Conservation Northwest

Conservation NW is devoted to the left-of-center principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and asserts that racial minorities face “violence and systemic oppression.” ^{1 5}

Conservation NW receives funding from the U.S. Forest Service and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife. ⁶

History and Activities

Conservation Northwest is an environmentalist organization located in Seattle, Washington, that promotes conservation efforts in the Pacific Northwest, both in the United States and Canada. Conservation NW was founded in 1989 in Bellingham, Washington, and is devoted to the left-of-center principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion, asserting that racial minorities face “violence and systemic oppression.” ^{1  5}

Conservation NW focuses on three pillars in its work: protecting wildlands, connecting habitats, and restoring wildlife. ²

As part of its protecting wildlands initiative, Conservation NW promotes forest restoration, preserving watersheds, and preventing development on public lands. ⁷

As part of its connecting habitats initiative, Conservation NW promotes creating wildlife corridors to aid migration, which it argues is especially important in the face of climate change. ⁸

As part of its restoring wildlife initiative, Conservation NW supports reintroducing fish into Washington, protecting wolves in the Pacific Northwest, and helping to restore the populations of threatened species. ⁹

Conservation NW also has a wildlife monitoring program that used volunteers and remote cameras to monitor wildlife where state and federal agencies do not operate. Additionally, Conservation NW supports reforestation efforts through lobbying and media promotion. ^{10  4}

Additionally, Conservation NW has a wildlife ambassador project, which in 2024 focused on encouraging trail users to not go off trails and to pick up food and garbage to prevent run-ins with bears and other wildlife. ⁶

Coalitions and Political Advocacy

Conservation Northwest is a member of dozens of environmental coalitions, including the Arid Lands Initiative, the Cascadia Partner Forum, the Community Wildlife Monitoring Project, the Environmental Priorities Coalition, the Mountain Caribou Project, the Wildlife Diversity Advisor Council, and the Working for Wildlife Initiative. ¹¹

Conservation NW also participates in policy campaigns. As of November 2025, the organization advocated for Washington State Initiative 1631 to support a climate program focused on the wildlands and wildlife.  ¹¹

People

The executive director of Conservation Northwest is Mitch Friedman. Friedman has been the executive director of Conservation NW since its founding in 1989. ^{12  13}

Financials

According to tax filings, in 2023, Conservation Northwest reported $3,902,297 in revenues, $3,863,223 in expenses, and $2,239,272 in assets. Of its expenses, Conservation NW spent $1,027,807 on creating wildlife corridors, $871,441 on protecting wildlands, $439,955 on restoring wildlife, and $639,209 on other environmental efforts. Conservation NW received nearly seven percent of its revenues ($262,973) from government grants, $35,847 from fundraising events, and $3,574,140 from other gifts, grants, and contributions.  ³

In 2023, Conservation NW gave a $55,000 grant to the Light Foundation, a $10,000 grant to Okanogan Land Trust, and a $9,500 grant to the Center for Responsible Forestry.  ³

According to its 2024 annual report, Conservation NW claimed to have received 42 percent of its revenues from individual donations, 34 percent from grants, 20 percent from estate gifts, and two percent from corporate donations. Organizations that provided grants and donations to Conservation NW that year included the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, the George F. Jewett Foundation, the Lufkin Family Foundation, the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, the National Wildlife Federation, Patagonia Environmental Programs, Pew Charitable Trust, the U.S. Forest Service, the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, the Wilburforce Foundation, Alaska Airlines, Buffalo Exchange, Salesforce, and Kroger. ⁶