Transcendent Principles

Partnerships

We are committed to developing authentic partnership and support among the full diversity of stakeholders, including Tribes and Indigenous communities, hunters and anglers, birders and wildlife-watchers, landowners, and other local, state, and federal partners.

RiSC dune grass planting

Climate Resilience Education Provides Hope Through Action

Students often report that climate change increases their anxiety and despair. Since 2016, NWF’s climate education team, with support from NOAA, FEMA and other partners, have delivered an award-winning climate education and action program in New York City. The Resilient Schools and Communities (RiSC) program increases understanding of climate change’s scientific, environmental, and social dimensions and also cultivates students’ hope for the future. One of the projects resulted in students planting 50,000 beach grass plants to stabilize migrating dunes in Coney Island. 

RiSC has been adapted in the U.S. Virgin Islands, New Jersey, Texas, and Puerto Rico. With support from the Kettering Foundation in 2024, NWF published a RiSC Replication Toolkit to provide educators across the country with a roadmap to implement the program in their communities.

Photo Credit: Emily Fano

Students Save Threatened and Endangered Species on Seven Campuses

Through support from Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom, NWF provided seven grants to colleges and universities that showcase and fund innovative and solutions-based programs that help protect threatened and endangered wildlife, including the Northern long-eared bat, Hine’s emerald dragonfly, the gopher tortoise, and their habitats. The schools are: Bellevue College in Washington state; Joliet Junior College in Illinois; Roanoke College in Virginia; University of Montana; University of Nebraska Omaha; University of West Alabama; and the University of Wisconsin – Eau Claire. 

Photo Credit: University of West Alabama

Large Eastern Black Swallowtail Caterpillar
Construction site of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing

Making Connections for Wildlife in California and Beyond

The California region’s flagship project, the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing, which will be the largest of its kind in the world once completed, saw major progress in the summer of 2024 with the installation of 82 girders and the completion of the bridge structure over the 101 Freeway.  The Federation also helped to found and launch California Wildlife Reconnected, a collaboration with the Governor of California, CalTrans, and the California Natural Resources Agency, and hosted the Connections in Conservation connectivity workshop in partnership with officials from Florida and Texas. 

Photo Credit: Caltrans

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Commitment to Environmental Justice