An aerial view of the Holmes River, British Columbia, Canada.
British Columbia An aerial view of the Holmes River, British Columbia, Canada. © Shane Kalyn

Our Priorities

Protect Land and Water

Globally, only 5% of the natural lands at high risk of development are protected. Demands on land and water continue to increase, so we must do more, faster.

We won’t survive without clean water and land. We also need healthy, diverse oceans for fishing, working & playing. We have helped protect more than 119 million acres (48 million hectares) of land, conserve thousands of river miles & develop more than 100 marine projects. Working with governments, corporations, local partners & you, we can protect more nature between today & 2025 than we have in our history.

How We Protect Land & Water

Kermode Bear in the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia.
We Protect Forests We protect treasured landscapes, such as the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia, so wildlife like the region’s iconic spirit bear can thrive. © James Picardi
in The Nature Conservancy's Great Western Checkerboards Project, Montana.
We Think Big We invest in large-scale land conservation, such as protecting half a million acres in Montana & restoring habitat along the Gulf of Mexico. © Steven Gnam/TNC
Tortugas National Park Coral Restoration
We Protect Oceans We restore coral reefs and other ocean habitats from Mexico to Australia to help fish populations recover & protect coastal communities from storms. © Carlton Ward Jr.
in the surf and sand define the coastlines of Seychelles's inner islands.
We Secure Funding We helped create a way for the island nation of Seychelles to reduce its debt by protecting one-third of its territorial waters—an area larger than Germany—by 2020. © Jason Houston
Mohamed is able to fish in the high seas because of a cooler he received for being a part of the OceanWORKS program. This allows him to catch larger fish.
We Partner With Locals We partner with indigenous peoples and local communities to protect nature in ways that reinforce cultural connections to land and water. © Mwangi Kirubi
Volunteer Al McKegg collects eelgrass shoots in South Bay, Eastern Shore, Virginia.
We Build Economies We promote ecotourism and sustainable fishing to preserve the $1.5 trillion that the ocean adds to the global economy each year. © Alex Novak
× Kermode Bear in the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia.
× in The Nature Conservancy's Great Western Checkerboards Project, Montana.
× Tortugas National Park Coral Restoration
× in the surf and sand define the coastlines of Seychelles's inner islands.
× Mohamed is able to fish in the high seas because of a cooler he received for being a part of the OceanWORKS program. This allows him to catch larger fish.
× Volunteer Al McKegg collects eelgrass shoots in South Bay, Eastern Shore, Virginia.

Safeguarding diverse places is the core of TNC’s legacy. Increasing land and water conservation is key to helping address the world’s environmental challenges.

Kacky Andrews

Global Managing Director, Protect Land & Water Priority
A lone mangrove tree silhouetted against the pastel colors of an evening sky interru the horizon on the inner reef near the village of Utwe on Kosrae island, Micronesia.
Mangrove at sunset A lone mangrove tree silhouetted against the pastel colors of an evening sky interru the horizon on the inner reef near the village of Utwe on Kosrae island, Micronesia. © Nick Hall
Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve, a critical juncture between Northern and Southern California

Feature

Protecting a Place like no Other

TNC recently purchased eight miles of Southern California coastline—24,000 acres of culturally and ecologically significant land that harbors scores of rare species.

Read about this big win
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Photo Contest 2018 Caption: Campers in the top crater of Mt. Herdubreid, Iceland. Photo Credit: © Sigtryggur Johannsson/TNC Photo Contest 2018 Photographer’s Statement: "Setting up camp." Camping in top crater of Mt. Herdubreid in Iceland. Taken in summer 2017 on a climb up this unique mountain. The presence of the tent is meant to illustrate the accessibility of remote locations with modern, light-weight hiking equipment.
Setting up camp Photo Contest 2018 Caption: Campers in the top crater of Mt. Herdubreid, Iceland. Photo Credit: © Sigtryggur Johannsson/TNC Photo Contest 2018 Photographer’s Statement: "Setting up camp." Camping in top crater of Mt. Herdubreid in Iceland. Taken in summer 2017 on a climb up this unique mountain. The presence of the tent is meant to illustrate the accessibility of remote locations with modern, light-weight hiking equipment. © © Sigtryggur Johannsson

Protecting Land and Water

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Conservation Corps members Quantavius Fuller, 20, Destin Dodd, 20, and Jonathan James, 18, push down a cut tree in Apalachicola, Florida, while working on environmental sustainability needs for the Panhandle region of the state. This project is also supported by The Nature Conservancy.

Feature

A New Meaning for Restoration

Strengthening the battered Gulf Coast gives young people real jobs and a path forward.

Lobster fishermen collect live lobsters in Ascencion Bay off the coast of the Sian Ka’an Biosphere Reserve in Quintana Roo, Mexico.

Blog

Insurance for Reef Restoration

An insurance-for-nature approach is helping Mexico restore reefs that provide protection from storms and a critical attraction for tourists.

By Mark Tercek

Salmonsdam Nature Reserve

Blog

A Better Path for Energy Development

African leaders must create strategies that propel economic growth while conserving natural capital and biodiversity.

By Lynn Scarlett | May 2018

A Kermode bear or "Spirit Bear"

Feature

Nature’s First Defenders

TNC’s partnerships with indigenous peoples and local communities have led to the improved management or conservation of 235 million acres.

Discover our other priorities and find ways you can help transform the future of the world.

In addition to protecting land and water, The Nature Conservancy is listening to science to address today’s most pressing challenges.