The National Wildlife Federation

Community Profile

Pledge Status

Active

Pledge Date

Wednesday, March 20, 2024

Program Year

2024

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Action Item Report

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City of Leander

Leander, TX

Christine DeLisile

Mayor

Pledge Summary

Leander is a growing city of about 100,000 residents on the edge of the Texas Hill Country. Given our location in the eastern monarch migration route, we are in a great place to help support the butterfly. Our participation enhances efforts to engage with residents in our work in water conservation and city beautification through promotion of drought tolerant landscaping with native Texas Plants. Many of these plants are also useful to monarchs and other pollinators.

Community Spotlight

Action Items Committed for 2024

Communications and Convening

  • Issue a proclamation to raise awareness about the decline of the monarch butterfly and the species’ need for habitat. This proclamation must incorporate a focus on monarch conservation.
  • Launch or maintain a public communication effort to encourage residents to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighborhoods. (If you have community members who speak a language other than English, we encourage you to also communicate in that language; Champion Pledges must communicate in that language.)
  • Engage with city parks and recreation, public works, sustainability, and other relevant staff to identify opportunities to revise and maintain mowing programs and milkweed / native nectar plant planting programs.
  • Engage with gardening leaders and partners (e.g., Master Naturalists, Master Gardeners, Nature Centers, Native Plant Society Chapters , other long-standing and influential community leaders) to support monarch butterfly conservation.
  • Engage with Homeowners Associations (HOAs), Community Associations or neighborhood organizations to identify opportunities to plant monarch gardens and revise maintenance and mowing programs.

Program and Demonstration Gardens

  • Host or support a native seed or plant sale, giveaway or swap.
  • Initiate or support community science (or citizen science) efforts that help monitor monarch migration and health.

Systems Change

  • Launch, expand, or continue one or more ordinances to reduce light pollution to benefit urban wildlife.