Tell state leaders to consider new private partners for wildlife conservation!

As federal chaos imperils U.S. wildlife conservation funding, an array of private donors have established the Sea Otter Fund to empower the further recovery of sea otters (Enhydra lutris). They plan new reintroduction programs in Oregon and Northern California to link the recovered populations in Central California with those in Alaska, British Columbia, and Washington. This brand-new nonprofit has already raised $1.4 million of their $40 million target, and eminent U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service official Jen Miller has left the government to run the Sea Otter Fund.

“We are coming in at a time when we’ve seen these dramatic cuts from the federal government and conservationists are facing major funding gaps,”

— Paul Thomson, Sea Otter Fund project.

Working to reintroduce keystone species like sea otters has big positive ripple effects beyond just one creature. By eating green crabs and sea urchins, previous sea otter reintroductions have helped restore vibrant species-rich and carbon-sequestering West Coast kelp and eelgrass ecosystems!

There are many other recent examples of private actors taking new leadership roles in wildlife conservation. In early 2025, fifty larval reticulated flatwoods salamanders (Ambystoma bishopi, an endangered species) were reintroduced into a wetland on a timber company’s private land in the Florida panhandle. This was the first-ever use of a new U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service policy, the Partners for Fish and Wildlife Program, allowing voluntary releases of federally endangered species on private land.

While national parks and federal wildlands suffer from chaotic policy and severe damage to their conservation efforts, there are new opportunities emerging to find more reliable partners for wildlife conservation in the private sector. State leaders should actively explore new forms of partnership with private philanthropy and corporate landowners to conserve, protect, and proactively restore our wild heritage.

Tell state leaders to consider new private partners for wildlife conservation!