Best conservation charities to support / volunteer with

[Gregg]

Hey all. We make periodic contributions to various charities, but with the change in administration, and what's looking like a less environmentally conscious agenda, I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on the best conservation organizations to contribute to and volunteer with. The wife and I are re-aligning some monthly donations and looking to get more involved, but obviously can't give to everything. Would love to hear ideas / opinions on where to send $, where to volunteer, etc. TU vs CalTrout? Any smaller local organizations doing good work we should explore? Larger federal organizations? Where do you see funds being used the most efficiently and with the most impact?

[SeanO]

Both Cal Trout and Trout Unlimited do really good work. I know because we work with them on many studies.

Another way to get more directly involved is to volunteer with a group that advocates for a particular river. I know the Klamath riverkeeper and Friends of the Eel River are a couple of good groups, for example.

[johnsquires]

TU and Cal Trout.

For bigger issues, such as fighting the proposed Pebble Mine in AK, I like NRDC.

[Darian]

All of those organizations mentioned are good. I tend to donate to organizations that acquire interests in land or waterways and try to conserve them, like the Nature Conservancy.

[Rick J]

all great organizations. Western Rivers does what Darian likes. I am a huge fan of TU and a member of a local chapter and am the TUCA council representative for the Wild Steelhead Initiative that TU founded with a number of like minded organizations

[TaylerW]

A great local org would be the American River Conservancy, they do a ton of great work to the upper river. In past years they have facilitated the transfer of some huge chunks of land to the public.

[aaron]

All good suggestions. Backcountry Hunters and Anglers is a great organization who is fighting to save our public lands.

[Hogan Brown]

I see the work of Cal Trout and Local TU chapters on various water sheds I work and fish on. I give to them yearly also River Partners locally in Chico and the Sacramento River Land Trust and of course Cast Hope which I am part of...one thing to think about that I tell people all the time when I talk about Cast Hope is that Conservation Organizations mean nothing if we do not create conservation minded people in the next generation. People in each generation have to pick up the torch to protect the rivers, watersheds, and wild species and places we love or they will be gone. I speak from experience as a guide, high school teacher, and someone who works with youth we have to get kids outdoors and away from "screens"...computers, cell phones, video games have monopolized kids lives and "getting outdoors" is incredibly expensive for most families.

I would say look at organizations that get kids outdoors and are working to create the next generation of conservationist. Please do not take this as a solicitation for Cast Hope and what I do...MANY organizations share the outdoors and get kids outdoors and all the organizations listed above make incredibly positive impacts both in regards to conservation and sharing the outdoors. I just have a strong passion for getting kids outdoors and sharing the outdoors with them as conservation, preserving public lands, saving wild species, etc is all moot if no one in future generations care about those things.

[johnsquires]

All good suggestions. Backcountry Hunters and Anglers is a great organization who is fighting to save our public lands.

I agree, Aaron. I was more than impressed in talking to their members and listening to presentations at last year's rendezvous. BHA is dedicated to protecting public lands - and they're doing a great job.
I highly recommend attending the rendezvous in April of 2017 in Missoula and checking it out for yourselves (and maybe doing a bit of fishing on the same trip).

[Bob Loblaw]

We are in deep doodoo with Republicans in charge of all branches of Government and a California GOP caucus that has one agenda item and one only, draining all our rivers dry to grow almonds. Look for immediate efforts to repeal the Endangered Species Act, and look for concerted efforts to amend the FERC process so that when dams are relicensed no flows are dedicated to keeping fish populations stable. Every tailwater fishery in the US is at risk.