The PA Wilds Center has been accepted into 1% for the Planet, a global network of thousands of businesses and nonprofits working together to support people and the planet.

More than 4,300 businesses across 110+ countries currently participate in the 1% for the Planet Program, spanning nearly every industry, from global outdoor brands to small independent shops, all committing to donate at least one percent of annual revenue — not just profit — to conservation and community causes. The companies then get to select among a list of vetted nonprofits where they want to direct their donations.

The PA Wilds Center is now on that list.

“Getting into this program is not as easy as signing up,” PA Wilds Center CEO Ta Enos said. “It’s quite a process. We are proud to have been accepted, and appreciate how the 1% for the Planet partnership can help us find aligned donors to support our work in rural communities.”

PA Wilds Center was approved under three of the program’s “Impact Targets” — Sustainable Livelihoods, Responsible Consumption & Production, and Nature Access — recognizing the way the Center’s work intentionally connects people to the region’s more than 2 million acres of public land, 16,000 miles of streams and rivers and other outdoor experiences in a way that is helping to support local businesses and revitalize rural communities.

To join the program, nonprofits must be recommended by an existing 1% for the Planet member. The PA Wilds Center was recommended by Purple Lizard Maps, a Pennsylvania-based company that has been a 1% for the Planet member since 2011 and donates through the 1% for the Planet program.

“As outdoors people, we spend a lot of time in the PA Wilds, and we have always admired the storytelling and thoughtful approach that is being taken to grow nature tourism in this part of the state,” said Mike Hermann, founder of Purple Lizard Maps.  “We got to know the PA Wilds Center team better as we worked on the Dark Skies map with them. They are very intentional and innovative and are just so committed to the rural communities they serve. We thought they’d be a great fit for the 1% for the Planet program.”

Once nominated, the PA Wilds Center had to complete a partnership assessment covering its nonprofit status, organizational history, mission alignment with 1% for the Planet’s Impact Areas, program budget, and screening for financial and organizational integrity.

Enos said joining the program aligns with recent efforts to stand up a development program at the Center focused on corporate and individual giving.

“The PA Wilds work is really critical to the future of rural PA, and as the backbone nonprofit for the movement, we are very serious about stewarding what our region has collectively built over the last twenty years – the regional brand, regional commerce systems to support local businesses, community resources like the Design Guide and investing in the vast partnership network that makes it all go and keeps it grounded in the community,” Enos said. “We’ve done a lot with a little for a long time, and with those results, are now intentionally inviting the private sector to help us do more. Being accepted into the 1% for the Planet is an important step in that journey.”

How does the PA Wilds Center meet these qualifications?

PA Wilds Conservation Shops: PA Wilds Conservation Shops bring locally made products to market while creating economic impact for rural communities. The Center sources 90% of products from artisans and businesses in the region, so every purchase supports a local maker — and cuts down on the impact of shipping goods from far away. Vendors are paid outright at wholesale prices, and shop revenue funds the Center’s mission of connecting people to nature, businesses to opportunity, and communities to resources. The shops also carry stewardship-minded products made with sustainable materials, from recycled-cardboard earrings to plants grown in local gardens.

Charity Checkout for Conservation campaign: The Center’s commerce platforms — its Conservation Shop stores and the online PA Wilds Marketplace — let shoppers donate to public lands stewardship through a Charity Checkout for Conservation campaign. All proceeds go to the Pennsylvania Parks and Forests Foundation for reinvestment in stewardship and maintenance projects on public lands, including the region’s 29 state parks and 8 state forests.

Design Guide for Community Character Stewardship: Development can sometimes come at the expense of a community’s scenic quality and character. That’s why the PA Wilds Planning Team created the PA Wilds Design Guide for Community Character Stewardship, now in its second edition. The PA Wilds Center helps promote this free, voluntary planning resource that helps communities protect what makes them unique as they grow. It’s available for free download on the Center’s website.

Encouraging mindful travel: As the region grows more accessible, it is important that residents and visitors alike understand how everyday activities like travel can affect this treasured landscape. The Center’s stewardship microsite offers tools for mindful travel, property ownership and community planning.

Inspiring stewardship-minded business: The PA Wilds Center manages and promotes the PA Wilds Cooperative (WCO) network, which serves and connects small businesses, nonprofits and communities located in the Pennsylvania Wilds. More than 700 rural businesses and organizations currently participate in the network, which connects and promote the products, services and experiences only found in the Pennsylvania Wilds. Through the WCO, the PA Wilds Center encourages businesses and organizations to think about stewardship and environmental impacts while creating their products, sourcing their materials, managing their businesses, operating or constructing their buildings, and giving back to their communities. This includes offering toolkits for stewardship language, as well as workshops highlighting stewardship opportunities.

ABOUT 1% FOR THE PLANET

The purpose of 1% for the Planet is to inspire commitment and action so that our planet and future generations thrive. The organization accelerates smart environmental giving by inspiring businesses to commit to donating 1% of their annual sales to approved partners. So far, 1% for the Planet has certified over $939 million in giving to date. To learn more: https://www.onepercentfortheplanet.org/

ABOUT THE PA WILDS
The Pennsylvania Wilds is a 13-county region that includes the counties of Cameron, Clarion, Clearfield, Clinton, Elk, Forest, Jefferson, Lycoming, McKean, Potter, Tioga, Warren, and northern Centre. The PA Wilds is home to the greatest concentration of public lands in the Commonwealth. The PA Wilds Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc., is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to connect people to nature, businesses to opportunities, and communities to resources, creating rooted local wealth in the Pennsylvania Wilds. Based in the region, the Center is the nonprofit advancing the PA Wilds Conservation Landscape effort, a 15+year collaborative effort by local, state and federal partners to establish the region as a premier outdoor recreation destination as a way to diversify local economies, attract investment, inspire stewardship, improve quality of life and attract and retain the region’s working-age population. PA Wilds Center works closely with PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, PA Department of Community and Economic Development, PA Creative Industries, the region’s county governments and destination marketing organizations, and other investors in the regional strategy. For more information on the PA Wilds Center and the Wilds Cooperative, visit www.PAWildsCenter.org. Explore the PA Wilds and find locally made products at www.PAWilds.com. To support the PA Wilds Center’s mission in the PA Wilds Conservation Landscape, please visit pawildscenter.org/donate.