Overview
Conserving natural spaces conveys benefits far beyond the gains to wildlife and their habitats. As scores of studies show, protecting and restoring lands and waters, particularly when done in close partnership with local communities, also improves people’s lives—and local economies—by increasing tourism and outdoor recreation.
Pew works in the U.S. and across the globe to preserve our natural resources, with a focus on the majestic landscapes of North America, South America, and Australia.
Wildlife collisions on U.S. roads are more than a nuisance—they’re a serious safety, economic, and ecological hazard. When roads sever the natural corridors that deer, elk, moose, and other migratory species rely on to move safely between habitat areas in search of food, mates, and shelter, it forces animals and drivers into dangerous conflict and cuts wildlife off from critical territory.
Our analysis also finds that plastic is interconnected with other global challenges, and that solving the plastic pollution problem will have broad implications for improving the health of people, the planet and the global economy. With the added urgency created by five more years of growing plastic pollution, we renew and amplify the call for ambitious action and transformative strategies to address not only plastic pollution but also the far-reaching consequences of the plastic system.
Peatlands are wetland ecosystems that store more carbon than any other natural habitat. By removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and trapping carbon from dead organic matter in waterlogged conditions, they serve as a critical tool for moderating global temperatures.
Nestled within iconic landscapes throughout the United States, from the misty Adirondack Mountains in New York to North Carolina’s swamps to Alaska’s Tongass National Forest, the United States’ peatlands are quiet powerhouses. Beneath their mossy carpets lie layers of carbon-rich soil so deep that, in some places, they could swallow a three-story building.
Located nearly 620 miles (1,000 kilometers) from Antarctica, Chilean Patagonia is renowned for its scenic beauty, which is maintained with little human intervention. The region is a vast tapestry of unique geographic and ecological conditions, ranging from imposing granite mountains, volcanoes, and dense ancient forests to fast-flowing, glacier-fed rivers and a coastline consisting of more than 40,000 islands.
Our Work
Good health is important to everyone. Pew conducts research and provides information and fact-based recommendations to state agencies, hospitals, researchers, and other health partners to help them provide better care. We find and share evidence-based practices to improve Americans’ health and well-being, including services that can prevent suicide, improve mental health care, and treat substance use disorder.
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Communities throughout the country share common needs: affordable connections to broadband Internet, modern and reliable energy infrastructure, effective responses to mental health challenges, and ways to resolve legal disputes more quickly and fairly. To address these issues, Pew collaborates with states and local governments to find and promote evidence-based solutions that help provide stability and opportunity.
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Nonpartisan, fact-based improvements in federal policy can create jobs, lower costs, and help the nation prepare for the future. When our research shows that small changes can have a big impact, we work across party lines to improve national challenges like housing affordability, internet access, energy reliability, and health care.
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Economic opportunity is the foundation of American society. Pew supports national, state, and local efforts to expand opportunity and promote financial well-being. Our work helps people pay off student loans, navigate court proceedings such as debt collection, buy or rent a home, access affordable internet, and save for their retirement.
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The global ocean teems with life, and it contributes to the vital cycles that keep people and our planet healthy. But the seas are vulnerable to overfishing, loss of habitat such as seagrasses and mangroves, ineffective fisheries management, plastic pollution, and declining biodiversity. These mounting losses affect the coastal communities that depend on the ocean for food and jobs.
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States and cities are the “laboratories of democracy” in America—the places where lawmakers and governors look for new ways to help their communities succeed. Whether in Pew’s hometown of Philadelphia or any of the 50 state capitals, we help elected leaders respond to the needs of their citizens, use public dollars wisely, fix outdated policies, and build a better future for all.
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Conserving natural spaces conveys benefits far beyond the gains to wildlife and their habitats. As scores of studies show, protecting and restoring lands and waters, particularly when done in close partnership with local communities, also improves people’s lives—and local economies—by increasing tourism and outdoor recreation.