Responsible Recreation is More Important Now than Ever People have forever enjoyed and depended on Oregon’s outdoor spaces for both resources and connectedness to nature. The use of our outdoors intensified during the pandemic, with unintended consequences for wildlife and their habitat. The challenge of communicating ‘how’ to be in wildlife habitat persists. Conservation planners and interpretive specialists, with support from the Foundation, are working on ways to improve our collective understanding of how to do less harm as we coexist with wildlife.
Outdoor Recreation Often Comes at a Cost Lori Hennings, Metro’s Senior Natural Resources Scientist, alongside landscape architects and planners, is developing a trail builder’s guidebook with practical tools and suggestions to decrease negative impacts on wildlife by improving the siting and design of recreational trails. Trails designed with wildlife in mind ensures everyone can enjoy the outdoors together– including the species that live there. The Foundation is supporting this effort by accepting donations to underwrite the production and distribution of the guidebook.
Supporting Habitat Connectivity Habitat fragmentation hurts wildlife populations and ecosystem function. Our wildlife are gradually losing the ability to move across their habitat as infrastructure like roads, fences, and walls impede their movement. With revenue from our Watch for Wildlife license plate and donations from supporters like you, the Foundation is working to restore and conserve migration corridors, reduce barriers to movement, and improve habitat for wildlife species on the move. Improving wildlife passage across busy roads and protecting migration corridors are a just a couple ways that the Watch for Wildlife Fund is supporting habitat connectivity. Your purchase of a Watch for Wildlife license plate or donation supports wildlife conservation.
Balancing a Desire for More Outdoor Recreation with Wildlife Conservation Follow the Beaten Path, a documentary by Timberreel Productions, seeks to spread awareness about impacts that non-motorized recreational trail use has on ecosystems. With the beauty of Central Oregon as a backdrop, this film explores how the outdoor activities we engage in to get ‘close to nature’ are pushing it further away. Finding a sustainable balance between recreational use and wildlife conservation helps the greater good. Documentaries can be an effective tool in helping people understand complex problems like balancing our desire for outdoor recreation with the needs of wildlife inhabiting the same space. The Foundation is proud to sponsor this film, and is seeking donations to underwrite post-production and screening costs.
Help us make a difference for Oregon’s wildlife today! Join us in supporting these efforts to balance outdoor recreation with wildlife conservation with a gift to one or all of these important projects. We also accept gifts to the area of greatest need. Your support is crucial in preserving Oregon's ecosystems and ensuring that future generations can enjoy the beauty of nature responsibly. Donate now to make a meaningful impact.