Flyway Cities Coalition Goals

The Flyway Cities Coalition is working to connect both people and habitats within the flyways. It is a collaborative project that will bring together diverse groups in a common mission of protecting wildlife.

There are two major goals of the Flyway Cities Coalition:

To protect and restore corridors of habitat, both terrestrial and aquatic, for all species of wildlife residing within the migratory flyways (Pacific, Central, Mississippi and Atlantic Flyways) of North America.
To foster a committed base of active citizens, including businesses, like-minded conservation groups, government agencies, and other people dedicated to sustain and expand the campaign over time.

Partners in each city’s Flyway Cities Coalition will come together in working groups to identify the best ways to protect and develop sustainable environments in their communities. The process of implementing the Coalition’s work will be unique to each city, based on its specific context and needs, and the strengths of Coalition partners.

Members of the Flyway Cities Coalition will not only be connecting habitats, but also will be building social networks of gardening and wildlife enthusiasts who can share their ideas, experiences, and observations of wildlife. In turn, these networks will translate those natural experiences into political activism for protecting nature.

Ecological Goals

Increase the quality of habitat and the number and acreage of habitats within the flyways at a minimum of 5-10% per year.
Help landowners take the first steps towards providing the essential elements of a habitat (including requirements for food, cover, water, and places to raise young) through NWF’s Certified Wildlife Habitat program.
Protect, restore and preserve native habitats within the flyways, especially in key ecosystems designated by State Wildlife Action Plans and conservation groups, and for species of concern.

Social Goals

Grow social networks of people (both individuals and communities) who may already be interested in gardening, wildlife watching, outdoor recreational activities, conservation, urban planning, and/or greener cities who can share their ideas, experiences, and observations of wildlife and translate those natural experiences into political activism for protecting nature.
Enlist collaborations and partnerships with other groups and organizations also working to build healthier living communities for people and for wildlife.
Collaborate with like-minded groups in each flyway city to increase grassroots volunteerism in the campaign by at least 500-1000 volunteers/city and 5-20 key partnerships/city.

Coalition working groups will also:

Increase environmental stewardship by raising awareness about environmental issues among community leaders,
Empower citizens with information,
Ignite personal responsibility for improving urban ecosystems,
Restore and increase wildlife habitat,
Cross-promote organizational efforts and projects to meet common goals, and
Strengthen social networks to create more effective advocacy for local, regional and state solutions to wildlife and habitat problems.

**Why Flyway Cities?**

Population growth is the highest in urban areas and subsequently, loss of habitat is greatest in urban areas.

Urban areas are often heat islands—areas that are much warmer than the surrounding area, largely because of urban development—which contributes to global warming.

Any remaining areas of green space or wildlife habitat within an urban area are often disconnected from each other and may not provide good quality wildlife habitat if they are dominated by lawn or invasive plant species or do not provide enough cover from predators or safe places to raise young.

Rivers and streams are channelized and dammed, diverting natural flows and disrupting aquatic ecosystems. Invasive plant and animal species take advantage of these fragmented landscapes, often outcompeting or consuming native species.

However, as human population centers, urban areas are where the Coalition can most effectively build a network of partners, volunteers, and activists.