The Volgenau Foundation’s Groundbreaking Gift

With the ever-present challenge of dwindling public funding, donations from philanthropic foundations, corporations and individual citizens are crucial. A $3 million grant from The Volgenau Foundation, located in northern Virginia, is allowing the Appalachian Trail Conservancy (ATC) to significantly ramp up its landscape protection efforts through 2020. Funding will support the Appalachian Trail Landscape Partnership, a dedicated coalition of local, state and federal partners led by the ATC and the National Park Service.

A sustainable landscape will enhance for future generations the natural value of the Appalachian Mountain Range. It also means there will be a greater chance for economic prosperity in the towns and communities near the A.T. These lands provide unparalleled, world-class outdoor recreation and tourism opportunities, and the ATC and its partners are uniquely positioned to facilitate local engagement to the incredible resources that make up the Appalachian Trail and its landscape — the Wild East.

 

“The Volgenau Foundation has established leadership in recognizing the vital and timely need to make certain that the Appalachian Trail, one of America’s great icons, and surrounding lands are preserved for generations to come.”
–Suzanne Dixon, Appalachian Trail Conservancy CEO and president