Select. Submit. Protect.

Project

The 30,000-acre Wáhsehtəkʷ land return effort is a historic partnership between Penobscot Nation and Trust for Public Land that will bring Penobscot Nation’s climate-resilient homelands back into their care and stewardship—including expansive forests, 53 miles of streams, and over 4,600 acres of wetlands—while strengthening Tribal sovereignty and cultural connection to the land and enhancing a mosaic of over 1 million acres of connected, protected lands.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This is a unique and impactful landscape-scale effort in the northeast to protect an important place and support Indigenous stewardship. It expands a corridor which will benefit habitat as well as open up additional access points for public lands for recreation. TCA support will leverage additional public and private investments, maintain project momentum, and demonstrate strong business community support for Indigenous led conservation.

Project

This campaign will result in durable federal protections for more than 1,500 miles of rivers and associated public lands across the Western United States through Wild and Scenic River designations, National Conservation Areas, and related conservation legislation (Olympic, Owyhee, Gila, Dolores, Greater Yellowstone, and PUBLIC Lands Act in CA).

What TCA Staff are Saying

This project aims to build support for and win protectons for multiple rivers over the coming years. Many of the proposals in this package have existed for years, and American Whitewater is hoping to increase bipartisan goodwill and cooperation amongst decision makers to solidify meaningful protections for some of the most iconic rivers in the nation. It is likely the river-focsed work is the one of the most fertile areas for conservation policy wins in the near future.

Project

Securing durable conservation measures across 2.3 million acres of the Bridger-Teton National Forest that protect Wyoming Range mule deer migration routes, winter range, and birthing habitat while advancing wildlife connectivity and sustaining Wyoming’s hunting, fishing, and outdoor traditions.

What TCA Staff are Saying

TCA has supported WWF’s efforts to protect migration corridors since 2023. The organization is focused on and has been successful at deepening bipartisan relationships and support for its efforts. They just saw success with 8 segments of the Sublette Antelope Migration Corridor designated by the Governor.

Project

Acquisition of these properties will result in the permanent protection of an additional 470 acres of riparian buffer and wetlands, over 1-mile of riverbank, and two fourth-magnitude springs with a 150-foot spring run, that contribute to the health and recovery of the Santa Fe River and the Floridan Aquifer System.

What TCA Staff are Saying

Development in this region is increasing at a rapid rate, and protecting riparian areas like this will provide numerous benefits for the ecosystem, communities, and recreation. TCA has not had many investments in Florida, so this expands our footprint. TCA’s support to fund due diligence and a portion of the closing costs will enable the organization to complete the conservation process and complement their other fundraising efforts to acquire these properties

Project

Moxie TIMO Conservation for Watershed Health will protect and steward over 425 acres of forested land in two biologically diverse and unique watersheds in northwestern Pennsylvania. Once conserved, these forests will be stewarded by the Foundation for Sustainable Forests using ecological forestry to promote forest health and resilience and support a sustainable forest products industry. They will be accessible to the public for hunting, fly-fishing, hiking, bird-watching, and other recreational uses.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This project is located in a county governed by elected officials who are not generally supportive of land conservation, and provides an opportunity to demonstrate how economic and conservation interests can align to strengthen local economies.

Project

The Wilderness Land Trust is working to acquire 270 acres of private land in and near the Red Cloud Peak and Handies Peak Wilderness Study Areas in order to transfer them to the BLM, thereby ensuring their protection as part of the surrounding WSAs, opening the door wider for these areas to become designated wilderness, and providing the public 270 acres of unfettered lands to explore.

What TCA Staff are Saying

Wilderness Land Trust has an impactful focus on access and protection of large public landscapes by conserving inholdings – private land parcels within public lands. This strengthens long-term protection of these larger landscapes and expands recreational opportunities, habitat, and conservation values.

Project

The acquisition of Howard Knob protects 74 acres of northern oak forest, restoring public access to one of the country’s finest bouldering sites featuring nearly 25 climbable boulders, and creating a nature preserve with trails and passive recreation opportunities for the public.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This project provides not only tremendous ecological benefits, but wide opportunities to expand access to recreation for local and regional communities. With a small balance remaining to be raised, TCA can help close the gap and bring the organization closer to opening the site to the public. It would also help deepen TCA’s investments in North Carolina.

Project

Instream flows for the entire 257 miles of the Klamath River sustain the ecological health and aquatic and terrestrial resources of the watershed and the people that depend on them.

What TCA Staff are Saying

TCA invested in dam removal on the Klamath River, which was a major success, and recommends continued investment as Tribes seek to realize the full potential of restoration in this ecosystem. R2R is a strong partner that is working on behalf of and in partnership with the Tribes to conserve and protect this important ecosystem.

Project

Securing durable protection for 18.8 million acres (7.6 million hectares) of connected land and freshwater ecosystems across northwest British Columbia will have positive impacts on critical wildlife habitat, major salmon-bearing watersheds and headwaters, and landscape-scale ecological corridors through permanent conservation designations.

What TCA Staff are Saying

CPAWS-BC is providing tangible support to Tribes on multiple land use plans, including the Dena Kayeh Kusan land use plan that TCA has already invested resources towards in the past and is likely to reach its goals in the near term. CPAWS-BC aims to counter anticipated risks by demonstrating that conservation and responsible development can coexist.

Project

Wild and Scenic River designation for 446 miles of river segments permanently protecting the Gila River and tributaries to keep New Mexico’s last free flowing river healthy and thriving in the face of water scarcity, development pressures, climate change, persistent dam and diversion projects, and other threats.

What TCA Staff are Saying

New Mexico Wild is working to increase bipartisan support on this campaign by leveraging existing relationships to work across the aisle. There is currently strong momentum and support for this effort at the local and national level. It’s a great investment to further resource this campaign into 2027.

Project

Stabilizing the 40 Arpent Terraces in Southeast Louisiana (Stabilizing 40) will help restore approximately 750 acres of degraded habitat in the Central Wetlands Unit by planting 1,000 native trees, 6,000 native marsh grass plugs, and 200 shrubs and pollinators, as well as dispersing thousands of native seeds on nearly 100,000 linear miles of terraces built by Ducks Unlimited.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This would be TCA’s first grant in Louisiana! Common Ground Relief’s work to create a sustainable future in an area of the country that has been hit hard by natural events and development provides a great example of how conservation and restoration, more specifically, can create access to nature, improve economic resiliency, and improve the local ecosystem.

Project

The Wind River Reservation, home to the Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapaho peoples, offers unparalleled buffalo habitat. Here, two Tribal buffalo herds will soon expand into an additional 17,000 acres, back on their ancestral land. With generational work, this habitat will eventually extend onto public land, with the Wyoming Tribes working in partnership with the Bridger-Teton National Forest for the large-scale rematriation of buffalo.

What TCA Staff are Saying

TCA first supported WRTBI through the Confluence Program. The Tribal group continues to elevate buffalo rematriation as a way to connect their people back with the land and buffalo, as well as a proven way to restore the landscape. Their impact goes well beyond the landscape that they are working to protect.

Project

Provide protection from future water quality degradation by designating the Ruby/Granite Creek, Upper Sultan River, Upper Lewis River and Upper Methow River watersheds as Outstanding Resource Waters by the Washington Department of Ecology for the benefit of clean water, fish and wildlife, responsible recreation and tribal treaty rights and lifeways.

What TCA Staff are Saying

Washington Wild has been able to successfully move designations for ORW forward already, and is continuing to build on this successful record with these new nominations. This is a unique tool that is rooted in the Clean Water Act, but allows states to continue protecting waterways when federal protection has become more difficult.

Project

Removing the Shaw Dam from Montana’s Boulder River will restore fish passage to 111 miles of stream, increase the Jefferson’s largest tributary base flow by 25%, and reduce the temperature of both the Bolder and Jefferson Rivers at a moment when hot dry summers are gravely impacting fish and recreationists alike.

What TCA Staff are Saying

Dam removal has deep ecosystem impacts and this is a strong project with a completion date within the next 18 months. MTU has made significant progress and brought together diverse stakeholders — mining, agriculture, conservation, tribal partners, and local communities — to work together towards this shared goal.

Project

Expanded capacity will increase the likelihood that the Bears Ears National Monument is protected, and day-to-day land stewardship is informed by traditional indigenous knowledge, benefitting from the connections tribal peoples have had with this land since time immemorial.

What TCA Staff are Saying

TCA has a long history of supporting the protection of the Bears Ears landscape through national monument designation and subsequent planning. The Tribes are still building their capacity to adequately participate in the implementation of the Resource Management Plan. This is an important time to support their leadership and ability to lean into this process.

Project

Restoration of 1209 acres of mixed oak woodland savanna, at the watershed’s apex totaling 9.5 miles of streams and creeks, rejuvenating land degraded by hog raising and livestock overgrazing, resulting in greater soil water retention, healthy waterways, flourishing native plants, and access to traditional foods.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This restoration project aligns with TCA’s criteria for landscape-scale impact in an area of high biodiversity and climate value through indigenous leadership and management. NRN has developed strong partnerships to help move this work forward, including Mt. Shasta Bioregional Ecology Center, a key partner on the Sáttítla Highlands National Monument campaign.

Project

This campaign will support long-term protection of 162 miles of the Dolores River below McPhee Dam and up to 450,000 acres of surrounding public lands accomplished through national conservation area legislation or national monument designation.

What TCA Staff are Saying

TCA and our members have supported DRBA’s leadership of this proection campaign since 2019. The organization is strategic and has been successful in building bipartisan advocacy for protections. DRBA has also retained momentum on this campaign amidst changes in the local, state, and national political stages. Protecting the Dolores River Canyon Country was a recent TCA Priority Campaign and we continue to invest in its success.

Project

The Enchanted Forest project will permanently protect 1,136 acres of grizzly bear and threatened wildlife habitat while maintaining more than 20 miles of trails for access to nature via hiking, biking and cross-country skiing.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This is an opportunity to help protect critical habitat for grizzly bears and other species. Supporting private land protection in Idaho gives TCA an opportunity to demonstrate its investment in community and conservation efforts with willing landowners. Vital Ground Foundation has a strong track record of success in this area of the country.

Project

The Forest Service adopts a new Forest Plan that protects 5 million acre of primary fish producing watersheds, leads to no net loss of winter range for Sitka Black tailed deer, identifies and expands local recreational opportunities, and preserves resources necessary for the customary and traditional uses of renewable forest resources for rural and aboriginal residents.

What TCA Staff are Saying

The Tongass is a critically important region for biodiversity, climate goals, and backcountry recreation. This region is already seeing increasing development pressures for timber and will be severely impacted by a rollback of the Roadless Rule. SalmonState is a reputable and strong voice in this space and is working closely with other regional partners; local communities; and, the regional tribal consortium for Southeast Alaska Indigenous communities.

Project

Designation of Chiricahua National Monument as Arizona’s fourth national park, elevating national recognition of 12,025 acres of ecologically significant Sky Island habitat, cultural resources, and outdoor recreation opportunities while strengthening nature-based tourism and local economic opportunity in southeastern Arizona.

What TCA Staff are Saying

There are still high levels of support for national parks across the country, in Congress, and in the administration. HECHO has been able to garner bipartisan support and this campaign provides an opportunity for TCA and partners to deepen relationships across the federal government.

Project

Permanent protection of 25,000 acres of Wanapum ancestral lands, including 9,600 acres of priority Columbia Basin pygmy rabbit habitat, through Indigenous-led conservation planning and co-management with federal land management agencies across 5,000–15,000 acres of connected public lands.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This is a strong, multi-phased landscape-scale project that could lead to the protection and indigenous stewardship of 25,000 acres over the next few years. The collaborative work that IJT is going to engage in with federal agencies could also provide for great examples of coordinated conservation.

Project

Working through an effective, efficient, regional coalition, we are working to advocate for and secure a climate-smart amendment to the NWFP to ensure ecologically resilient forests across 24.5 million acres of federally managed lands in Washington, western Oregon, and northwestern California.

What TCA Staff are Saying

The NW Forest Plan is incredibly important, and elevating conservation elements within any amendment will be critical to communities in and near the 24.5 million acres. Considering all of the recent changes at the USFS, it is crucial that the conservation community continues to support this process. MVCC’s understanding and connections with local communities, and its role within the broader coalition, position it as a strong voice and advocate.

Project

With approximately 46,000 acres of land to utilize, success will look like a completed wild Bison reintroduction. This initiative will allow us to sustainably manage and harvest the herd while reconnecting our people with both the land and the Bison.

What TCA Staff are Saying

Reintroduction/rematriation of bison is an incredibly effective and culturally important strategy that has been shown to lead to healthier landscapes, enhanced plant biodiversity, and improved soil health. TCA’s support at this stage of their efforts could help them establish permanent protections on this land and provide further data to demonstrate the impacts of bison on restoration practices.

Project

Permanently protect 852 acres of iconic Pacific coastal desert and 1.7 miles of wild, undeveloped shoreline in Valle de los Cirios—expanding a connected conservation corridor to 45,323 acres and 33.2 miles of Baja California coast. This project secures one of the last intact desert‑to‑ocean ecosystems on the Pacific.

What TCA Staff are Saying

TCA’s support will help finalize permanent legal protections and launch the first stewardship phase for these newly acquired lands. TCA has had limited investment in Mexico. This would be a unique opportunity to help push a project across the finish line with a focus on sustaining coastal habitat and ecosystems.

Project

Wild Montana will mobilize communities, businesses, and decision-makers to advance A River Runs Through It, a proposal that unifies two longstanding collaborative efforts built on decades of collaboration to protect 400,000 acres of the Blackfoot watershed in western Montana, and to advocate for the protection of 8 million acres of public lands in the state managed by the BLM from reckless development.

What TCA Staff are Saying

Wild Montana’s leadership on Blackfoot protection is grounded in community, Tribal, and business efforts and has bipartisan support. This campaign may have a viable path forward at a time when many others do not. Wild Montana has been a strong partner in the public lands defense efforts.

Project

GPRC’s Restoration Not Incarceration youth program will restore over 200 acres of federal public land in the core of the Fort Worth Prairie Park complex, as well as 100 adjacent private acres, include a prescribed burn, and rehabilitate one mile of two newly named creeks hidden within the 3,200 acre prairie complex. These efforts will reconnect the north and south reaches of this ecosystem area, and improve public opportunity, access and experience for people of all colors, cultures and communities to hike, bird, recreate, re-center, photograph, and have quiet time in this wild North Texas tallgrass prairie, which is now one of the most endangered native ecosystems in North America.

What TCA Staff are Saying

GPRC was a TCA Confluence Program grantee from 2023-2024. Their focus on restoring this critical landscape, while also supporting the local community and particular young people of color, demonstrates the impact that nature and conservation can have for mental health and community building. The relationships GPRC has been fostering with the City and State are leading to demonstrated change in priorities, investments, and conservation outcomes.

Project

The Driving Range Forest and Adaptive Trails Project in Bolton, Vermont will permanently protect access to five miles of a first-of-its-kind adaptive trail network and a mile of the Catamount Trail, Vermont’s state-traversing backcountry ski trail, while conserving 203 acres that connect over 127,000 acres of intact forestland in the regionally significant Mt. Mansfield to Camels Hump Wildlife Corridor.

What TCA Staff are Saying

This is a unique project that has gained international recognition for its fully adaptive mountain bike trail system. TCA can help close the gap and get this project closer to completion, while being part of a strong storyline that intertwines conservation, access, communities, and business.