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See what we’ve been up to in 2009! From Colombia to California and Australia to Virginia, The Nature Conservancy has been busy protecting nature and preserving life on Earth. Read below for highlights of our 2009 conservation achievements.

Coral Reefs: Six Nations Launch Coral Triangle Initiative

The Conservancy helped broker a commitment by the six island nations of the Coral Triangle — the world’s epicenter of coral reef biodiversity and home to millions of people who depend on the ocean for food and survival — to protect and restore the Triangle’s reefs. A huge triumph!

Texas-Mexico Border: 826,000 Acres Protected

The Conservancy helped the Mexican government create the Ocampo Flora and Fauna Protected Area — a new reserve that connects to other protected lands on both sides of the border, creating a vast 3.3 million-acre swath of bi-national conservation lands.

Virginia: Largest Seagrass Restoration Project in the World

The Conservancy’s 10-year effort to restore seagrass to Virginia’s South Bay kicked up a notch this summer when scientists and volunteers shimmied into wetsuits and re-seeded the bay with millions of seagrass seeds! Dive in to our video and photos to see how it was done!

Climate Change: State-by-State Temperature Increases

In August, the Conservancy released a state-by-state analysis of U.S. climate change trends, projecting that temperatures in the worst-hit states could be up to 10 degrees Fahrenheit hotter than present-day levels by the year 2100.

California: 4,500 Acres Saved for Salmon

There’s new hope for salmon in California’s Shasta River! The Conservancy’s protection and restoration of Shasta Big Springs Ranch will help revive endangered coho, steelhead and other species in the Klamath basin.

Australia: Saving a Cultural Landscape

Time to celebrate! Australia’s two new Indigenous Protected Areas — spanning 5 million acres and conserving indigenous cultural history — will be managed by traditional landowners and indigenous rangers, with support from the Conservancy.

Science: Study Finds 85 Percent of Oyster Reefs Are Gone

The Conservancy’s “Shellfish Reefs at Risk” report provides the first global view on the condition of oyster reefs. Sadly, the picture isn’t pretty: the report finds that 85 percent of the world’s oyster reefs have already been lost.

Ecuador: New 135,000-Acre Marine Reserve

A new 135,000-acre marine reserve in Ecuador rivals the biodiversity of the Galápagos! Established with support by the Conservancy, it protects species big and small, from endangered black corals to humpback and orca whales.

Design for a Living World

The Conservancy asked 10 designers to explore the question, “What is sustainable design?” Their answers — crafted in bamboo, wool, salmon skin, chicle and more — went on display at New York’s Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum to rave reviews.

Africa: Helping Communities in Kenya Conserve Their Grasslands

The Lewa Wildlife Conservancy is a special place for wildlife and the center of a community conservation movement that’s radiating across northern Kenya, aided by the scientific and conservation planning expertise of The Nature Conservancy.

Louisiana: Floodplain Reconnection in Mississippi River Basin

The Conservancy is working with partners to reconnect 25 square miles of floodplain forest back to Louisiana’s Ouachita River — including removing part of a 17-mile-long levee to alleviate downstream flooding, improve water quality and restore wildlife habitat.

Colombia: Creating Indigenous Reserves

The Conservancy transferred more than 3,000 acres of protected lands to indigenous communities in Colombia’s Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta — protecting the sources of fresh water for nearly 2 million people.

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Nature picture credits (top to bottom, left to right): Photos © Bridget Besaw (Taking water samples on the Penobscot River); © Ami Vitale (Village children playing on the sand of a Micronesia beach); © Bridget Besaw (Salmon); © Hernando Cabral-Perdomo (Mexico); Daniel White/TNC (Bo Lusk collecting eelgrass at Virginia Coast Reserve); © Nicole Zirk (Climate Change); © Peter Eve (Australia); © Kevin Schafer (Olympic Peninsula mussels, Washington State); © L. Vinueza/Instituto Nazca (Banded Angelfish); © Udi Dagan (Design for a Living World); © Ron Geatz/TNC (Black rhino, Africa); © Margaret Croft/The News-Star 2009, used with permission (Mississippi River); © Aurelio Ramos/TNC (Sierra Nevada, Colombia)