The Working Forest Fund
Description
The Working Forest Fund (WFF) was created to address the economic and environmental challenges presented by the 45 million acres of working forestland in the U.S. that are currently at risk of being developed or degraded. The WFF’s model is to acquire large-scale at-risk forestlands, manage them sustainably for timber under third party certification, and ultimately secure an optimal conservation outcome.
Vision
- 1 million acres of Forestland in the next 5 years
- 5 million acres over the next 10-15 years
Call to Action
Over the past ten years, The Conservation Fund proved the concept of sustainable forestry investing for conservation outcomes, but the capital base of the Working Forest Fund simply is not big enough to fully address the challenge we face. Over the next 10 – 15 years, the Fund estimates that five million acres of critical, privately-held forests will be at high risk of fragmentation and development. If we act now, we can save these acres before they are lost forever.
To reach this audacious goal, The Conservation Fund aims to raise a combination of impact investment and philanthropic capital to permanently secure the first one million acres of critical forests. This first one million acres will lay the foundation for our ultimate 5 million acre goal. The Fund is confident that it can secure these one million acres within five years, but the Working Forest Fund’s ambition requires bold response from the philanthropic community. Together we can embark on a path to fundamentally transform the conservation landscape. Finally and forever, we can save America’s forests.
Green Bond Initiative
Developed Green Bond Initiative with Goldman Sachs.