$60 Million Bezos Earth Fund Grant will Revitalize 1.6 Million Acres of Vital U.S. Landscapes
2024年10月20日 - 8:35AM
The Bezos Earth Fund today announced a new $60 million grant to the
National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to restore and
conserve two vital yet imperiled U.S. landscapes – the Northern
Great Plains grasslands and longleaf pine forests of the Southeast.
The grant marks the largest single philanthropic commitment for
landscape restoration to NFWF.
Over the past three years the Bezos Earth Fund
has already provided $90 million
in funding to NFWF and over 200 local partners,
enabling the restoration and improved management of 2.7 million
acres of land, an area larger than Yellowstone National Park,
across 47 states. This new grant reflects surging demand for
restoration support from farmers, ranchers, Indigenous-led
organizations, and community groups. Requests for support in
grassland and longleaf pine ecosystems have increased six-fold over
the past two years.
"America’s landscapes are treasures that reflect the very heart
of our country. By restoring these grasslands and forests, we’re
safeguarding their natural beauty for future generations,"
said Jeff Bezos, Chair of the Bezos Earth Fund. "This partnership
is another step toward a future where these iconic American places
continue to thrive."
Grasslands are among the most threatened and least protected
ecosystems on the planet, while longleaf pine forests boast some of
the greatest biodiversity outside of the tropics. Both have been
reduced to a fraction of their historical range. Locally led
restoration in these areas can have globally significant
impact.
“This new phase of work with NFWF will help bring life back to
vital U.S. landscapes, protecting their beauty and supporting the
communities that rely on them,” said Lauren Sánchez, Vice Chair for
the Bezos Earth Fund. “It is part of our larger $1 billion
commitment to restore landscapes around the world that have been
lost or damaged.”
The new grant from the Bezos Earth Fund will build on the past
success of this partnership by restoring and improving management
of an additional 1.6 million acres within the Northern Great Plains
and longleaf pine landscapes. Over the next two years, 80-100 local
projects across Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, and
Nebraska in the Northern Great Plains, and Texas, Florida,
Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North
Carolina, and Virginia in the longleaf pine region, will be
supported to restore health to degraded ecosystems, boost at-risk
species populations, and enhance carbon sequestration and
storage.
Supported activities include planting native trees and grasses,
treating invasive species, and improving land management practices
through managed grazing in the Great Plains and prescribed burning
in longleaf forests. Projects also focus on species-specific
interventions, such as ensuring safe passage for migrating
pronghorns and mule deer and boosting populations of at-risk
species like the black-footed ferret, gopher tortoise, and
red-cockaded woodpecker, as well as game species such as the
bobwhite quail and wild turkey.
“Our partnership with the Bezos Earth Fund allows us to
capitalize on the surge in momentum in the Northern Great Plains
and longleaf pine ecosystems and significantly scale up our work in
both landscapes," said Jeff Trandahl, executive director and CEO of
NFWF. "By collaborating with local partners and leveraging federal
and private funding, we’re making real progress toward bringing
back these iconic American landscapes.”
In addition to nature benefits, locally led restoration is
contributing to carbon storage and sequestration. Taken together,
projects supported by the Earth Fund are expected to sequester or
store 35-52 million metric tons of CO2e over the next 30 years,
contributing to the partnership’s broader goals for climate
mitigation. This is equivalent to taking 8-12 million passenger
vehicles off the road for one year.
Through this two-year grant from the Bezos Earth Fund, with
multi-year impact monitoring, the Earth Fund and NFWF seek to
empower local projects with the resources needed to execute
longer-term, more ambitious strategies for ecosystem health. This
new grant will deepen community engagement and provide technical
assistance to more than 1,250 private landowners to develop land
management plans, access financial resources, and implement
conservation and restoration practices.
Taken together, these efforts aim to bolster the long-term
sustainability of these vital ecosystems and the communities that
rely on them.
Bezos Earth Fund
press@bezosearthfund.org