Wilderness Louisville, Inc

Wilderness Louisville, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 2013.  We are stewards of natural areas and champions of nature education, recreation, and youth.  Our mission is to provide and sustain quality natural spaces in Louisville and ensure there is equitable access to the community. Our role is to fundraise and advocate for these natural spaces as places where all Louisvillians can find their best outdoor experience whether it be solace or adventure.

We support the Natural Areas Division of Louisville Parks and Recreation based at Jefferson Memorial Forest, the largest municipally owned urban forest in the nation.  Our efforts support on-the ground conservation and restoration activities, implementation of capital improvements, and youth outdoor programing across the 7,500 acres managed by the Division.

Presently, we are are seeing to build community support for the Shawnee Outdoor Learning Center which will serve  as the west Louisville base  for expanding the Louisville ECHO program and taking advantage of nearby planned or newly constructed amenities such as the Shawnee boat/canoe ramp, restoration of  Chickasaw Park pond and creation of the Chickasaw Forest Play Area.  We are actively working in partnership with Louisville Parks and Recreation to ensure that expansion of outdoor programming and creation of complementary outdoor amenities create quality of life improvements for residents where they live.

Who We Are

Wilderness Louisville is the non-profit (501c3) friends organization for Jefferson Memorial Forest! We help them fund conservation and acquisition efforts as well as youth programming in the south and west Louisville neighborhoods. Your donation helps add and maintain trails, remove invasive species, and expand the Forest. In addition to funding our youth program, Louisville ECHO, which provides nature programming to youth from ages 3 to 21