The Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy is a global environmental nonprofit working to create a world where people and nature can thrive.

The Nature Conservancy was founded in the U.S. through grassroots action in 1951. Its mission is to conserve the lands and waters on which all life depends. To achieve this, we must boldly address the biodiversity and climate crises over the next decade. By maximizing our ability to affect change between now and 2030, we can shape a brighter future for people and our planet.

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National FWS Programs They Work With

A lone bison stands atop a grassy hilltop
Once spanning more than 580 million acres across Indigenous Lands, Canada, the United States, and Mexico, the Central Grasslands, also known as the Great Plains, are the world’s most imperiled and least conserved ecosystem. One of the last intact temperate grassland landscapes in the world, these...
Close up of a California condor. Its pink featherless head contrasts with its black feathers.
We provide national leadership in the recovery and conservation of our nation's imperiled plant and animal species, working with experts in the scientific community to identify species on the verge of extinction and to build the road to recovery to bring them back. We work with a range of public...

Related Stories

A frog on the edge of a pond with a person standing out-of-focus in the background.
When people think about the southwestern United States, most picture arid deserts and mountainous areas, however southwestern states including Arizona and New Mexico also contain riparian woodlands and wetlands that many species rely on. One of those species is the Chiricahua leopard frog.
Green shrubs in the foreground are backed by golden wetland plants in the middle distance and red-leaved trees in the back, all under a partly cloudy sky
Tucked in the Maine woods, this unassuming, little-known unit of the National Wildlife Refuge System has been quietly providing high-quality wildlife habitat and recreation while moonlighting as a climate superhero.
McNeill-Peach Creek Unit at San Bernard National Wildlife Refuge
In 2022, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service added nearly 6,000 acres of public land to the National Wildlife Refuge System in Texas. This brings the total number of Service-managed lands in the state to nearly 700,000 acres at 21 National Wildlife Refuges and three National Fish Hatcheries.
A Dakota skipper butterfly on a pink flower
When we think about landscape conservation, we tend to think big – big problems that require big solutions. But sometimes, it’s the little things that have the greatest impacts. The beating wings of a small butterfly might just be what is needed to save our nation’s grasslands. The butterfly is...
Saltmarsh Sparrow mother and chicks huddled in nest in salt marsh
Saltmarsh sparrows are among the species most imperiled by climate change, especially as sea level rise degrades their marsh home. But, as researchers track changes in the marsh in order to protect the birds, the birds are also teaching researchers about how to bolster the entire marsh system from...
A sihek stand on a branch in a cage. It is cinnamon orange with metallic blue wings and tail. It's beak is large and black and it has a metallic blue stripe retreating from its eye like mascara.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is proposing the experimental population of sihek (Guam kingfisher) at The Nature Conservancy’s Palmyra Atoll Preserve. Captive bred sihek would be released on Palmyra Atoll as an experimental population under section 10(j) of the Endangered Species Act, which...
A wide view of the river with a field of Cahaba lilies.
Coal mining left a legacy of habitat destruction and polluted waters. The refuge must be cleaned up before it welcomes legions of outdoor enthusiasts. Today, 20 years after the refuge was created, it has the money, partners, and drive to do just that.
Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland today celebrated a unique settlement agreement as part of the Natural Resource Damage Assessment and Restoration (NRDAR) Program that will return more than 1,000 acres of ancestral land to the Onondaga Nation, one of the largest returns of land to an Indigenous...
Landscape of St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge
The St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge is under the climate gun as Mother Nature unleashes all manner of temperature, precipitation, and storm havoc on the popular preserve along the Gulf Coast. Sadly, the animals that once depended upon steady weather and predictable tides suffer the brunt of the...
Looking up from the inside of a cave, the entrance is a window-view of a green forest.
Paint Rock, Alabama – Feast your eyes upon the beauty and biodiversity of the Sharp-Bingham Mountain Preserve in northeast Alabama. Waterfalls cascade over limestone ledges. Sixty caves offer miles of subterranean adventure. Second and third-generation hardwoods -- hickories, elms, maples, and even...
texas pimpleback mussel
A team of researchers from Texas A&M AgriLife Research and The Nature Conservancy are working on a project funded by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Ecological Services and Science Applications programs to study how the extreme low and high flows that plague Texas rivers impact populations...
Snow covering a charred landscape with snow capped mountains in the background.
The idea of using local, native seeds in restoration is taking off, just like the wildfires they are designed to follow, as ecologists and botanists in Nevada embark on research to test the use of these seeds in helping burned areas recover and become resilient.

Partner Category

Here we partner with a wider variety of other organizations on projects to meet shared conservation goals.

Other Partners

Here are just a few of our National Partners. You can view the full list of FWS partners, along with the regions and areas of focus our work together entails.

Partnership Services

Through our partnerships we are able to expand our capabilities through the inclusion of services in areas such as:

  • Grant opportunities
  • Sponsorship of grants
  • Cooperative Agreements

To find out more about how our partner provides services view our partner services below.