|
Conservation and Environment
Below are recent grants made to Conservation and Environment organizations through the Foundation's competitve grantmaking program. To view current trends and projects as reported by Conservation and Environment organizations, visit the Conservation and Environment Field Notes page.
Grand Teton National Park Foundation
Grand Teton National Park Youth Conservation Program
$10,000
People need to have a connection to nature in order to want to protect it. As urban expansion encroaches on our lands, the number of American children exposed to wilderness is rapidly decreasing. In the first two pilot years, twenty-seven participants (predominantly local youth) have developed a connection with nature, leadership, character, a solid work ethic, career and life skills through the Youth Conservation Program. Grand Teton National Park has received nearly 12,000 hours of work from this program since its inception. More than one-third of this work provided trail maintenance in high-traffic areas. The pilot program received a $100,000 gift to cover operation expenses, and the 2007 season was funded with gifts
from private donors. A grant from the Community Foundation will support efforts to expand and diversify a base of supporters to continue programs such as the Youth Conservation Program in Grand Teton National Park. The grantee intends to ensure permanent funding for the Youth Conservation Program through a planned giving program that will generate a $15 million endowment within the next five to ten years. (2008)
Jackson Hole Conservation Alliance
Natural Resource Mapping
$1,500
The Bridger-Teton National Forest encircles Jackson Hole, helping to shape our economy and way of life. There is a great need to preserve these natural resources. The Bridger Teton National Forest is revising the plan that will give direction to forest managment for the next 15 years. One of the best ways to influence and motivate the community to advocate for the best plan is to visually demonstrate the value of the forest and portray some of the threats to it. This project will expand the scope of existing maps to include the critical issues of off-highway-vehicles and timber/fuels reduction. A grant from the Community Foundation will support this project's goal of a revised Forest Plan that protects wildlife, scenic, recreation and pristine values within the 3.4-million-acre forest. (2008)
Snake River Fund
Snake River Days Camp
$4,000
Recent evidence indicates that today's children are gravitating away from outdoor experiences. Jackson seems an unlikely community for this to be the case. However, surveys of grade school children show otherwise. 50% of fifth graders have never floated any stretch of the Snake River, seen a bald eagle in flight or can name a tributary of the Snake. 80% of 6th graders surveyed don't know where the Snake originates. This same group had minimal functional understanding of 'riparian corridor' concepts despite this being part of the fifth grade curriculum. A grant from the Community Foundation will provide two camp sessions serving a total of 26 children, including 15% participation from the Hispanic community. (2008)
Teton Science Schools
Restoration of Native Landscapes
$4,076
Teton Science Schools is continuing its long history of conservation work with a native landscape restoration project at their Conservation Research Center. The Conservation Center staff find that effective weed control requires restoring native plants that can compete with invasive plants. As they work to that end, they find that landowners and retail landscape businesses have limited native plant restoration resources specific to this region. This project will ultimately impact plant material sales by fostering an interest in and a desire for native plants. (2007)
Wyoming Wilderness Association
Community Impact on the Bridger-Teton Forest Plan
$6,400
The Bridger Teton National Forest is a major influence on the character of this community, affecting our economics, recreation and wildlife, aesthetics and long-term environmental health. This great national forest--3.4 million acres-is a critical part of the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem. Of particular concern are the special roadless lands that qualify for wilderness recommendation. Every 10 years, the Bridger Teton National Forest must undergo a revised Forest Plan. At that time, citizens have an important and single opportunity to directly influence the fate of these wilderness areas within the Bridger Teton National Forest. It is the only time that the agency will consider reccomendations for roadless areas to recieve wilderness status. A grant from the Community Foundation will promote roadless/wilderness protection by providing well-researched and science-based data and by garnering citizen input. (2008)
|
