Shaping the Future Together: CPC’s 2025 Partner Survey
This spring, CPC invited our network of Conservation Partners to share their perspectives through our first annual Network Partner Survey—and the response was inspiring. The survey was designed to better understand partners’ priorities, challenges, and needs; evaluate the effectiveness of CPC’s current offerings; and identify opportunities for collaboration, improvement, and growth. Nearly 80 participants, representing 50 partner institutions across the United States and beyond, provided valuable feedback on CPC’s resources, membership benefits, and opportunities for future growth. With an 86% completion rate, the survey reflects the deep engagement of our network and the shared commitment to saving plants from extinction.
What We Learned
Partners representing a variety of organizational roles and professional disciplines—from executive directors and conservation department staff to botanists, horticulturists, researchers, and more—shared how they engage with CPC’s web-based resources and conservation programs. Of the resources featured on the Rare Plant Academy, the Best Practices Guidelines and the Applied Plant Conservation Course are among the most used and revisited tools. A strong majority (nearly 90%) reported they are likely or very likely to recommend CPC’s resources to colleagues, underscoring the value of our collective work. Many respondents also highlighted membership benefits like National Meeting discounts, access to specialized databases, and collaborative grant opportunities as critical to advancing their conservation efforts.
Looking ahead, partners expressed interest in additional content and resources, such as more workshops and webinars, updated Best Practices Guidelines, centralized horticultural protocols, tools to support advocacy, and resources tailored for broader public engagement. Suggestions for improvements included enhancing web functionality, offering more in situ conservation resources, and expanding access to funding and collaboration opportunities.
Next Steps
CPC staff will conduct deeper analysis of these findings to inform improvements to existing offerings and feedback will also be utilized to shape CPC’s formal strategic planning process. The valuable feedback and ideas shared through the survey will play a vital role in shaping future priorities and ensuring CPC continues to serve as a strong, responsive hub for rare plant conservation. The next network-wide survey will launch in Spring 2026, providing another opportunity to measure progress, deepen engagement, and chart our shared path forward.