Sustaining Bird Habitats & Rural Communities

Resilient Grasslands

Resilient grasslands support vibrant ranching communities, robust grassland bird populations, and sustainable ecosystem services.

photo by Mitch Kezar

Our Region

The Northern Great Plains is a broad expanse of rolling plains and grasslands covered primarily by mixed-grass prairie and sagebrush-steppe. The NGPJV works across portions of Montana, Wyoming, North Dakota, and South Dakota.
NGPJV Boundary Map

conservation across the plains

The Northern Great Plains supports the largest expanse of core breeding habitat for five of the most imperiled grassland birds.

The NGPJV supports and catalyzes conservation that works for birds and the people of the Northern Great Plains across all land ownerships.

NGPJV partners take actions that improve the health of the land by using science to direct the right conservation tools to the right time and place.
We support locally-led collaboratives that champion local sustainability and vibrant communities in the Northern Great Plains. Our local partners provide guidance on place-based conservation tools, challenges, and outcomes.

Long-billed Curlew by Ron R Bielefeld

Recent News

Angus Grazing

2025 Annual Report

Download As our planet starts yet another journey around the sun, I’ve been doing some reflecting. Change was undeniably a defining characteristic of 2025. But so was resilience—resilience in colleagues and friends, in conservation organizationsand agencies, and in our work together. The power of the Northern Great Plains Joint Venture (NGPJV) collaborative remains strong. I

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Grasslands Gravel

Grasslands Triple Crown: A Journey Through South Dakota’s Grasslands

The Northern Great Plains Joint Venture in collaboration with the South Dakota Grasslands Initiative sponsored the inaugural Grasslands Triple Crown Cycling Series in western South Dakota. The event drew 250 cyclists from 11 states. Each of the three events included a segment that passed through a USFS National Grassland: Fort Pierre, Grand River, and Buffalo

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JV8Horiz logo

JV8 Central Grasslands Conservation Initiative Unveils New Website

The JV8 Central Grasslands Conservation Initiative is excited to announce the official launch of its newly redesigned website, now live at JV8.org. The JV8 Central Grasslands Conservation Initiative is a long-term collaborative effort by eight Migratory Bird Joint Ventures (JVs) working together to implement grassland conservation from Mexico to Canada. The redesigned website offers a

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Northern Great Plains Joint Venture

newsletter

Stay up-to-date on the latest science tools and resources for informed decision-making.