The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) is a congressionally established nonprofit organization. Its goal is to sustain, restore and enhance the Nation‘s fish, wildlife, plants and habitats. For nearly a decade, NFWF has worked with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to build partnerships and leverage resources for effective stewardship of marine and coastal resources, and the communities that depend on them. NFWF has established the Coral Reef Conservation Fund to support NOAA and the US Coral Reef Task Force. The purpose of the Coral Reef Conservation Fund is to build public-private partnerships to reduce and prevent degradation of coral reefs and associated reef habitats (e.g. seagrass beds, mangroves etc.). Since the establishment of the Coral Fund in 2000, the partnership has grown to include several federal and private sector funders.
In December, NFWF hosted a Networking Workshop to bring together recent grant recipients and federal, territorial and non-profit agencies conducting work in the Guánica/Rio Loco watershed. The workshop provided grantees with an opportunity to network amongst themselves and with local agency representatives to learn about the ongoing projects and how everything fits together into the broader effort.
A folder for the workshop has been set up on the EPA Environmental Science Connector‘s Coral Reefs Puerto Rico project. The folder contains a workshop overview, handouts, and presentations. More information about NFWF and their coral reef programs can be found at: https://www.nfwf.org/coral.