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The Nature Conservancy and Partners Receive More Than $450,000 from NFWF’s Cumberland Plateau-Southern Appalachians Stewardship Fund

Funds will help restore oak-pine forests in priority Appalachian landscapes.

March 03, 2026 | Arlington, VA

A landscape view of the Southern Appalachians Forest.
Southern Appalachians TNC and partners are restoring oak-pine forests in priority Southern Appalachian landscapes such as Silver Run Preserve in North Carolina. © Greg Cooper

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Today, The Nature Conservancy (TNC) and partners announced receiving $451,384 from the 2025 National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) Cumberland Plateau-Southern Appalachians Stewardship Fund with funding from the USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. Thanks to this award and matching funds from TNC and partners, more than $900,000 will be dedicated to oak-pine restoration on public and private lands in priority Appalachian landscapes across North Carolina, Kentucky and Tennessee.

In addition to the White Oak Initiative and the Ruffed Grouse Society & American Woodcock Society (RGS & AWS), project partners include Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA), Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF), Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources (KDFWR), University of Kentucky (UK), Tennessee Division of Forestry (TDF) and the North Carolina Forest Service (NCFS).

Together, TNC and partners crafted a plan to address the monumental challenge of oak restoration in priority Southern Appalachian landscapes such as The Cumberland Forest Project area, as well as the Allegheny Plateau and Mountains of Ohio and West Virginia. With the NFWF funding, the project plan can now be brought to life and bring much needed support to private landowners, foresters and public lands managers alike.

Oaks and pines are essential for Appalachian biodiversity and resilience. Healthy oak-pine forests provide habitat for iconic wildlife such as the golden-winged warbler, eastern whip-poor-will, red-headed woodpecker, elk, frosted elfin butterfly and many more. However, Appalachian forests are in trouble and need help. Fire suppression and lack of management of faster-growing trees like maples and poplars are outcompeting oak seedlings and preventing pines from regenerating.

A Golden-winged Warbler rests on a tree branch.
Golden-winged Warbler Healthy oak-pine forests in Southern Appalachian forests provide habitat for iconic wildlife such as the golden-winged warbler. © Scott Keys/TNC Photo Contest 2019
An elk stands among tall grass in the forest.
Wild Elk Elk are being reintroduced to the Southern Appalachians as a result of strong partnerships and conservation efforts in places like The Cumberland Forest project in Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia. © Steven David Johnson
Golden-winged Warbler Healthy oak-pine forests in Southern Appalachian forests provide habitat for iconic wildlife such as the golden-winged warbler. © Scott Keys/TNC Photo Contest 2019
Wild Elk Elk are being reintroduced to the Southern Appalachians as a result of strong partnerships and conservation efforts in places like The Cumberland Forest project in Tennessee, Kentucky and Virginia. © Steven David Johnson

“Every day, we work for a future where oaks will remain a major part of Appalachian forests,” said Jordan Luff, TNC’s Southern Blue Ridge Forest ecologist. “Thanks to NFWF’s grant and our partners, we’ll now be able to accelerate restoring nature’s balance in Southern Appalachian forests and beyond.”

Between March 2026 and December 2029, the project will help restore 740 acres of upland oak-pine forests using silvicultural practices such as thinning, controlled burning and planting native species.

The project will also make oak restoration and management information based on the latest and best available research more accessible for foresters and landowners through the creation of an Oak Management Practitioners’ Pocket Guide and an Oak Stewardship Network for knowledge-sharing and field workshops.

“White oak–dominated forests depend on stewardship by people,” said Jamie Lewis Hedges, conservation partnerships director for the White Oak Initiative. “By connecting researchers, practitioners and landowners together through focus groups, workshops and practical guidance, this effort ensures that the latest science on sustainable forest management translates into clear, actionable strategies that work on the ground.”

Staff from The Nature Conservancy cuts a groove into a tree to demonstrate restoration practices.
Restoring the Balance Fire suppression and lack of management of faster-growing trees like maples and poplars are outcompeting oaks and pines. Midstory reduction helps restore balance to forests. © TNC
Jordan Luff stands among a large forest of trees and plants working to restore the land.
Restoring Forests Jordan Luff, TNC’s Southern Blue Ridge Forest ecologist, uses silviculture practices such as midstory reduction to promote healthy forests at Silver Run Preserve in NC. © Jordan Luff | TNC
Restoring the Balance Fire suppression and lack of management of faster-growing trees like maples and poplars are outcompeting oaks and pines. Midstory reduction helps restore balance to forests. © TNC
Restoring Forests Jordan Luff, TNC’s Southern Blue Ridge Forest ecologist, uses silviculture practices such as midstory reduction to promote healthy forests at Silver Run Preserve in NC. © Jordan Luff | TNC

In addition to oak-pine restoration, other efforts will focus on restoring priority forest types across the Southern Appalachians, including high-elevation focal areas that support species such as ruffed grouse and other wildlife dependent on young forest. Notably, the funding will support a new Ruffed Grouse Society private lands outreach forester to advance NRCS programs for oak-pine management in East Tennessee.

“We are excited to be joining forces with The Nature Conservancy and other conservation partners across the region to advance meaningful conservation outcomes for not only our flagship species, the ruffed grouse and American woodcock, but also other forest wildlife that depend on healthy forests,” said Sean Barry, forest conservation director for the Southern Appalachians with the Ruffed Grouse Society & American Woodcock Society. “This NFWF grant will support a private lands forest wildlife specialist to provide technical and financial assistance to private landowners across East Tennessee. We look forward to working with landowners to restore declining ecosystems like oak-pine forests, along with other critical forest types in the region, to create better wildlife habitat.”

Lastly, the project aims to identify and distribute priority research gaps in oak management to help guide future research and collaboration.

The Nature Conservancy is a global conservation organization dedicated to conserving the lands and waters on which all life depends. Guided by science, we create innovative, on-the-ground solutions to our world’s toughest challenges so that nature and people can thrive together. We are tackling climate change, conserving lands, waters and oceans at an unprecedented scale, providing food and water sustainably and helping make cities more resilient. The Nature Conservancy is working to make a lasting difference around the world in 83 countries and territories (39 by direct conservation impact and 44 through partners) through a collaborative approach that engages local communities, governments, the private sector, and other partners. For more news, visit our newsroom or follow The Nature Conservancy on LinkedIn.