Invest in Appalachia
Help us reclaim the land and the people who call it home.
The Wild Country Fellowship turns former mine land across Appalachia into working farmland and a paid training ground for people ready for a fresh start. Our work starts at Highwall in Mingo County, West Virginia, and your gift goes straight into it.
Why Appalachia
A region that powered the country, ready for what comes next.
Appalachia gave generations of coal to this nation. What was left behind across the coalfields is scarred land and too few good jobs. We believe both can be restored, and that they are best restored together. Mingo County, home of our first site, shows what is at stake:
Sources: U.S. Census Bureau; West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection.
What we do
Four parts of one mission.
Reclamation
We turn former surface mines across Appalachia into productive ground. At Highwall, our first site, a 24-acre former mine in Mingo County, West Virginia, we rebuild soil, manage water and erosion, and plant pasture, gardens, an orchard, and a food forest.
Workforce Development
Our crew earns $16 an hour, 36 hours a week, learning reclamation, regenerative agriculture, livestock, equipment, and the trades. Three hours every week go to personal and professional development.
Appalachian Land Steward Academy
We are growing our crew into a full training academy: safety certifications plus career pathways in reclamation and restoration, water and environmental field work, and site operations. The goal is a direct line from unemployment to a career restoring this land.
Reclaiming Appalachia
Restored land feeds people. Our Highwall Farm Stand sells food grown right here, and the free Highwall Harvest Festival shows families what a strip mine can become. We are building a model that communities across Appalachia can use.
Proven experience
This work is not new to us.
Before founding the Fellowship, our founder spent six years leading reclamation and remediation crews in the Appalachian coalfields. The Fellowship was built to carry that tested approach forward.
Figures reflect our founder's prior professional work in the region.
Where your gift goes
Choose your impact.
Every level below is based on what it actually costs to train a Land Steward and restore this ground.
Gear up a trainee
Boots, gloves, eye and ear protection, and hi-vis for one trainee so they can work safely from day one.
Give $150One week of paid training
A full 36-hour week of paid, hands-on training for one Land Steward at $16 an hour.
Give $600Certify a trainee
Industry credentials employers ask for: 40-hour HAZWOPER, OSHA 10, and First Aid/CPR/AED.
Give $1,500Two months of training
Two months of paid training and mentorship for one Land Steward.
Give $5,000Sponsor a Land Steward
One person, one full year: paid training, certifications, and a path into a career restoring Appalachia.
Give $30,000Founding Cohort Partner
A full year for all five Land Stewards, with recognition at Highwall and on our website.
Give $150,000Partner with us
Want to be part of this?
Foundations, businesses, and individuals who want to go deeper can partner with us on a training cohort, a piece of land, or a specific project. We would love to show you Highwall in person.
The Wild Country Fellowship Corporation is a West Virginia 501(c)(3) nonprofit, EIN 41-4316741. Gifts are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law.