2020 Highlights: A Bright Future for Alabama
Thank you for making 2020 a year filled with conservation victories!
The end of most years is a time to look back. We gather with our friends and loved ones to reflect on the journey of the past year. This year of course has been different in so many ways. We have all faced extraordinary challenges that none of us could have expected 12 months ago.
But those challenges are why now, more than ever, we must find and celebrate the bright spots of the past year. And, while many of us were hunkering down in our homes, our staff went out. With support from our friends and donors they went into the mountains, walked the coast, and floated the waters to continue the important work of conservation in Alabama.
If anything, what this year reinforced for all of us, is that conservation never stops. And, despite these challenges, 2020 saw our teams achieve some of The Nature Conservancy’s most important conservation goals to date.
This past year we:
Protected Rare Species
Led a partnership to purchase and protect sensitive habitat in the Red Hills for the preservation of the endemic Red Hills Salamander, the state amphibian of Alabama. This achievement was 20 years in the making.
Completed Largest Coastal Restoration Project
Completed the largest coastal restoration project in the history of Alabama along the Bayou La Batre shoreline at Lightning Point. This living shoreline project withstood three hurricane force weather systems to protect the area from storm surge, just as it was designed.
Instituted Cutting-Edge Carbon Offset Program
Instituted a cutting-edge carbon offset program that puts Alabama on the global map for socially responsible sustainability for corporations, that in turn benefits local landowners and the cause of conservation.
Worked with Communities
Worked to develop the Shades Creek Water Management Plan that will impact the well-being of citizens along a wide swath of Birmingham, many in underserved neighborhoods, and will set the stage for public funds to improve water quality and erosion.
Found a New Home
With a generous donation, TNC closed on the purchase of our new Conservation Community Hub, the old City Paper Building that we plan to renovate as an environmental gathering place for TNC and other community environmental organizations, many of which do not have adequate meeting spaces of their own for large meetings and educational presentations.
With your help we have accomplished many goals toward a clean, healthy, thriving Alabama.
There is still more to do, but we can't do it without you.