The Bezos Earth Fund has announced a two-year, $60 million grant to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) to restore and conserve the Northern Great Plains grasslands and longleaf pine forests of the U.S. Southeast.

The single largest philanthropic commitment for landscape restoration to NFWF will support efforts to restore and improve the management of an additional 1.6 million acres within the Northern Great Plains across Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska; and longleaf pine landscapes in Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia, including efforts to restore health to degraded ecosystems, boost at-risk species populations, and enhance carbon sequestration and storage.

Supported activities include planting native trees and grasses, treating invasive species, and improving land management practices through managed grazing in the Great Plains and prescribed burning in longleaf forests. Projects also will focus on species-specific interventions, such as ensuring safe passage for migrating pronghorns and mule deer and boosting populations of at-risk species such as the black-footed ferret and red-cockaded woodpecker, as well as game species such as the bobwhite quail and wild turkey.

“Our partnership with the Bezos Earth Fund allows us to capitalize on the surge in momentum in the Northern Great Plains and longleaf pine ecosystems and significantly scale up our work in both landscapes,” said NFWF executive director and CEO Jeff Trandahl. “By collaborating with local partners and leveraging federal and private funding, we’re making real progress toward bringing back these iconic American landscapes.”

(Photo credit: Getty Images/Bkamprath)