Conservation

About Us

An overview of the National Audubon Society and our conservation work.

We work to bend the bird curve.

For more than a century, the National Audubon Society has preserved bird habitats, conducted scientific research, influenced policymakers to enact commonsense conservation laws, and engaged communities across the hemisphere to protect the natural resources upon which birds—and we—depend. By "bending the bird curve," we are working to halt, and ultimately reverse, the decline of birds across the Americas.

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Leadership Strategic Plan Our Values Reports and Financials Work With Us

Our Mission

Audubon protects birds and the places they need, today and tomorrow. 

Across aisles. Across landscapes. Across borders. When it comes to our environment, birds are a uniting force. Birds cross borders, from neighborhoods to states and beyond, migrating tens of thousands of miles across multiple countries from one tip of the planet to the other. And so do we. Audubon's hemispheric approach recognizes that the majority of bird species in the Americas migrate annually between Canada, the United States, Latin America, and the Caribbean. Audubon’s programs are like the birds—unencumbered by political boundaries and seamlessly integrated across the Western Hemisphere.

What we bring to the table.

Incorporated in 1905, the National Audubon Society is one of the oldest and most effective bird conservation organizations in the Western Hemisphere. Audubon has more than 650 staff and a score of partner organizations working in 10 countries. Audubon also has an extensive network of community and campus chapters working on behalf of birds and people in their local areas.

510+
Our community and campus chapters engage members in grassroots conservation action.
55
Audubon centers and sanctuaries are hubs of conservation exploration, research, and action, allowing millions to discover and defend the natural world.
10
Countries across the hemisphere where we do our core conservation work.
Audubon Values
Drive for lasting, positive impact
Recognize collaboration is key to accomplishing our mission
Build trust by acting with integrity
Demonstrate care for each other, our partners, and our communities
Foster innovation and learning
Embrace complexity and change

Here's how we're making a difference.

Audubon is responding to the greatest challenges facing birds and people today while anticipating the issues—and opportunities—of tomorrow. We remain focused on birds because we know their collective health reflects the health of our planet. What’s good for birds is good for the Earth.

Diplomacy and Advocacy
Diplomacy and Advocacy

Audubon supports policy goals across the hemisphere advance and fund conservation and climate initiatives with solutions equal to the scale of the challenges we face.

Science
Science

Audubon scientists develop tools like the Migratory Bird Explorer and studies like Survival by Degrees that enable us to make science-based decisions about the places that matter most for birds

Community Building
Community Building

Audubon is a growing and diverse community of millions of bird lovers, chapters, and members working seamlessly across the hemisphere, improving the world for birds and people.

Birds
Birds

Birds are powerful unifiers—they are not bound by politics or property lines, and they captivate people across the globe. Unified by a love of birds, together we are an unstoppable force for conservation.

The science both compels and empowers us to act globally, across the hemisphere, by illuminating the places birds need, from Chile to Canada. This insight enables us to focus our work more accurately and effectively than ever before, and to measure our impact on a population scale across the hemisphere to bend the bird curve.
Marshall Johnson, Chief Conservation Officer
About Us
Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging at Audubon
A group of people holding binoculars
High school students birding at Lost Maples State Natural Area during a week-long outdoor Conservation Trek hosted by Trinity River Audubon Center. Photo: Luke Franke/Audubon

With a plurality of voices, we will inspire more people and conserve more habitats.

Read more about EDIB at Audubon
A great egret looks at its reflection

History of the National Audubon Society

Protecting waterbird populations has been part of Audubon’s mission even before the official establishment of the National Audubon Society. Since 1901, Audubon and its staff and volunteers have worked to protect birds and the places they need.
Read about Audubon's history of conservation
Great Egret
Herons, Egrets, Bitterns

Reports and Financials

Long-term conservation results require sustained investment. We are grateful for the trust our donors place in us, and it is our unwavering pledge to use the financial support they provide wisely, efficiently, and for the best possible conservation results.
Read about it
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Sandhill Crane
Cranes