— Fostering sustainability and healthy communities in the Southern Appalachians.
Our Mission—Sustainability and healthy communities in the Southern Appalachians
To promote the natural world and the health and well-being of those individuals and communities that live, depend, and/or recreate on it; and to foster and support integrated environmental research, education, and training—especially in relationship to national and global changes and their effects upon the region.
Our Vision—Crossing political and institutional boundaries to promote sustainable economic development
We will concentrate our efforts with the primary goal of promoting effective social action through understanding of sustainability. This will be accomplished as an integrated process of development that includes all levels of social and governmental organization in an environment defined by natural, social, built, and economic concerns.
SABC Cooperative (formerly SAMAB)
The Southern Appalachian Biosphere Cooperative (SABC) was originally established as the Southern Appalachian Man and the Biosphere (SAMAB) Program in 1989. The Cooperative is the administrative body of the UNESCO-recognized Southern Appalachian Biosphere Region. The Cooperative consists of an Executive Committee alongside representative leaders from protected lands (public and private), the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, and gateway communities throughout Southern Appalachia.
Executive Director – Evin Carter (Oak Ridge National Laboratory)
Chair – Rick Durbow (Environmental Protection Agency)
Co-Chair – Lisa McInnis (National Park Service)
Represented Agencies
SABR Partnership
So many acronyms.. The Southern Appalachian Biosphere Region (SABR) Partnership is a diverse group of private partners, local officials, researchers, and representatives from the Cooperative who are passionate about fostering ecological and community resilience within and beyond the Southern Appalachian Biosphere Region.
SABR partners have the opportunity to help set new community, sustainability, and conservation initiatives for the Southern Appalachians through direct interaction with agency personnel, local officials, university researchers, and regional experts.
SAMAB Foundation
The SAMAB Foundation, a 501(c)(3) corporation, gives private individuals, firms, academic institutions, and communities an opportunity to participate in SAMAB projects.
President – Susan Schexnayder (University of Tennessee Knoxville)
Southern Appalachian Biosphere Region
Core to our program are the five units of the Southern Appalachian Biosphere Region – five areas recognized internationally for their significance to the natural world: Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Mount Mitchell State Park, Grandfather Mountain, Coweeta Hydrologic Lab, and the Oak Ridge National Environmental Research Park.