North Carolina Nature Conservancy

The Nature Conservancy’s mission is to preserve the plants, animals, and natural communities that represent the diversity of life on Earth by protecting the lands and waters they need to survive.

The Conservancy uses a strategic, science-based approach to identify high-priority areas for conservation. It doesn’t focus on protecting a particular species; it concentrates on protecting entire landscapes and restoring the natural processes such as water flow or fire that sustain ecosystems. However, by preserving ecosystems, the North Carolina Chapter of The Nature Conservancy is ensuring the survival of unusual plant species such as Gray’s lily in the west and Venus flytrap in coastal swamps, rare animals such as mountain bog turtles or red-cockaded woodpeckers in the Sandhills, and special habitats such as mountain cranberry bogs or peat pocosins.

The Nature Conservancy is the largest conservation organization in the world, working in all 50 states and more than 30 countries. More than a million Americans are Conservancy members, including over 21,000 North Carolinians.

It has seven priority conservation initiatives—forests, protected areas, freshwater, marine, invasive species, fire, and climate change. To date, the Conservancy has protected more than 117 million acres around the world, including almost 700,000 acres in North Carolina.

The Conservancy approaches conservation challenges in a nonconfrontational way, looking for a pragmatic solution. It recognizes that no single organization can solve a conservation problem; solutions are community-based and community-driven. It acknowledges that in order for conservation to succeed, stakeholders must believe in and support the conservation approach.

A private, nonprofit organization, The Nature Conservancy’s ambition is rooted in a strong membership base. In addition to an individual membership, you can support the conservation through estate-planning as a member of the organization’s Legacy Club. You or your business can also contribute to specific conservation activities across the state or globally.

To find out more about the North Carolina chapter, you can call (919) 403-8558 or email northcarolina@tnc.org.