The Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership is a collaboration between the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the RI National Wildlife Refuge Complex, the City of Providence Parks Department, and the Partnership for Providence. Together, this partnership strives to bring a conservation message to the neighborhoods of Providence in the places where families live, work, and play.
Established through a collaborative agreement in 2013, this Urban Partnership was one of the first six designated nationwide through the US Fish and Wildlife Service’s Urban Refuge Initiative. With 80% of Americans living in cities, the initiative aims to meet children and families in their own neighborhoods to nurture an appreciation of wildlife conservation and foster a better understanding of the role of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service in conserving natural resources. Currently the Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership works with a variety of partners, including Park Friends Groups, schools, teachers, local non-profits, conservation and environmental education-focused organizations, and, most importantly, families and communities in Providence!
The Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership focuses on exploring nature found in our city in city parks, within neighborhoods, and right outside our residents’ schools and doorsteps. This includes assisting in facilitating walking field trips in the neighborhoods, public programs in city parks, professional development opportunities for formal and informal educators to help connect their students to nature in urban areas, and summer camp programs for Providence youth.
The Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership also helped to establish Providence as an Urban Bird Treaty City through the national Migratory Bird Program; committing to create bird-friendly environments and provide people, especially in historically excluded, diverse communities, with opportunities to connect with nature through bird-related activities.
- To learn more about the nationwide Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership programs, including the Standards of Excellence that guides our program, please visit: https://www.fws.gov/urban/
- Follow the Providence Parks Urban Wildlife Refuge Partnership on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/urbanwildliferefuge
- To learn more about the Urban Bird Treaty program, visit: https://www.fws.gov/birds/grants/urban-bird-treaty.php
- To contact Conservation Program Coordinator, April Alix, please email: or call 401-680-7253