American botanist and teacher interested in the flora of the western United States and biodiversity conservation. Leslie Goodding travelled extensively in the Southwest in his formative years, gathering plant specimens for commercial sale. Educated at the University of Montana, he studied botany, plant pathology and pedagogy before teaching at various high schools in Arizona, including Benson, Bisbee and Flagstaff (at the normal school which later became Northern Arizona University). Goodding also worked for various governmental agencies during the course of his life, contributing particularly to controlling erosion, and developed a strong conservation ethic. Working to preserve the biodiversity of southern Arizona he was recognised in the creation of the Godding Research Area in Sycamore Canyon by the US Forestry Service; a region protected from grazing, mining and prospecting. Many of his specimens, collected across the western states throughout his life, represented undescribed species and the many species named after him bear testament to this, including Sideranthus gooddingii A. Nelson, Salix goodddingii C.R. Ball, Verbena gooddingii Briq. and Allium gooddingii M. Ownbey, among others.

Sources:
Anon, 2005, "Leslie N. Goodding Memorial Scholarship", The Drift 20(9):
http://eebweb.arizona.edu/drift/drift_archives/04_05/03-04-05.htm, accessed 7th June 2011.