BIG SUR LAND TRUST Year Founded: 1978 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 30 paid, 172 volunteers Budget: $8,024,964 (831) 625-5523 bigsurlandtrust.org BIG IDEA: You may not know its official name, but you have probably driven past Ferrini Ranch on Highway 68. This 866-acre parcel of rolling hills and ancient oaks near Toro Park greets travelers between Salinas and Monterey Peninsula—and Big Sur Land Trust is asking for help to preserve it. After years of fighting off potential development, donors can support BSLT’s Big Idea to purchase and protect the lands and wildlife on Ferrini Ranch and the adjacent 79 acres of Marks Ranch. This project joined 45,000plus acres the nonprofit has helped conserve. “Ferrini Ranch is the last intact wildlife connection between Fort Ord and the Coast Ranges. State Route 68 and associated housing developments act as a barrier for wildlife movement, isolating Fort Ord National Monument. A short pinch-point segment at Ferrini Ranch was added to our list of priority wildlife connectivity barriers in 2024. Ferrini Ranch protects wildlife habitat and helps to ensure that this vital landscape linkage remains functional into the future.” -Zach Mills, California Department of Fish and Wildlife CARMEL RIVER STEELHEAD ASSOCIATION Year Founded: 1974 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 0 paid, 125 volunteers Budget: $23,000 (831) 601-8649 carmelsteelhead.org BIG IDEA: Does fish rescue and relocation truly work? Carmel River Steelhead Association is tracking several years of data to support their tireless advocacy on behalf of the federally threatened steelhead trout—an indicator species that helps measure the health of the river overall. The nonprofit’s Big Idea moves fish from the Carmel River to Cachagua Creek in an attempt to establish new steelhead family groups. If the association can determine new groups of steelhead families are flourishing, they can continue with scientific confidence. “The Carmel River Steelhead Association has been advocating for our river and its steelhead for 50 years. The Esselen Tribe of Monterey County is working with them in their combined efforts to restore the Carmel River and the animals that depend on it. The ancestors of the Esselen Tribe used this river and its bountiful gifts of water and food for centuries. It is a very important part of the overall health of these beautiful surroundings. We are working to bring back a healthy environment to support what once was a thriving river with steelhead populations in the thousands. This can only happen with partners like Carmel River Steelhead Association, which has the time, energy and resources to make a difference in the rebuilding of our river’s health.” -Tom Nason, Esselen Tribe chief COMMUNITIES FOR SUSTAINABLE MONTEREY COUNTY (CSMC) Year Founded: 2005 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 0 paid, 850 volunteers Budget: $121,000 (831) 200-3533 sustainablemontereycounty.org BIG IDEA: The Oak Woodland Community Garden 112 Monterey County GIVES! 2025 mcgives.com ENVIRONMENT & SUSTAINABILITY DONATE ONLINE MCGIVES.COM “Thank you for teaching us to pay attention to the world around us and look and listen to nature.” -Charlie, Zoe and Mia, Del Monte Forest Conservancy HABITAT STEWARDSHIP PROJECT Year Founded: 1995 Paid Staff and Volunteers: 10 paid, 850 volunteers Budget: $275,000 (831) 601-0588 habitatstewardshipproject.org BIG IDEA: The mission of Habitat Stewardship Project runs two ways: The group is focused on restoring habitat by propagating and planting native plants (about 15,000 a year) to restore ecosystem services, but the hundreds of volunteers who help get those plants into the ground also become a community of conservationists immersed in local landscapes. Donations support that critical team of volunteers, with a focus on providing tools and snacks, as well as volunteer outreach. Federal policy changes mean this group no longer has an AmeriCorps member, previously responsible for volunteer coordination. “It’s easy to say Habitat Stewardship Project (HSP) changed my life. I could tell from the very first event I attended how much of an impact HSP has on the surrounding communities. Be it cleaning up litter or planting native plants, I could see not only the physical changes, but how people are shaped by their experience. Through my service with HSP, I learned what it truly means to build our communities and become part of a change that’s bigger than any one person alone.” -Azalea Wiley SPOTLIGHT
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