The Doris Duke Charitable and Tiffany & Co. foundations have announced challenge grants of $1 million each to the City Parks Foundation to launch the New York City Natural Areas Conservancy.

To meet the challenge, the organization, which will work with the city's Department of Parks and Recreation to protect, restore, and manage expansive natural areas already within the city's urban park system, must raise an additional $2 million by the end of 2013. Similar to existing organizations like the Central Park Conservancy and the Prospect Park Alliance, the new public-private partnership will serve as a mechanism to raise additional resources for parklands in the city beyond what city government can provide.

"The Doris Duke Charitable Foundation is proud to support this innovative public-private approach to making the most of nature in cities," said DDCF president Ed Henry. "It will serve as a model for how to manage urban wildlife habitat while also highlighting the ability of these areas to serve as 'green infrastructure' that helps alleviate urban environmental problems related to air quality, storm water management, and the heat-island effect."