.
From 1976-1991 Dr. Potts was a science professor at Friends University in Wichita. There, hosted a campus radio show called “Science Scene,” and he innovated a number of science degree programs, including the Master of Science degree in Environmental Studies, and the Bachelor of Science degree in Zoo Science.
After his university tenure, he founded George Potts & Associates Environmental Education Consultants, and served on the board of the Friends of the Great Plains Nature Center Committee. He was named the 1993 Conservationist of the Year by the Kansas Wildlife Federation, and for 24 years he coordinated the OWLS (Outdoor Wildlife Learning Sites) program, which helped develop immersive science-learning environments on Kansas public school campuses.
Dr. Potts is the author of numerous books and articles, including A Checklist of the Vertebrate Animals of Kansas (1991), Watching Kansas Wildlife (1993), the Kansas chapter of The Smithsonian Guides to Natural America: The Heartlands (1997), and the Pocket Guide to Common Kansas Mammals (2005).
In 2024 the Kansas Association for Conservation and Environmental Education (KACEE) honored Dr. Potts with the John K. Strickler Award, which commemorates lifetime achievement and leadership in environmental education. His commendation noted that he is “an exceptional example of someone that cares deeply about providing factual, common-sense education concerning wise use of our resources and the care of our natural world. This has helped lay the groundwork for creating generations of informed citizens in creating opinions on what all of us can do to sustain our existence on this planet.”
Dr. Potts lives with his wife Alice Potts, also a retired teacher (whose Wichita elementary students led the campaign to get the Barred Tiger Salamander declared the Kansas State Amphibian in 1994) at an assisted living facility in Salina, Kansas.
