Our campaigns.
To achieve wilderness protection on federal lands, Congress must pass legislation that designates the area as a “wilderness area” or name an important river as “wild and scenic.” In California, that means securing bipartisan support from both House and Senate members to sponsor bills designating wilderness areas in their districts. We work to help create and build support for federal legislation that secures wilderness designation for wilderness-quality lands, lakes, and rivers in California.
In recent years, polarization in Congress has made passage of wilderness bills more difficult, but we continue to craft them with our champions in Congress and to work for their passage. In the meantime, CalWild works with allies to organize community support for National Monument designations, which can be approved not only by Congressional action, but also by Presidential designation. The designations and then expansions of the Berryessa Snow Mountain and San Gabriel Mountains National Monuments, as well as the designation in 2025 of the Sáttítla Highlands and Chuckwalla National Monuments by President Biden are examples of CalWild’s successful leadership, organizing and advocacy in coordination with local residents, businesses, officials and nonprofits.
Our work involves creating and building support for federal action that secures top-notch protections for wilderness-quality lands, lakes, and rivers in California. We start in the field and in the community. We walk the land and map it. We work in coalition with local activists and try to build consensus among initially opposing interests. We help identify citizen advocates who help carry the preservation and recreation message to Congress. Once a wild space is protected, we monitor and respond to changes in federal management policy, administrative directives, planning, or legislation that impact our beloved wild places.
How we do it.
We start in the field and in the community. We walk the land and map it. We seek and work in coalition with local Tribes, activists and businesses, and try to build consensus among initially opposing interests. We help identify local advocates who help carry the preservation and recreation message to Congress. Some of what we do on a day-to-day basis include:
- surveying and GIS mapping
- meeting with and listening to the wishes of Tribes whose ancestral lands are the region in question
- organizing local activists, volunteers and community outreach
- developing public education materials and hosting meetings
- production of fact sheets, policy papers, online and print publications promoting wilderness
- coordinating stakeholders
- media outreach
- drafting bill language and meeting with legislative staff
- providing guidance to Congressional committees on potential obstacles and strategies to overcome them
- alerting members, the public, lawmakers and business communities to the inherent value in protecting wild places
Our work doesn’t stop there. Once a wild space is protected by designating it as a wilderness area or national monument, we monitor and respond to changes in federal management policy, administrative directives, planning, or legislation that impact wilderness or wilderness quality public lands, lakes and rivers. We use outreach, public education, and constituency building to ensure protection. We also sometimes seek legal remedy in the courts.