Press Releases

 ORANGE, Connecticut — February 7, 2019 — The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) today announced the Avangrid Foundation has made a multi-year commitment to support three NFWF grant programs that provide funding for vital on-the-ground conservation projects. This new partnership will support several geographies across the country that provide critical habitat for wildlife and benefit communities within AVANGRID’s operational footprint. The Avangrid Foundation has committed $1 million over the next three years to support NFWF’s Bats for the Future Fund, New England Forest and Rivers Fund and Northern Great Plains Program. This diverse portfolio encompasses a suite of important and imperiled wildlife populations, including hibernating bats throughout North America, fish and migratory forest birds in the Northeast, and grassland-dependent birds and mammals in the West.

“Through partnering with the Avangrid Foundation, NFWF will have the ability to expand our efforts across three programs conserving species and habitats unique to their region,” said Lila Helms, executive vice president of external affairs for NFWF. “The partnership will support critical research to better understand and fight white-nose syndrome, a deadly disease affecting bats. In New England, funds will conserve healthy forests and rivers fornative bird and freshwater fish populations. And in the West, the partnership will support healthy grasslands and working ranchlands that are an essential part of the culture and livelihood of this iconic landscape.”

The new partnership will invest in projects that will:

 Fund potential treatments and new approaches to managing white-nose syndrome (WNS), a devastating disease that has killed more than 6 million hibernating bats across the United States and Canada over the past decade.

 Strengthen the health of forest systems in New England by improving the management of public and private forestlands to create a mosaic of mixed-age forests in the region.

 Restore aquatic connectivity and instream habitat in New England by removing barriers to fish passage and restoring streamside forest buffers and floodplains, to benefit eastern brook trout, river herring, Atlantic salmon and other fish.  Maintain or improve 1 million acres of interconnected, native grasslands in the Northern Great Plains through restoring habitat, improving land management, and working with ranchers to voluntarily conserve working ranchlands and key wildlife areas, ultimately supporting ranching communities and benefitting migratory grassland birds like Sprague’s pipit, chestnut-collared longspur and McCown’s longspur. Additional information for each program can be found at these links: Bats for the Future Fund, New England Forest and Rivers Fund and Northern Great Plains Program.