Renewable energy development affects many different groups with different goals and interests.  Defenders of Wildlife works closely with partners in the conservation community as well as the renewable energy industry to find solutions that work for everyone involved.

Here are a few examples:

• Defenders works closely with the Natural Resources Defense Council, The Wilderness Society, Sierra Club, the National Audubon Society, The Nature Conservancy and other regional and national organizations to evaluate renewable energy projects and develop policy recommendations aimed at getting responsible clean energy projects on the ground quickly.
• Defenders has participated in a collaborative effort—the Desert Renewable Energy Working Group—that includes other conservation organizations, solar industry developers, utilities, and funders to help shape the Bureau of Land Management’s long-term solar energy strategy for public lands in the southwest.
• We’re a partner of the American Wind-Wildlife Institute (AWWI), supporting the coalition’s mission “to facilitate timely and responsible development of wind energy, while protecting wildlife and wildlife habitat.”
• Defenders is also a member of the Arizona Solar Working Group, comprising conservation organizations and representatives from the solar industry. This working group, convened by the Sonoran Institute, reviews and provides joint comments on the Arizona Bureau of Land Management’s innovative Restoration Design Energy Project (RDEP).