A Year in Review: VCN’s 2022 Annual Report
Over the last year, VCN worked with our 150+ Network Partners to maintain momentum around policy gains while continuing to navigate working within the confines of the COVID-19 pandemic. The year was defined by a gubernatorial election and the infusion of federal money into the state budget. It ended with a vastly different political landscape including a new, untested Governor and a change in conservation strategy from offense to defense.
Our Annual Report reviews Virginia Conservation Network’s work from Spring 2021 to Winter 2022. While it feels almost impossible to cover everything we worked on last year in only a few pages, we did our best to squeeze in the highlights, including:
- our strategy to advance conservation initiatives year-round,
- our policy gains and challenges through the General Assembly session,
- our Network Partner engagement events,
- VCN staff updates,
- …and more!
Read more of our recent updates from our blog:
OPINION: State budget delivers for clean water and protected land
Money talks, and our bipartisan state budget reflects the values of the commonwealth. In an Op-Ed, VCN celebrates a bipartisan budget deal that allocates historic levels of funding for clean water.
Meet Our Two New Board Members
The VCN Board plays an important role in the conservation community, and this fall our Network elected two new members to the Board of Directors.
Dominion “Peaker” Plant to Pollute Chesterfield County
Just 2 miles down the road from Bellwood Elementary School, Dominion Energy plans to construct a massive gas-fired power plant in Chesterfield County.
Federal Funding & Opportunities for the Chesapeake Region
The Campbell Foundation released a resource guide providing an overview of different pathways through which current federal funding is being distributed to the Chesapeake Bay watershed.
Water Program Portal
Atlas Public Policy & Water Foundation released their Water Program Portal, a digital information hub for organizations and public agencies tracking recent federal investments in water, specifically the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act and the Inflation Reduction Act.
Honoring retiring environmental champions and the rising generation filling their shoes
Virginia Conservation Network presented six awards at the first annual Conservation Awards at their annual Meeting & Partner Retreat to recognize influential environmental advocacy professionals working in Virginia’s partnership of 160+ organizations.