Our partnerships draw on cross-sector expertise to develop lasting results. Ranging from mitigation and conservation banking to balancing nature and commerce in rural communities, and from green and grey infrastructure to livability and sustainable tourism, we create conservation solutions that work for America.  

Year after year, the federal budget process strongly influences our nation’s conservation legacy. We work closely with the Executive Branch and the U.S. Congress to ensure strong funding levels for critical conservation programs, such as:

• Land and Water Conservation Fund, which includes the land acquisition programs of the BLM, FWS, NPS, and USFS; the State and Local Assistance/“State-Side” Grant Program, the Forest Legacy Program, the American Battlefield Protection Grant Program, and the Cooperative Endangered Species Conservation Fund (Section 6 of the Endangered Species Act),
  
  
• North American Wetlands Conservation Act,
  
  
• Readiness and Environmental Protection Integration Program,
  
  
• Agricultural Conservation Easement Program

• Agricultural Research Service’s extramural research,
  
  
• Community Forest and Open Space Program, and others.

Additionally, federal policy—established in various public lands bills, the Farm bill, the Transportation bill, and the Water Resources Development Act, and numerous other individual bills—is an important focus for the advancement of The Conservation Fund’s solution-oriented mission. We encourage you to follow these links to learn more about several key programs and related policy initiatives in the 115th Congress:

We encourage you to follow these links to learn more about several key programs and related policy initiatives in the 115th Congress:

• Farm Bill-NRCS Programs – supporting implementation of NRCS conservation programs and pursuing priorities in the next Farm Bill in 2018
  
  
• Federal Land Transaction Facilitation Act (FLTFA) – seeking reauthorization
  
  
• Land and Water Conservation Fund (LWCF) – seeking reauthorization and dedicated funding
  
  
• Migratory Bird Conservation Fund – supporting conservation opportunities funded by “duck stamp” sales
  
  
• North American Wetlands Conservation Act – supporting conservation opportunities, funding, and reauthorization
  
  
• RESTORE – supporting implementation of this Act and funding through the “Council”—and other funding mechanisms—to address the impacts caused by the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico
  
  
• Wildfire Disaster Funding Act– seeking to resolve wildfire funding deficiencies that result in the raiding and disruption of non-fire USFS and DOI programs

Much of our work for critical conservation programs is made possible thanks to critical bipartisan support from U.S. Congressional leaders. To date, we have completed more than 900 conservation projects with our federal partners, saving U.S. taxpayers more than $350 million.

More than 1,700 land trusts across America do a remarkable job of saving the places that matter most. When a property comes up for sale, land trusts sometimes need to act fast—and invest big. We lend funds  from our conservation capital to land trusts for bridge financing, which allows them to acquire land before they secure permanent funding. And to help borrowers navigate the project and planning process, we provide technical assistance as well.