The National Wildlife Refuge Association (Refuge Association) was founded in 1975 to create a non-governmental voice for the National Wildlife Refuge System. Today, the Refuge Association’s mission is to protect American wildlife for future generations through programs that protect, enhance and expand the National Wildlife Refuge System and the landscapes beyond refuge boundaries that secure the ecological integrity of the System. The Refuge Association achieves its mission through three connected strategies: Advocacy and Education, Constituency-Building, and Landscape Conservation Programs. The Refuge Association has an established national track record engaging private citizens as advocates for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and leads the Cooperative Alliance for Refuge Enhancement (CARE) a coalition of 23 organizations as ideologically diverse as the National Rifle Association, Defenders of Wildlife and the Wilderness Society.