Draft:Wildlife Conservation Initiative

The Wildlife Conservation Initiative (WCI) is a wildlife conservation program between the National Alliance of Forest Owners (NAFO), the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS), the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement, Inc. (NCASI), the Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies, and other stakeholders. This partnership between private landowners and governmental agencies to benefit wildlife is part of a concerted effort by the USFWS to engage in voluntary, collaborative conservation.

The WCI has ongoing species conservation projects in every USFWS region where NAFO members own or manage significant acres of forest land. NAFO member companies collectively oversee more than 44 million acres of private working forests across 33 states.. The scale of private land ownership in the United States makes this partnership beneficial when researching species with habitats that may exist entirely on private land.

The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has referred to the WCI as a model for effectively engaging private landowners, governmental agencies, and other stakeholders in voluntary, collaborative conservation efforts.

2023 Memorandum of Understanding

In January 2023, NAFO, USFWS, and NCASI, Inc. formalized the Wildlife Conservation Initiative through a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU). The MOU underscores sustainable forest management as a potential conservation tool.

The MOU promotes cooperation and collaboration; encourages proactive, voluntary conservation approaches before considering regulatory action; supports research examining the impact of active forest management on species conservation; facilitates voluntary access agreements for research in private forests; and provides enhanced data and resources for USFWS species conservation efforts.

Red Tree Vole ESA Listing

One example of WCI success is the red tree vole, a small mammal that nests in forest canopies. Through the WCI, NAFO members worked with the USFWS to identify the red tree vole as a species of common interest, and the WCI supported a research project with funding. In 2024, the USFWS Species Status Assessment cited valuable input from NCASI, Inc. and WCI researchers as a factor in the “not warranted” listing decision.

White House Recognition

During the White House Conservation in Action Summit on March 21, 2023, President Joe Biden announced significant actions aimed at conserving and restoring lands and waters across the nation, including the formalization of the Wildlife Conservation Initiative through the MOU:

"The Department of the Interior’s U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, National Alliance of Forest Owners, and the National Council for Air and Stream Improvement Inc., will announce a memorandum of understanding which formalizes the Wildlife Conservation Initiative, a collaborative partnership focused on advancing the conservation of at-risk and listed species within private working forests nationwide. The announcement comes as the Department of the Interior celebrates the 50th anniversary of the Endangered Species Act and highlights the landmark law’s importance in preventing imperiled species’ extinction, promoting the recovery of wildlife, and conserving the habitats upon which they depend.”

Department of Interior Recognition

In her Senate confirmation hearing to be Deputy Secretary of the Interior on July 10, 2024, Assistant Secretary of the Interior, Shannon A. Estenoz referred to the WCI partnership by stating, “We marked the 50th Anniversary of the Endangered Species Act with a call to action to focus more partnership energy on species recovery and listing prevention… we have strengthened existing partnerships and built new ones so that today the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service counts the Department of Defense and the National Alliance of Forest Owners among its most valued partners in species recovery.”