Ruffner Mountain Nature Coalition, Inc., a 501 ( c ) 3 non profit organization, founded in 1977 operates as the Ruffner Mountain Nature Center. From the 28 original acres, the center now owns and/or manages over 1,000 acres of an undeveloped portion of Birmingham, Alabama’s unique Red Mountain ridge, and has been connecting people and nature for over thirty years.

 

The nature center is a special place within a metropolitan urban area where people can come to learn to be good stewards of the earth, caring for and observing biologically diverse native plants and wildlife, preserving remnants of Birmingham’s mining history, and hiking peaceful and un-crowded trails located just minutes from downtown.

 

The mission of Ruffner Mountain Nature Center is to protect and manage Ruffner Mountain's land as a sanctuary for native species of plants and animals; and through its educational and passive recreational programs foster within the community an appreciation for the value of the natural world and an understanding of the interdependence of all living things.