National Wildlife Federation

In a critical time of accelerating climate and biodiversity crises, we envision improved ecological balance and safe, equitable access to clean water, air and land to ensure that all wildlife, people, and ecosystems thrive. The National Wildlife Federation commits to achieve this by: Upholding the We Believe, We Envision, We Commit statements adopted by NWF Affiliates; Working across the Federation to implement effective and innovative practices, policies, and programs that benefit wildlife, people, and our planet; Expanding our impact, built through authentic relationships with existing affiliates and with partners and communities that have been traditionally excluded; Moving with integrity and courage to affect transformational change at the intersection between wildlife conservation and environmental justice. This belief led us to form a new strategic plan for saving wildlife that are suffering declines across America, with the goal of increasing America's fish and wildlife populations and enhancing their capacity to thrive in a rapidly changing world. The plan sets in motion a Common Agenda for Wildlife built upon sound science, clear priorities, and scalable solutions. Our Common Agenda includes a commitment to: Protect, Restore, and Connect Wildlife Habitat: Active restoration and reconnection of fragmented and degraded habitat across protected lands, working lands, waterways, coasts, and communities; Transform Wildlife Conservation: Advancing 21st century wildlife management, defending public trust resources, and confronting emerging stressors like climate change, invasive species, and wildlife diseases; Connect Americans with Wildlife: Inspiring the next generation of conservationists and mobilizing a diverse conservation army to broaden the stewardship ethic, conservation action, public and private investments, and support for policy changes necessary to save thousands of at-risk species in our time.

We believe America’s experience with cherished landscapes and wildlife has helped define and shape o

Goal One: Protect, Restore, and Connect Wildlife Habitat: Active restoration and reconnection of fragmented and degraded habitat across protected lands, working lands, waterways, coasts, and communities

Goal Two: Transform Wildlife Conservation: Advancing 21st century wildlife management, defending public trust resources, & confronting emerging stressors; climate change, invasive species, and wildlife diseases

Goal Three: Connect Americans with Wildlife: Inspiring the next generation of conservationists and mobilizing a diverse conservation army to broaden the conservation reach, stewardship ethic, & policy changes.

Our Board of Directors established our first Board and staff Equity and Justice committees. In 2017 we relaunched our Equity and Justice Steering Committee (EJSC). In 2019 we hired our first Director of Equity and Justice, Chanté Coleman—later promoted to her current role, VP of Equity and Justice. We hired Dr. Mustafa Santiago Ali to serve as our first-ever Vice President for Environmental Justice, Climate, and Community Revitalization. June 2020, we hired Partners for Collaborative Change (PCC) to help us continue our journey and begin planning for long-term, strategic culture change. In August, launched our Racial Equity Transformation Team (RETT) and began incorporating recommendations from our Black ERG. Training w/ our Tribal Partnerships and Environmental Justice Team. Brought on Robin Martin as the inaugural Vice President of People; She's responsible for co-creating the future of our employees experience while centering on diversity, equity, inclusion and justice work.

National Wildlife Federation and our partners have had to, and continue to, make calibrations that accommodate local realities and demonstrate a public health sensitivity in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. This is especially true for our efforts that involve in-person activities, which have been postponed and/or adjusted to a virtual setting. For nearly all of our work, however, we have been able to keep our project timelines on track. Fortunately, we were able to pivot and adjust our approach, methods and delivery mechanisms. As we have since the start of the pandemic, we will continue following social distancing and other CDC and local/state guidelines as appropriate as we work to achieve our goals. We also recognize the cost of living through these challenging times is having on our employees. Many of the changes at the organization are more about retention and employee health, both physical and mental. We have adjusted working schedules, switched nearly entirely to digital platforms and remote work, and boosted employee benefits to include unlimited wellness leave for activities our staff need time away from work for, such as child/family care. We have also started up or amplified several employee wellness programs such as Employee Resource Groups, mental health services (including free counseling sessions and increased mental health coverage under our medical plans). We also just launched a new program in May 2021 offering alternative wellness services expenses include massages, gym memberships, alternative therapies (such as naturopathy), skin care, lactation support, and more.