Southern Company and the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation Renew Groundbreaking Conservation Partnership

<p>Southern Company and the <a href="http://www.nfwf.org/Pages/default.aspx" target="_blank">National Fish and Wildlife Foundation</a> (NFWF) today announced a five-year renewal of their conservation partnership. For over 15 years, both organizations have funded more than 300 projects restoring, sustaining or enhancing more than 1.7 million acres of wildlife habitat.</p>
<p>Over the next five years, from 2019 to 2023, the partnership will focus resources on the restoration of longleaf pine forests through NFWF’s <a href="http://www.nfwf.org/longleaf/Pages/home.aspx" target="_blank">Longleaf Stewardship Fund</a>, and on community-level natural resource and wildlife projects through NFWF’s <a href="http://www.nfwf.org/fivestar/Pages/home.aspx" target="_blank">Five Star and Urban Waters Restoration Grant Program</a>. The renewal also enables the partnership to expand nationwide to include additional conservation work focused on at-risk wildlife.</p>
<p>“Our work with Southern Company exemplifies the public-private partnership model we employ to generate measurable results for wildlife and habitats across the country,” said Jeff Trandahl, executive director and CEO of NFWF. “This enduring partnership – one of the Foundation’s longest-running – reflects Southern Company’s strong commitment to the conservation of natural resources in the local communities it serves.”</p>
<p>Over the past 15 years, NFWF has leveraged Southern Company’s contributions to generate more than $126 million for on-the-ground conservation impact.</p>
<p>“We have a responsibility to conserve and protect the environment and communities we are privileged to serve,” said Jeff Burleson, Southern Company vice president of environmental and system planning. “NFWF does a fabulous job of leveraging dollars and forging on-the-ground conservation partnerships, which are key for building community for customers.”</p>
<p>Many conservation professionals credit Southern Company with being the first major private funder to invest in longleaf restoration work, helping catalyze the historic public-private partnership known as <a href="http://www.americaslongleaf.org/" target="_blank">America’s Longleaf Restoration Initiative</a>.</p>
<p>For information on funding opportunities available through the partnership, visit NFWF’s Southern Company partner <a href="http://www.nfwf.org/partnerships/corporate/southerncompany/Pages/Southern-Company.aspx" target="_blank">website</a>.<b></b></p>
<p><b>About Southern Company</b></p>
<p><i>Southern Company (NYSE: SO) is America’s premier energy company, with 46,000 MW of generating capacity and 1,500 billion cubic feet of combined natural gas consumption and throughput volume serving 9 million customers through its subsidiaries. Operations include nearly 200,000 miles of electric transmission and distribution lines and more than 80,000 miles of natural gas pipeline.</i></p>
<p><i>The company provides clean, safe, reliable and affordable energy through electric operating companies in four states, natural gas distribution companies in seven states, a competitive generation company serving wholesale customers across America and nationally recognized provider of energy solutions, as well as fiber optics and wireless communications. Visit </i><a href="http://www.southerncompany.com/">www.southerncompany.com</a><i> to learn more.</i></p>
<p><b>About the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation</b></p>
<p><i>The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) works with the public and private sectors to sustain, restore and enhance the nation’s fish, wildlife, plants and habitats for current and future generations. Chartered by Congress in 1984, NFWF has grown to become the nation’s largest private conservation grant-maker, supporting more than 16,500 projects and generating a total conservation impact of more than $4.8 billion. The Foundation matches private dollars with public funds and uses science-based conservation and competitive grant programs to direct those resources to projects that produce the greatest measurable results for wildlife and their habitats. Learn more at </i><a href="http://www.nfwf.org/" target="_blank">www.nfwf.org</a><i>.</i><br>
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