When decisions impacting wildlife are made, it is necessary to take all the best available science into account.

Unfortunately, large-scale decisions are frequently made without these considerations and the results can have serious consequences for wildlife and the landscapes and resources they depend upon. When wildlife is in danger, they can't speak up for themselves—so we speak for them.

Defenders' Impact

Our team in Washington, D.C. advocates for wildlife on Capitol Hill, alerting legislators to key conservation issues and arming them with the information they need to demand the best solution in the House or Senate. We meet regularly with legislators and their staff to help them better understand the impacts of their decisions on wildlife and connect them with their constituents who feel strongly that their elected officials must also represent the interests of our wildlife and wild places. We also work to maximize our legislative impact by coordinating with, and seeking to leverage the resources of, other organizations with common interests.

State and local policies and legislation are as critical to wildlife as those at the federal level – sometimes even more so. Our teams across the country work with city, county and state governments to provide the same kind of vital expertise and conservation data that we do at the federal level but tailored to local wildlife and landscapes.

Defenders members and supporters also help us act as the voice for wildlife at all levels of government, bringing the issues that impact our most vulnerable species to the attention of key decision makers as concerned constituents.

News

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Mountain landscape, Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, Alaska
Washington, D.C.

Defenders President and CEO Commends Rep. Grijalva for his Service as Ranking Member of the Committee on Natural Resources

Defenders of Wildlife president and CEO Andrew Bowman today issued the following statement in response to Congressman’s Raúl M. Grijalva’s (D-Ariz.) decision to step down...
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