The Shenandoah National Park Trust Secures Funding for Good Neighbors Program

 

Thanks to generous support from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in partnership with the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the Shenandoah National Park Trust has received $200,000 to connect Shenandoah National Park with land conservation initiatives happening across the Shenandoah region. This funding will advance collaborative conservation efforts that protect the lands and waterways surrounding Shenandoah National Park—ensuring the health of forests, streams, rivers, and downstream communities that depend on them. 

As a federally protected hub spanning across 200,000 acres and extending into eight counties along Virginia’s Blue Ridge mountains, Shenandoah National Park is uniquely positioned to connect the region’s conservation efforts. The park also serves as a vital water source for several streams and major water systems like the James, Rappahannock, and Shenandoah rivers- supporting agricultural lands, wildlife habitat, and recreational opportunities across Virginia and beyond. 

Nature knows no boundaries and protecting these essential resources requires collaboration that stretches beyond park borders. In 2024, the Shenandoah National Park Trust launched the Good Neighbors program to help conserve the landscapes and waterways that surround the Park. By building positive relationships with adjacent landowners, strengthening partnerships with local conservation organizations, and supporting voluntary land protection efforts, this work will continue to help sustain natural and cultural resources and improve quality of all life in the Shenandoah Valley, the Piedmont, and beyond. 

The Trust with our partner, the National Parks Conservation Association, is convening a partnership of regional conservation nonprofits to set the stage for a larger landscape-scale conservation initiative. The Chesapeake WILD award will help move this effort forward by investing in community led conservation efforts, supporting discussion and decision making to guide conservation and land protections efforts, and investing in critical relationships between the park, conservation partners, neighbors, and communities. Partners who are involved in the partnership are as follows:  

Shenandoah National Park Trust (lead organization) 

Shenandoah National Park/National Park Service 

SCBI Virginia Working Landscapes/Virginia Grassland Birds 

Indigenous Conservation Council of the Chesapeake 

National Parks Conservation Association (lead organization) 

Rappahannock Roundtable 

Friends of the Rappahannock 

Piedmont Environmental Council 

Shenandoah Valley Conservancy 

Monacan Indian Nation 

Alliance for Shenandoah Valley 

The Conservation Fund 

Trout Unlimited 

Blue Ridge PRISM 

Chesapeake Conservation Partnership 

Shenandoah National Park is the headwaters of the Rappahannock River. Two other Chesapeake WILD awards will have positive impacts downstream in the Rappahannock Watershed. These investments will empower local governments to develop and offer land conservation programs and support targeted outreach to private landowners bordering public lands.

To learn more about the Good Neighbors Program and its impact, click here.  

To learn more about the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Grant, click here to read the full press release.