She is the kind of person you'd love to work with, include on an outward bound adventure or invite to your strategic meetings. And we do. Allow us to introduce Denise Joines, program director for Wilburforce Foundation, whose combination of vision, intelligence and heart is a direct reflection of the organization she represents. Without a doubt, the Wildlands Project attributes much of its success and longevity to this incredible organization and its staff.

With a mission to "protect wildlife and wildlands by actively supporting organizations and leaders that advance conservation solutions," the Wilburforce Foundation has provided backing for some of the West's most innovative projects and campaigns since 1991.

What further defines this foundation is its personal approach. Kim Vacariu, the Wildlands Project Western Program Director explains, "I don't know how else to describe it. Wilburforce has heart. They don't take a simple provider-client approach to grantees. They remain involved and concerned."

In addition to Wilburforce's personal style and dynamic programs, its vision and reach are huge, stretching from Mexico up through Alaska, and guided by the tenets of conservation biology. They recognize that landscape fragmentation is a leading cause of species extinction. With an eye on helping to create "a network of protected core reserves, corridors and buffer zones across Western America," they have steadfastly supported those efforts that will provide for viable wildlife populations and ecologically effective landscapes.

Joines points out that one of the most exciting developments in conservation is the change in attitudes towards nature by a broader audience. "People in the West are becoming much more overtly conservation minded." She sees that most parts of society have always embraced conservation and recognized the value of wild places for the clean air and clean water they provide, and for the inherent value of wilderness—but this support of late has been quiet and at times subdued. "The wildest places in the West are public lands. Every citizen in this country owns them. They are our lands of 'plenty,' where wildlife thrives, and the wild heart of our country beats. They don't belong to one political party, to one constituency, to energy companies or the logging industry. The great news is that a broad spectrum of people, from hunters, fisherman, and ranchers to hikers and even New York City apartment dwellers are speaking out to protect the wild places they recognize they steward for future generations."

Still, an even greater acceptance of landscape-scale conservation and wilderness protection by agencies, decision-makers and a broader audience of individuals must occur, and it can't come soon enough. The big landscape-scale conservation efforts that link core areas and include buffers are essential to mitigate the impacts of climate change in the challenging years ahead. As is so often the case with Joines, she clearly and passionately clarifies the matter: "How do we know that what we have now can survive the impact of climate change? This is not esoteric. We are talking about survival. It's about the survival of the diversity of life as well as our own species. It's as simple as that."

Kellie Westervelt