Grantmaking Program

Considering the health of our public lands and nearshore and estuary ecosystems, no threat is as urgent, or as potentially destructive, as global climate change. Under the best of circumstances, natural systems are stressed by habitat loss, fragmentation, pollution, invasive species, extractive industries and recreational use. Scientists now predict that with the added stress of climate change, maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function will require more rigorous, adaptive management approaches at a landscape scale.

The Harder Foundation has long supported organizations that work to reduce habitat stress and protect intact ecosystems. The urgency of climate change alongisde its impacts on public lands and waters has prompted The Harder Foundation to refocus its resources on strategies that accelerate the adoption of new policies and approaches that:

a) foster resilience: i.e. the ability of wildlife and habitats to recover from stress;

b) create stronger connectivity between ecosystems to facilitate the movement of species across the landscape; and

c) protect functioning ecosystems and the natural resource benefits that they provide to maintain biodiversity as well as healthy, vibrant human communities, including provision of clean air, clean water, carbon storage, and economic and recreational opportunities.

Over the next two years, The Harder Foundation’s grantmaking program will focus on supporting work that aims at the primary goal:

To protect biodiversity and ecosystem function by fostering the resiliency of natural systems in the face of climate change.

To focus our grantmaking, we will be guided by the following objectives:

1. Reduce stress on public lands and nearshore marine ecosystems from non-climate pressures that cause landscape fragmentation and degradation.

2. Reduce stress caused by climate change, by supporting responsible renewable energy development that does not compromise critical ecosystems.

3. Protect intact public lands and nearshore marine ecosystems that provide critical benefits for wildlife and local communities.

4. Establish habitat buffer zones and wildlife corridors to enhance habitat connectivity between intact public lands, and between nearshore marine ecosystems, estuaries, and watersheds.

5. Support policies and resource management planning processes that prioritize climate change adaptation actions.

6. Strengthen the conservation community to maximize leadership, credibility and strategic allies to make substantial progress to improve environmental conditions in our region and build a durable conservation constituency.

Adaptation to Climate Change

    An example of a climate adaptation and preparation strategy in the Pacific Northwest, excerpted from a primer prepared by the National Center for Conservation Science & Policy, helps illustrate what we mean.
     “The Pacific Northwest….may become drier in the summer but wetter in the winter, making both drought and floods more prevalent and creating problems for natural and human systems. Proactive, ecologically sound preparation efforts can reduce the impacts of these stressors…. Appropriate preparation strategies for natural systems might include restoring floodplains and conserving intact lands that allow for the movement of species whose ranges are shifting."
     Other approaches include removing barriers to fish passage in rivers; restoring high elevation riparian areas and biodiversity hot spots; protecting genetic diversity; maintaining intact habitats including old growth forests and roadless areas; and protecting and enhancing the landscape connections between habitats to facilitate the movement of species. Adaptation strategies need to consider entire watersheds and their ecological function, not merely the individual habitats, such as forests, wetlands, rivers, or meadows.
    Resource management agencies at the federal and state levels, along with conservation organizations, scientists, and community leaders, are only now beginning to make headway in developing climate adaptation strategies. The urgency of climate impacts, however, demands that we begin now to implement problem-solving actions.

See Program Priorities 2010-2011 for our grantmaking program.

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Grantmaking Program Program Priorities 2010-2011 Geographic Focus Strategies and Approaches	Grantmaking Program Considering the health of our public lands and nearshore and estuary ecosystems, no threat is as urgent, or as potentially destructive, as global climate change. Under the best of circumstances, natural systems are stressed by habitat loss, fragmentation, pollution, invasive species, extractive industries and recreational use. Scientists now predict that with the added stress of climate change, maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem function will require more rigorous, adaptive management approaches at a landscape scale. The Harder Foundation has long supported organizations that work to reduce habitat stress and protect intact ecosystems. The urgency of climate change alongisde its impacts on public lands and waters has prompted The Harder Foundation to refocus its resources on strategies that accelerate the adoption of new policies and approaches that: a) foster resilience: i.e. the ability of wildlife and habitats to recover from stress; b) create stronger connectivity between ecosystems to facilitate the movement of species across the landscape; and c) protect functioning ecosystems and the natural resource benefits that they provide to maintain biodiversity as well as healthy, vibrant human communities, including provision of clean air, clean water, carbon storage, and economic and recreational opportunities. Over the next two years, The Harder Foundation’s grantmaking program will focus on supporting work that aims at the primary goal: *To protect biodiversity and ecosystem function by fostering the resiliency of natural systems in the face of climate change.* To focus our grantmaking, we will be guided by the following objectives: 1. Reduce stress on public lands and nearshore marine ecosystems from non-climate pressures that cause landscape fragmentation and degradation. 2. Reduce stress caused by climate change, by supporting responsible renewable energy development that does not compromise critical ecosystems. 3. Protect intact public lands and nearshore marine ecosystems that provide critical benefits for wildlife and local communities. 4. Establish habitat buffer zones and wildlife corridors to enhance habitat connectivity between intact public lands, and between nearshore marine ecosystems, estuaries, and watersheds. 5. Support policies and resource management planning processes that prioritize climate change adaptation actions. 6. Strengthen the conservation community to maximize leadership, credibility and strategic allies to make substantial progress to improve environmental conditions in our region and build a durable conservation constituency. Adaptation to Climate Change An example of a climate adaptation and preparation strategy in the Pacific Northwest, excerpted from a primer prepared by the National Center for Conservation Science & Policy, helps illustrate what we mean. “The Pacific Northwest….may become drier in the summer but wetter in the winter, making both drought and floods more prevalent and creating problems for natural and human systems. Proactive, ecologically sound preparation efforts can reduce the impacts of these stressors…. Appropriate preparation strategies for natural systems might include restoring floodplains and conserving intact lands that allow for the movement of species whose ranges are shifting." Other approaches include removing barriers to fish passage in rivers; restoring high elevation riparian areas and biodiversity hot spots; protecting genetic diversity; maintaining intact habitats including old growth forests and roadless areas; and protecting and enhancing the landscape connections between habitats to facilitate the movement of species. Adaptation strategies need to consider entire watersheds and their ecological function, not merely the individual habitats, such as forests, wetlands, rivers, or meadows. Resource management agencies at the federal and state levels, along with conservation organizations, scientists, and community leaders, are only now beginning to make headway in developing climate adaptation strategies. The urgency of climate impacts, however, demands that we begin now to implement problem-solving actions. See Program Priorities 2010-2011 for our grantmaking program.	News President's Message for 2010 2009-01-01 More...

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Grantmaking Program

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