THE PLAN
Explore the 2024 Update
The 2024 NAWMP Update is organized around the Plan's three fundamental goals — waterfowl populations, habitat, and people — and the integration of those goals under the context of changing climatic conditions. Explore each section below.
The NAWMP began as a response to declining waterfowl populations and has grown into one of the most successful continental conservation frameworks in the world. The Executive Summary outlines the Plan's three fundamental goals, the progress made toward achieving them, and the opportunities ahead for expanding partnerships and accelerating habitat conservation.
The Introduction traces the NAWMP's evolution from its origins as a response to declining waterfowl populations to its current status as a global model for international wildlife conservation. It establishes the context for the 2024 Update, explaining how the Plan has adapted over nearly four decades to reflect new science, changing landscapes, and an expanding partnership.
Quantitative population objectives have been the foundation of the Plan since its inception, providing common benchmarks for conservation decisions across the continent. This section reviews progress toward population goals for ducks, geese, and swans, presents updated objectives based on the latest survey data, and identifies the monitoring priorities needed to sustain waterfowl populations at desired levels.
Habitat loss remains the greatest barrier to sustaining waterfowl populations across North America. This section examines the scale and pace of wetland and grassland loss, outlines the Plan's habitat conservation objectives, and presents priority recommendations for Joint Ventures and partners working to conserve and restore the landscapes waterfowl depend on.
Waterfowl conservation depends on the people who value it. This section explores the Plan's fundamental goal of growing and diversifying the NAWMP support base — from hunters and birders to farmers, Indigenous communities, and new partners — and outlines strategies for communicating the multiple benefits that waterfowl habitat conservation provides to communities across the continent.
The NAWMP's three fundamental goals — waterfowl populations, habitat, and people — are most powerful when they work together. This section explores how the Plan connects biological and social objectives across Joint Ventures, Flyways, and partner organizations, and presents priority recommendations for advancing integrated conservation decision-making at regional and continental scales.
