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Friends Unite for Wildlife: National Workshop Brings Together Advocates for National Wildlife Refuge System

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Friends Unite for Wildlife: National Workshop Brings Together Advocates for National Wildlife Refuge System

The National Wildlife Refuge Association recently joined forces with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to offer a National Friends Workshop, which took place from April 28th to May 1st, 2023. This workshop brought together Refuge and Hatchery Friends groups, nonprofits that support specific national wildlife refuges and national fish hatcheries. These groups play a crucial role in the success of the National Wildlife Refuge System by providing financial support for facility and habitat projects, contributing numerous volunteer hours, and actively supporting advocacy initiatives.

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Delray Beach Creates Second Pocket Refuge as Part of Urban Wildlife Refuge Program

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Delray Beach Creates Second Pocket Refuge as Part of Urban Wildlife Refuge Program

We've got some seriously exciting news for you. This Earth Day, the National Wildlife Refuge Association teamed up with the Arthur R. Marshall Loxahatchee National Wildlife Refuge, the City of Delray Beach’s Department of Parks and Recreation, and the Department of Sustainability to create a groundbreaking Pocket Refuge at the Family Recreation and Fitness Center Playground.

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Urban Partners Team Up to Plant Trees in Chauncey Park for Earth Day

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Urban Partners Team Up to Plant Trees in Chauncey Park for Earth Day

An Earth Month celebration was held on April 8, 2023, at Chauncey Park in Dobbs Ferry, NY, in collaboration with the National Wildlife Refuge Association, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Groundwork Hudson Valley, and Moms Organic Market. The event aimed to unite community members to stabilize the riparian habitat along the Sawmill River. Groundwork Hudson Valley led the planting of 68 potted dogwoods, elderberry, and birch trees along the banks of Sawmill River Island.

National Wildlife Refuge Association Supports USFWS Director Martha Williams In The Face Of Calls For Resignation

National Wildlife Refuge Association Supports USFWS Director Martha Williams In The Face Of Calls For Resignation

The National Wildlife Refuge Association wholeheartedly supports Martha Williams in her role as the director of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). In a recent letter to the Administration, a group of concerned scientists called for the resignation or dismissal of Director Williams. They claim she lacks the required scientific and educational background to serve in this position, despite her impressive experience in fisheries and wildlife management and environmental law and policy. 

Proposed Southwest Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Area: A Partnership Driven Approach

Proposed Southwest Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Area: A Partnership Driven Approach

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is embarking on an ambitious new effort to establish a Southwest Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Area. If successful, a new conservation area would allow the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (Service) to work with willing landowners to protect the lands most important to our water and wildlife in one of the most biologically diverse regions in our country.

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Few staff, many problems: Inside the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge’s funding crisis

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Few staff, many problems: Inside the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge’s funding crisis

On spring mornings, a chorus erupts from the mouth of the Missisquoi River. 

Scores of birds, from Canadian geese to bobolinks, are migrating north, feeding, breeding, and raising their young in the Missisquoi National Wildlife Refuge. Deer feed on the shores, while muskrats patrol the shallow waters alongside a myriad of fish, with the river itself one of the few spawning sites of Lake sturgeon in Lake Champlain.

However, budget constraints across the National Wildlife Refuge System have put a chokehold on what the skeleton crew managing the local 7,000-acre refuge can do. 

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Protecting Florida's savannas and ranchlands before it's too late

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Protecting Florida's savannas and ranchlands before it's too late

“Partnerships are going to make it possible to accomplish our landscape-level conservation goals,” said Julie Morris, the Florida and Gulf Coast program manager for the National Wildlife Refuge Association. “By working hand-in-hand with our local, state, and federal partners, as well as nonprofits, we can maximize conservation on a lot more land.”  

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Department of the Interior Withdraws Izembek National Wildlife Refuge Land Exchange Agreement

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Department of the Interior Withdraws Izembek National Wildlife Refuge Land Exchange Agreement

The Department of the Interior recently announced that Secretary Deb Haaland rescinded a 2019 proposed land exchange in the Izembek National Wildlife Refuge that authorized a road to be constructed through the heart of this pristine Alaskan landscape. The National Wildlife Refuge Association has worked for decades to protect the Izembek NWR from this threat and celebrates this important step towards safeguarding America's most ecologically significant national wildlife refuge. 

Happy 120th Birthday National Wildlife Refuge System!

Happy 120th Birthday National Wildlife Refuge System!

Happy 120th Birthday to the National Wildlife Refuge System! Today, we celebrate the incredible accomplishment of creating and maintaining over 560 national wildlife refuges throughout the United States, which provide vital habitats for wildlife, offer outdoor recreation opportunities, and serve as outdoor laboratories for scientific research.

CARE Launches New Website To Fund National Wildlife Refuges

CARE Launches New Website To Fund National Wildlife Refuges

The Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE) is proud to announce the release of our new website, https://www.fundwildliferefuges.com/. As the chair of the coalition, the National Wildlife Refuge Association is excited to unveil this new platform for the benefit of increased funding and support of the National Wildlife Refuge System.