Vision

AWF’s Desired Future Condition for Appalachian Kentucky and the Central Appalachian coal fields is that the region will finally boast a diverse, vibrant, sustainable economy with tourism as the central pillar. Tourism will be the economic driver that forces ecological restoration and protection to become a priority. Economic prosperity will create the demand for improved educational outcomes and opportunities. As a result, economic and educational outcomes will perform closer to national averages, while efforts to restore the ecology, water, and wildlife in the region will become new cultural standards.

Goals

1. 1.Improve the economic health of the region by building and operating a high impact tourism attraction that highlights the wildlife, wild landscapes, and history of the region.
2. 2.Improve the Educational outcomes of the region. Graduation rates, truancy rates, college diploma achievement, are among the worst in the country.
3. 3.Improve the environment of this poverty-stricken region. The challenges we address are water quality, invasive plants, sewage, soil erosion, sedimentation, garbage, and habitat restoration.