Biodiversity is the essence of life.

The United States holds some of the richest biodiversity on the planet, but it is disappearing at an alarming rate.

It’s not too late. The science tells us where to act.

The Wild America Fund (WAF) was created to accelerate land protection in the U.S. by closing the deals that nature needs most, faster, at larger scale, and on better conservation terms. Our goal is to protect one million acres by 2030.

What sets us apart is early capital deployment, quick transactions that compete with private developers, science-backed decisions, and robust partnerships.

Our Approach Our Team Join Us
What's at Risk

Biodiversity Challenge

The United States is among the most biodiverse countries in the world. But its vibrant diversity is disappearing.

50%
of U.S. wetlands lost
30%
of U.S. bird populations declined
50%
of U.S. grasslands at risk
70%
of U.S. insect populations declined
40%
of U.S. forests at risk of collapse
~40%
of U.S. plants & animals risk extinction

Declines measured from approximately 2000 to present, except U.S. wetlands loss, which has occurred over the past ~400 years.

Land protection is key to the security of our planet’s future. Well-protected landscapes protect habitats and enable species to adapt to a changing climate. It also provides essential public benefits, including carbon sequestration, water purification, and disaster mitigation.

Our Approach

The four pillars of our work

The marketplace is increasingly complex and competitive. Conservation hasn’t adapted quickly enough. Wild America Fund is the solution. WAF uniquely creates an investment bank for conservation to compete with private-sector real estate firms and private equity. We are a nationally recognized team of conservation experts dedicated to the mission of protecting critical landscapes that benefit the future of this country and planet. Our approach to conservation is built on four pillars:

American buffalo grazing in a green mountain meadow
  1. Pillar 01 Targeted conservation Landscape-level biodiversity protection informed by science

    Wild America Fund protects wild landscapes with scientifically selected biodiversity and climate resilience. We have mapped out a national agenda of 16 priority areas in the continental U.S. Our agenda is the product of where those opportunities overlap to offer the best opportunities to protect biodiversity.

  2. Pillar 02 Deal-ready capital We move quickly and effectively to compete with private capital

    High-value land transactions are time-sensitive. If conservation is to compete with private buyers, it must move quickly with sophisticated, focused early transactions. WAF is structured to move quickly and aggressively in the marketplace. We deploy a flexible capital fund for early-stage land deals. These investments establish momentum, improve negotiating position, and attract follow-on funding from aligned public and private partners, enabling coordinated action to advance shared goals. Where feasible, capital is structured for recovery and recycling across multiple transactions, extending the impact of donor investment.

  3. Pillar 03 Expert transaction team Proven deal makers applying a tailored approach to optimize success

    Wild America Fund has assembled a small, nimble team of senior specialists with expertise across conservation, real estate, finance, fundraising, and transactional negotiations. We initiate, structure, and execute land deals, coordinating with partners to acquire and steward strategic properties. We apply a tailored approach to each transaction to leverage assets and maximize success. We are not afraid to be disruptive.

  4. Pillar 04 Effective partnerships Collaborating broadly to achieve the best outcomes for nature

    Wild America Fund actively engages its broad network of trusted conservation, real estate, and philanthropic contacts to deliver the supplemental resources needed for each transaction. We assemble the political, financial, and institutional support required for each stage of the transaction and beyond. We partner with local NGOs to ensure that there is community support, capacity, and knowledge to manage the long-term protection and stewardship of these targeted conservation lands.

Where We Work

Protecting Priority Biodiversity

Wild America Fund focuses on protecting the most scientifically critical landscapes before they are lost. We worked with ecologists to identify the areas of opportunity for maximum biodiversity protection.

The following maps show areas of scientifically determined biodiversity concentration and the 16 priority areas that WAF has identified to focus on. Our goal is to protect one million acres of these key ecosystems by 2030 working with non-profit partners, government agencies, and philanthropy.

Drag across the map to compare biodiversity risk with WAF’s priority regions.

Heatmap of biodiversity risk across the continental United States, with a legend showing concentrations of imperiled biodiversity from lowest to highest.
WAF Priority Regions Selected from the science above for habitat connectivity, endemic species richness, and enabling conditions for durable protection. Biodiversity Risk Across the United States. From Hamilton et al. (2022), Increasing Taxonomic Diversity and Spatial Resolution Clarifies Opportunities for Protecting US Imperiled Species, via The New York Times.
Getting Started

Gaviota Coast

We have already commenced work to protect the first region of focus: the Gaviota Coast of California. This region is one of 16 we have identified across the country for its high biodiversity value and readiness to succeed.

Initial Engagement

Gaviota Coast, Santa Barbara

The Wild America Fund is focused on identifying and acquiring key private parcels to augment existing protected lands. This newly connected space will provide critical habitat, corridor, and buffer protection for species migration and resilience.

The Gaviota Coast is a rugged 76-mile stretch of coastline and the largest remaining undeveloped coastal landscape in Southern California. Where the Pacific Ocean meets the mountains, this rare Mediterranean ecosystem supports exceptional biodiversity and serves as a refuge for iconic and imperiled species — including southern steelhead, white-tailed kites, endangered pollinators, and California's native grasslands.

The Gaviota Coast serves as both a case study and a proving ground for our model: demonstrating how focused collaboration, strategic dealmaking, and a commitment to ecological integrity can deliver lasting, landscape-scale conservation.

Gaviota Coast, Santa Barbara
Leadership & Staff

Run by some of the nation's most esteemed conservation leaders

Co-founders Kim Elliman and Michael Mantell, and founding CEO Michael Bell, are widely recognized for their conservation achievements, fundraising success, and skillful dealmaking. They have collectively protected millions of acres of high-priority landscapes across the U.S. while enhancing wildlife connectivity and public access.

With decades of experience in real estate, law, finance, and public policy, they have conducted thousands of real estate transactions worth billions of dollars and built an unparalleled network of trusting relationships with government officials, private sector leaders, and grassroots organizations. They are uniquely positioned to execute this conservation mission at the scale and speed demanded to counter the current pace of biodiversity loss.

Co-founder | Advisor

Kim Elliman

Christopher (Kim) Elliman is co-founder of the Wild America Fund. Prior to co-founding WAF, Kim was CEO of the Open Space Institute in 2024. During his 32 years with OSI, he engaged in over 1000 transactions, conserved more than 2.5 million acres in the eastern United States, and created or enhanced over 600 parks and protected lands.

Prior to his conservation career, Kim worked for investment management companies and diversified holding companies for 25 years. Specializing in retail food and land management companies, he served as Chairman of Piggly Wiggly Southern and a founding Director of Fresh Fields Markets, later Whole Food Markets. He was President of Grey Siefert & Co, of Overhills Group, General Partner of Elmrock Partners, and Director of Barrett Associates, all financial services companies.

Kim has also served on corporate, non-profit and foundation boards, chairing The Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation; Overhills Foundation; Wild Wings Foundation; Samuel Freeman Charitable Trust; The Wilderness Society; Grow NYC; and as a trustee of the Wildlife Conservation Society; Black Rock Forest Preserve; Storm King Art Center; Center for Humans and Nature; the Dalton School, and on numerous advisory boards and investment committees. He received his B.A. from Yale University and now serves on the Leadership Council Steering Committee of its School of the Environment.

Kim was an award-winning journalist, acted in an Academy Award winning documentary, and worked in NYC government and in renewable energy early in his career. He has received numerous awards for his work in conservation from Black Rock Forest, Grow NYC, Open Space Institute, Parks and Trails NY, the Adirondack Council, Palisades Park Conservancy, among others.

He lives in NYC and has four grown children, two granddaughters, and is married to Jennifer Cunningham.

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Co-founder | Advisor

Michael Mantell

Michael Mantell is co-founder of the Wild America Fund. Prior to co-founding WAF, he founded and led the Resources Legacy Fund and its affiliated entities, the Fund for a Better Future and Shared Ascent Fund, to design and implement initiatives for philanthropic foundations and individuals that result in a just and resilient world.

Since the late 1990s, he has designed and participated in programs and projects that broadened leadership and constituency for natural resources protection and climate change, while achieving extensive outcomes for land, park, freshwater, and ocean resources. Michael helped lead the 2010 campaign that prevented a rollback of California's landmark climate change legislation. From 2000–2018, he also chaired and participated in campaigns resulting in voters approving over $30 billion of investments in water, land, park, and ocean conservation.

Previously, as Undersecretary for Resources for the State of California, he oversaw the $2.8 billion budget of the Natural Resources Agency. Prior to that, he was General Counsel for the World Wildlife Fund and a Deputy City Attorney in Los Angeles.

He is author and co-author of several books and articles, the recipient of several national conservation awards, and serves on the boards of the Monterey Bay Aquarium and The Wilderness Society.

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Founding CEO

Michael Bell

Michael is the founding CEO of Wild America Fund. Prior to Wild America Fund, Michael spent 26 years at The Nature Conservancy (TNC), most recently serving as Director of Protection for California. In that role, he led a team of transactional specialists managing a large and complex pipeline of conservation projects across and beyond California, with a portfolio exceeding $1 billion. Over his tenure, he cultivated an extensive network of donors and partners and completed more than 100 conservation transactions.

In 2017, Michael led the negotiation and fundraising effort to acquire and permanently protect the 24,460-acre Point Conception property—one of the most significant coastal conservation achievements in California history. The project was enabled by a $165 million gift from Jack and Laura Dangermond, the largest in TNC’s history. Following the acquisition, he led the design and fundraising for the Point Conception Institute, an open-data, collaborative research center that partners with institutions including NASA, the Smithsonian, and National Geographic.

Earlier, Michael served as Director of Oceans for TNC’s California Chapter, where he led a multidisciplinary team advancing innovative, transaction-based solutions to coastal and ocean challenges. Working closely with industry and government, he helped pioneer fisheries reform approaches that contributed to the recovery and long-term sustainability of the West Coast groundfish fishery and have informed similar efforts globally. He has co-authored several scientific publications on fisheries co-management and conservation innovation.

Michael joined TNC in California in 2003 as Project Director for San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara Counties, following his role as Director of Protection for TNC’s New Jersey Chapter. Earlier in his career, he served in the Peace Corps in Uruguay and conducted research on small-scale fisheries in La Paz, Baja California Sur, Mexico.

He holds a B.S. in Biology from Saint Anselm College and lives in Los Osos, California with his wife, daughter, son, and dog.

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Program Director

Norah Eddy

Norah Eddy is a mission-driven leader and award-winning entrepreneur who has dedicated her career to protecting wild places and natural resources. With deep roots in a fishing and farming community and years spent working alongside fishermen from Alaska to Ecuador, Norah brings an uncommon blend of lived experience, entrepreneurial grit, and strategic vision to her work in conservation.

In 2014, she co-founded Salty Girl Seafood, growing the brand into an internationally recognized industry disruptor that landed 500+ retail locations and closed over $1M in early-stage investment before leading the company through to exit.

Recruited by The Nature Conservancy in 2019, Norah launched a bold new strategy to address large-scale kelp forest declines that grew into the Ocean Recovery Strategy, today the fastest-growing and most ambitious portfolio in TNC's Oceans Program. As Associate Director, she raised more than $30 million in philanthropic, corporate, and government support, including an $18 million NOAA grant — the largest public investment in kelp restoration to date — while forging partnerships across state and federal agencies, tribes, and research institutions to advance endangered species recovery up and down the West Coast. Her work has been featured in The New York Times, CNN, National Geographic, Forbes, NPR, and on the TEDx stage.

Norah now brings this same entrepreneurial approach to her role as Program Director at Wild America Fund, where she is a key contributor to fundraising, shapes business strategy, and helps build the organization's culture and structure. She provides hands-on deal support and leads partnership-building efforts, cultivating the relationships with funders, agencies, and collaborators central to WAF's work.

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Conservation Investment Analyst

Jason Johns

Dr. Jason Johns holds a PhD in Ecology, Evolution, and Marine Biology from UC Santa Barbara and an M.S. in Biological Sciences from Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo. He is Lead Scientist at the Urban Forest Institute, where he focuses on urban tree suitability and forest health, and until 2025 was a postdoctoral researcher with One People One Reef, using genomic tools to assess fisheries and coral reef health across Micronesia. Since 2026, he has served as a Conservation Investment Analyst at Wild America, gathering data, building relationships with partners and stakeholders, conducting analyses, and guiding investment decision-making to support conservation outcomes. He also serves as a Breeding Strategist at Sun World International and sits on the boards of the Urban Forest Institute and the All Waters Protection & Access Coalition. His research has appeared in journals such as Ecology, Urban Forestry and Urban Greening, Journal of Heredity, Annals of Botany, Evodevo, and others.

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Program Coordinator

Stella Wing

Stella Wing is a graduate of the Bren School of Environmental Science & Management at UC Santa Barbara. There, she focused her research and coursework on deepening her expertise in natural resource management, California water policy, and coastal systems conservation. This work spanned a range of topics, from the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) and its implications for strategic agricultural land retirement, to market squid fishery management in California and bio-waste circularity. Across this work, she explored how conservation efforts can be designed to support long-term land stewardship, groundwater sustainability, and resilient fisheries management, strengthening her understanding of conservation across both terrestrial and coastal systems. Prior to Bren, she earned her B.S. in Conservation and Resource Studies from the University of California, Berkeley.

Stella brings a background in terrestrial and coastal conservation to the Wild America Fund, with a particular interest in how science-based, interdisciplinary approaches can inform durable land and water management strategies.

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Join Us

Protecting our nation's last and most biodiverse ecological resources is one of the great causes of our time.

Join us to protect one million acres of America’s most precious landscapes. Your investment in deal-ready capital will advance a new conservation model that can actively compete with the existential threats nature faces. Let’s leave a legacy for future generations.

About

Wild America Fund launched on October 1, 2025 as a fiscally sponsored project of the Resources Legacy Fund (RLF). Our mission is to close the deals that nature needs most, and do it faster, at larger scale, and on better terms. We anticipate initiating 5–10 transactions annually, deploying up to $100 million per year, and scaling these goals upward as we go.