As 2024 comes to a close, The Conservation Alliance is celebrating the power of collective action. This year, our members, grantees, and partners made a real impact in protecting wild places that provide the backbone for local communities and economies.
Through our funding and advocacy efforts, TCA helped safeguard over 41 million acres of land, 385 river miles, 4 dam removals, and one new marine sanctuary, while securing major victories like the protection of Alaska’s D-1 lands and the expansion of national monuments in California.
We made this happen through key achievements like:
- $1.65M in grants supporting 47 projects across North America
- 25 new member companies strengthening our coalition
- Launching the Advocate Outdoors series, giving partners the opportunity to experience the land we’re working to protect firsthand
Please read on for more updates from TCA.
Mark Your Calendar for These 2025 TCA Events
- TCA’s Annual DC Fly-In will be May 12 – 15 where we’ll bring members to the Hill to share our collective business voice for conservation with lawmakers. More details will be shared in the new year!
- Please save the date for TCA’s 2025 Summit on September 28 – October 1 in Winter Park, CO! If you’d like to discuss sponsorship or in-kind donation opportunities, contact TCA’s Membership Director, Carla Fox at carla@conservationalliance.com.
TCA Celebrates Three Grantee Successes
The Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary, the first Tribally nominated national marine sanctuary in the U.S. was officially designated on November 30, 2024. After over 40 years of advocacy, this effort has now successfully protected 4,543 square miles of the Pacific Ocean and reaches across 116 miles of coastline in San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. The designation will protect the local ecosystem from drilling and other harmful practices while also conserving underwater Tribal cultural and historic sites. TCA supported the designation of the Chumash Heritage National Marine Sanctuary through support to Sierra Club Santa Lucia Chapter and the Northern Chumash Tribal Council.
Last month, Pomeroy Dam, located on the Illinois River in Oregon, was successfully demolished. The Pomeroy Dam was rated as one of the highest on the 2019 Statewide Fish Passage Barrier Priority List, which “identifies the most critical man-made barriers to fish passage in the state”. The removal of the 270-foot wide concrete structure will allow salmon and steelhead to once again access about 100 miles of habitat. TCA funded this effort through our grant for WaterWatch of Oregon in 2023.
Just last week, the US Department of Interior Secretary Deb Haaland announced a 2-year mining withdrawal of 165,000 acres in the Pecos watershed. The Pecos watershed is a biodiverse landscape in New Mexico and is one of the state’s most popular trout fisheries. It’s also a gateway to the 223,000-acre Pecos Wilderness, the state’s most visited wilderness area. The region is also a hub for Indigenous culture and traditional practices, holding archaeological and historic resources for the Tesuque and Jemez-Pecos Pueblos of New Mexico and the Jicarilla Apache Nation, amongst others. TCA funded this effort through a grant to Trout Unlimited. Please share this exciting news on your channels!
Thank You to Companies who Supported TCA Through We Keep It Wild Campaign
This fall’s We Keep It Wild campaign proved to be another successful fundraising initiative for The Conservation Alliance. Through the generosity of Adventure KEEN, Astronaut Foods, Backpacker’s Pantry, BOCO Gear, Gregory Packs, Gu Energy Labs, La Sportiva, Nomadix, Oboz Footwear, Royal Robbins, Shar Snacks, and Superfeet, who each donated 5% of all online sales from October 24th through the 30th, we raised $23,860 for our land and water conservation efforts.
We Keep It Wild is an opportunity for your business to amplify your commitment to conservation at this critically important time and get much needed resources into the hands of community leaders and TCA grantees working day in and day out to protect wild places and outdoor spaces. We will hold our next We Keep It Wild campaign in April, 2025. To learn more, please contact TCA’s Director of Marketing and Communications, Lilly Zoller, at lilly@conservationalliance.com.
Thank You and Farewell to TCA’s Public Lands Advocacy Coordinator, Bridgette Windell
Bridgette joined the Conservation Alliance as the Public Lands Advocacy Coordinator through the Wyss Fellowship Program two years ago. Her fellowship has now come to an end and she has made a lasting impact on TCA and our advocacy efforts. Bridgette worked on various projects during her time at TCA including deepening member engagement on priority campaigns through the launch of the Advocate Outdoors field event series, galvanizing on-the-ground member voices across the west, and helping our members develop deeper ties with grantees. Her greatest accomplishment was spearheading the launch of the Mobilizing for Monuments campaign, including playing a lead role in the development, filming, and distribution of the Mobilizing for Monuments Road Trip movie. Through deep organizing, Bridgette coordinated business advocacy across multiple national monument campaigns and played a key role in the successful designation of Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni – Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument, and the expansion of San Gabriel Mountains National Monument and Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument Expansion. Her sense of humor, commitment to the work, and innovative ideas have changed our organization for the better. Bridgette will be sorely missed by the TCA staff and community.
