Partnerships

The Forest Service welcomes partners who want to make a difference. Your involvement strengthens our collective work, whether you represent a community group, youth organization, nonprofit, business, foundation, or federal, state or local government.

Joining forces to sustain America’s forests

Many of our national partners, such as the Mule Deer Foundation, help to strengthen our active forest management work by expanding our capacity to tackle large-scale forest health and habitat restoration projects. To help restore watersheds, Trout Unlimited cleans up land mines, removes fish barriers and improves stream habitat to reduce flood and wildfire risk.

While some partners operate at the national level, others are rooted in regions, state and local communities where collaboration can have a direct and lasting benefit. These partnerships bring together organizations, agencies, and residents to address local needs and create opportunities tailored to their communities.

This happened on the Pisgah National Forest in North Carolina's Blue Ridge Mountains when three organizations shared a vision to expand recreation and economic opportunities in the town of Old Fort. Working alongside a Forest Service trails manager, they formed the Catawba Vale Collaborative. Through the power of the partnership, what began as a 6-mile trial has grown a 42-mile project, with 21 miles completed to date, connecting the Blue Ridge Parkway to Old Fort and started to change the town's economic standing. The collaborative now has 10 member organizations.

And when Hurricane Helene hit the town of 700, destroying homes, the collaborative stepped up. Because of the work on the trail, the already strong partnership created fundraisers to rebuild homes by raising more than $2.5 million.

Each of these examples show the power of partnerships and the benefits to public lands and communities.

Partnering for success

The Forest Service network of partnership coordinators are ready to help you in many ways, including:

Connect you with meaningful opportunities: Tell us what inspires you, and we’ll help you find projects and initiatives that match your interests and skills—from conservation and restoration to recreation, youth engagement, and community-led efforts.
Guide you through partnership pathways: We make it easy to understand how to work with the Forest Service and which partnership options best support your goals.
Support collaboration at any scale: Whether your focus is local or national, we help you navigate the agency and connect with the right people and programs.
Lift up youth and community engagement: We help create hands-on experiences that inspire young people, support emerging professionals, and strengthen community ties.
Help communities access tools and resources: We work alongside partners to advance across boundary project that improve forests, watersheds, recreation sites, and boost local economies.
Bring forward new funding and fresh ideas: From philanthropic investments to innovative business collaborations, we help expand what’s possible.
Encourage responsible private-sector participation: We help companies connect with efforts that make a meaningful difference on national forests and grasslands.
Provide guidance on recognition and public engagement: We help partners understand how recognition and naming work on public lands and how to communicate their involvement effectively.

Contact your nearest national forest or grassland office to begin your partnership conversation, or email the National Partnership Office.