Education and Outreach

NRF has been a strong supporter of environmental education, following the stewardship ethic forged by notable Wisconsin residents Aldo Leopold, Gaylord Nelson, John Curtis and countless others.

By providing conservation education to adults and children through programs at schools, state parks and nature centers, and through our Field Trip Program, NRF has helped encourage a cadre of informed citizens to protect our state's natural resources.

We continually need active citizens in our communities who are equipped with the knowledge necessary to steward and manage our natural landscapes.

Habitat Protection and Restoration

Wisconsin's landscape has changed dramatically over the last 150 years, and more so in recent decades. Continual habitat destruction through unplanned development and other land uses threatens the integrity of natural landscapes and endangers plant and animal species in Wisconsin. As private lands are consumed for housing, roads and other needs, we will depend more and more on healthy public lands for recreation and the protection of our state's biodiversity.

Protecting the integrity of public lands is a high priority of the Foundation. Through, for example, the State Natural Areas Campaign initiated in 2004, NRF is helping to protect some of Wisconsin's most vulnerable and highest quality landscapes that serve as habitat for much of our state's endangered and threatened flora and fauna.

Community-Based Conservation

NRF recognizes that conservation not only entails protecting natural resources, but engaging citizens who enjoy and utilize those resources. Involving local people in community conservation activities ensures continuous community support and leads to the collective management of natural resources. Supporting local conservation groups and initiatives contributes to the long-term stewardship of a community's natural resources. Since 1990, NRF's Besadny Conservation Grant Program has embraced a community-level conservation model by providing support in the form of small match grants to organizations around the state that carry-out local conservation projects.

Conservation Endowments

In 2005, the Natural Resources Foundation created the Wisconsin Conservation Endowment to build a permanent and sustainable source of private funding for the conservation, protection and management of Wisconsin's rich natural resources.

The Wisconsin Conservation Endowment is a permanently endowed fund comprised of numerous individual named funds that are pooled, invested and managed as a whole. Donors choose the conservation program, species or place they wish to assist, and create their own permanent named fund to meet the need they care most about.

Go to Wisconsin Conservation Endowment to learn more or Become a Member today and support the stewardship of Wisconsin's natural resources.

NRF supports the elimination and control of invasive species on our vulnerable public lands, and provides support for educational programs which raise awareness and teach best management practices to stem the spread of invasive plants. Our current campaign goals include raising funds to support an early detection & rapid response program for new infestations, garlic mustard bio-control coordination and control of invasive species in state parks.