Connecting people and nature to inspire a positive future
The US Biosphere Network (USBN) is made up of 28 internationally recognized places across the continental United States, the US Caribbean, Alaska, and Hawai’i called biosphere regions.
Communities and organizations work together in biosphere regions to connect people and nature, from deserts to forests, grasslands to rivers, and mountains to oceans and coasts. Together, we care for the beauty and value of our lands and waters and the benefits they bring to our communities.
Working Together to Improve Livelihoods and Sustain Nature
Our environment is undergoing rapid change. The natural world and local economies can thrive if we work together to sustain them. Biosphere regions are designed for people and organizations to work at regional scales to enhance the well-being of people and the environment.
Our quality of life, cultural heritage, and unique communities depend on the essential services that nature provides. Productive soils for farming, clean water for drinking and fisheries, public lands for outdoor recreation and wildlife, natural floodplains for flood control and carbon sequestration—all of these benefits derive from healthy lands, air, and water. Biosphere regions offer ways for people and organizations to maintain these vital environmental and economic benefits.
Biosphere regions are voluntary and nonregulatory in their approach. Although they include state and national parks, national forests, national marine sanctuaries, and other conservation areas, they also focus on partnerships with private landowners and local communities where people live and work.
Together these special places provide tremendous biodiversity and economic values to communities and the nation.
Want to learn more about biosphere regions? Read the FAQs
We’d love to stay in touch! Subscribe to quarterly e-newsletter
Biosphere Bites
The US Biosphere Network hosts virtual, 30-minute “Biosphere Bites” talks every other week on ZOOM to give biosphere regions and anyone interested in collaborative conservation an opportunity to share knowledge, ideas, and resources across our national and international networks. Learn more
Support the USBN
In 2022, the US Biosphere Network became a fiscally sponsored project of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation, expanding the Network’s capacity to achieve its mission to foster local, national and international connections among biosphere regions, facilitate their sharing of best practices, and support their work to connect people and nature.
You can play an important role in this effort by making a donation to the Center and designating your gift to the US Biosphere Network.
Watch more videos about US Biosphere regions here!
Photos, top to bottom: Banner – Denali National Park/Biosphere Region – NPS/Jacob W. Frank; Rocky Mountain Biosphere Region, Colorado – NPS Photo.
