By combining policy, grassroots development and public education objectives, the National Wildlife Refuge Association (NWRA) works to strengthen the ecological integrity of our national wildlife refuges and thus ensure a diverse spectrum of plants and wildlife well into the future.

Our main objectives:

• Build a powerful grassroots network throughout the country to act as an effective voice for local refuges and the broader Refuge System.
• Counter the debilitating $2.7 billion Refuge System funding backlog.
• Implement landscape conservation strategies that reach beyond refuge boundaries to prevent further loss of vital refuge buffer zones and wildlife corridors.
• Draw ongoing attention to invasive species – a top threat to refuges nationwide - and spur momentum to combat the problem.
• Tackle important issues that threaten the strength and vitality of the Refuge System.

Building a National Grassroots Network: We work to forge the more than 200 refuge “Friends” volunteer groups nationwide into a coordinated voice on behalf of the Refuge System both locally and nationally.

We help Friends groups build their advocacy skills so they can communicate with decision makers more effectively. In recent years, the NWRA has led a total of more than 600 local refuge advocates to Capitol Hill in support of funding increases for the Refuge System.

In partnership with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, NWRA’s annual National Refuge Friends Conferences and Workshops have attracted nearly 3,000 individuals from all states. The capacity-building programs feature skill-building workshops and an unparalleled opportunity for Friends to become acquainted, learn from one another, and develop networks.

NWRA’s Friends Affiliate program has expanded to more than 144 groups officially aligned with the NWRA’s national priorities and dedicated to building a national infrastructure for addressing the most challenging Refuge System issues.

Countering the Refuge System Funding Backlog: The Refuge System faces a funding crisis with a nearly $3 billion backlog in unmet needs. NWRA is a lead organization in efforts to fight funding shortages and communicates regularly with Congress and the Administration. In addition, we work closely with the Congressional Wildlife Refuge Caucus, a bi-partisan group of Congressional leaders who advocate on Capitol Hill for a stronger, better-funded Refuge System.

NWRA also chairs the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE), a strong and diverse coalition of 22 national organizations that has successfully advocated for increased funding for refuges. In recent years, the group has secured more than $100 million in increased Refuge System funding.

Protecting Refuges by Working Beyond the Boundaries: In response to the alarming loss of vital refuge buffer habitat, we launched our “Beyond the Boundaries” program to expand support for conserving landscapes surround national wildlife refuges. Our 2005 Beyond the Boundaries report (pdf) details the challenges to important public and private lands outside refuge boundaries that serve as vital wildlife habitat.

With partners such as with The Conservation Fund, The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, Trust for Public Land, The Nature Conservancy, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), NWRA has trained more than 300 refuge Friends in strategies to protect vital habitats “Beyond the Boundaries.” Through these workshops, and on-going follow-up guidance, Friends groups and other partners are achieving refuge landscape conservation successes.

Our Beyond the Boundaries campaign also includes intensive on-the-ground initiatives to protect wildlife landscapes and craft strategies for marshalling public support and resources for implementation. By combining the science of State Wildlife Action Plans and other conservation planning tools, including refuge Comprehensive Conservation Plans, and by engaging communities in a dialog about their environmental and economic future, we are striving to conserving strategic habitats through tools such as conservation easements, private landowner incentive programs and land acquisition.

Combating Invasive Species: With our 2002 Silent Invasion report (pdf) highlighting the impact of invasive species on refuge habitat, NWRA launched a groundbreaking initiative that has so far resulted in $4 million in federal funding to mobilize volunteers around this top threat to refuges.

In addition to competitive grants that fund volunteer projects to counter invasive species on refuges, the effort established a partnership among the FWS, NWRA and The Nature Conservancy to train volunteers in GPS/GIS invasives mapping on refuges. To date, close to 24,000 acres of refuge lands, in addition to hundreds of water bodies, have been inventoried and mapped through the mapping project by a corps of nearly 200 trained volunteers.

Strategic Action to Protect the Refuge System: We vigilantly watch for harmful activities on and adjacent to refuges that undermine the integrity of the Refuge System. We constantly monitor legislation affecting wildlife refuges, including measures that deal with the funding, management, and growth of the Refuge System, and we advocate for adequate funding and improved policy guidance for the System.

And more …

• Our electronic Refuge Action Network (RAN) reaches more than 7000 refuge supporters with monthly “Flyer” updates. Our members also communicate with decision makers on refuge issues of immediate concern with just a few clicks of a computer mouse through the RAN system.
• Working with the FWS and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF), we approve grants of up to $5,000 to Friends groups for start-up, capacity-building, and project-specific initiatives. In 2007, 23 Friends groups were awarded $107,862.
• Our periodic Wildlife Refuge magazine provides updates and general news about the Refuge System and facilitates networking among Friends groups, while using spectacular imagery to showcase the magnificent wildlife and wildlands that embody the System.
• We join with NFWF to give annual awards recognizing outstanding efforts by refuge volunteers and exceptional performance by refuge staff.
• We have regional representatives located throughout the country working with refuge staff and with Friends groups. These volunteers act as NWRA’s local eyes and ears, monitoring the latest developments in refuge issues in their area.
• The NWRA Annual Wildlife Refuge Photo Contest attracts some of the finest amateur imagery and boasts the biggest prizes in the nature photography contest world. Our Refuge Image Library features top contest entries from across the country.

The future of refuges is intimately tied to the future of conservation in this country, with refuges the ecological focal points in a complex web of private lands, local and state parks, and other federal lands including national parks and national forests. Unlike any other lands, public or private, the primary purpose of refuge lands is the conservation of plants and wildlife – no other places can fill the niche of refuges.

Nevertheless, the Refuge System is besieged by a host of threats, and the NWRA works strategically to counter these challenges and ensure a bright future for these magnificent lands and waters, and the wildlife that depend upon them.

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