The natural progression, once women are included, is they tend to do things better than their male counterparts. If you don't believe me, go take that point up with your gal…and best of luck.

As Pheasants Forever's Cheryl Riley pointed out in her Get 'em Outdoors post last week, women participation in hunting continues to rise. Not coincidentally, women participation in conservation continues its upswing. And at Pheasants Forever, it's not merely conservation participation, it's conservation leadership. Last week, two Pheasants Forever states – North Dakota and Minnesota – recognized female volunteers with a pair of the highest honors bestowed upon Pheasants Forever chapter volunteers.

In Minnesota, Stacy Dvorak of the Scott County Pheasants Forever Chapter was named Minnesota Pheasants Forever'sVolunteer of the Year. Dvorak is the first woman to receive this award, selected from nominees spread across Minnesota's 78 Pheasants Forever chapters. Dvorak relentlessly promotes the Scott County Pheasants Forever chapter, and is in charge of the group's annual fundraising banquet. Beyond that, she created a Sportsman's Swap Meet to generate more revenue for the chapter, which allowed the group to create its "Operation Upland Hunt" to honor active military personnel with a pheasant hunt and "Operation Puppy Surprise" to match quality hunting pups with military families.

Michelle Nelson of the Red River Valley Pheasants Forever chapter received the MVP Award from North Dakota Pheasants Forever. According to Jesse Beckers, North Dakota regional wildlife biologist for Pheasants Forever, Nelson is the first woman to receive the MVP award in North Dakota. "Michelle spends countless volunteer hours with her chapter's operations, organizing their youth events and assisting in all chapter functions," Beckers said. "She also goes with her husband, Brian, to various sports shows and several youth events with her daughters every year. We cannot think of anyone more deserving of this award.

To all the ladies reading this, here's proof that the conservation community isn't exclusive. You can do it; in fact, you just might do it better!