• Founded in 1936 as a nationwide federation of grassroots conservation activists.
• A national network of like-minded state and territorial groups, seeking balanced, common-sense solutions to environmental problems that work for wildlife and people.
• The most "local" national conservation group: a nonpartisan, "big tent" organization uniting people from all places, walks of life and political persuasions on the common ground of restoring and protecting wildlife and wild places.
• Representatives of 46 state and territorial affiliates meet annually to set NWF's conservation agenda and elect its officers. Field-based Regional Organizers link affiliates and national staff.
• Volunteer, 27-member board of directors includes 13 regional directors from across the country.
• Headquarters located at 11100 Wildlife Center Drive, Reston, VA 20190-5362. Nine field offices nationwide, including Office of Federal and International Affairs in Washington, D.C.

NWF advances common-sense conservation initiatives through action and through education, working hand-in-hand with its affiliates and other like-minded groups and citizen-activists, across the country and around the world. Efforts focus on restoring and protecting wildlife and wild places, along with working to improve the health of the environment upon which we all depend.

NWF's Regional Field Offices assist individuals and grassroots groups in harnessing the love for special places to protect those locations and other resources like them. Nationwide efforts originate in offices in Anchorage, AK; Boulder, CO; Washington, DC; Atlanta, GA; Ann Arbor, MI; Missoula, MT; Austin, TX; Montpelier, VT; and Seattle, WA.

NWF's Office of Federal and International Affairs, in Washington, D.C., carries conservation concerns to Congress, government agencies, the courts, and the international arena to help ensure the development and enforcement of effective conservation policies and laws that protect the health and quality of life of people and the conservation of wild species and their habitats.

NWF's Educational Outreach Department creates accurate, science-based education programs and materials to help people of all ages understand and appreciate nature, while developing critical decision-making skills. The department also meets thousands of Americans outdoors, in their own backyards, in state and national parks and other wild places, providing educational nature weekends, workshops and other activities that enhance knowledge and understanding of the natural world.