10/29/2025 Riverside resident earns Girl Scout Gold Award for project encouraging youth to get outside, explore

When Katie Fuller, a girl scout with the Girl Scouts of San Gorgonio Council was pursuing her Girl Scout Gold Award, she developed the 146 Project as a method to support nature and biodiversity through the Western Riverside County Regional Conservation Authority.

10/2/2025 Spending time with birds has health benefits

In the days that followed the September 11 attacks our soundscape changed. The ever-present thrum of aircraft was silenced, and the shift was eerie and uncomfortable. I had never realized how many airplanes I could hear even when they weren’t visible. They had just always been there and suddenly the world sounded wrong. A few days later the planes returned, and I felt a little less on edge.

9/8/2025 Recovery of conservation site will take time after Keith fire

In August, the rapid-moving Keith Fire swept through a key conservation site managed by Rivers & Lands Conservancy in Murrieta, California. As the warm morning sunrise began casting light upon the blackened slopes, the land was quiet except for the crunch of ash under my boots and gentle winds sweeping past.

7/30/25 Mystic Lake is a fascinating place in the San Jacinto Valley

Dr. Anthony Metcalf has fond memories of visiting Mystic Lake with his father when he was a boy. He remembers strange smoking trash fires at the shoreline and the muddy mysteries of the wetlands. As a teenager, he returned to embrace the lake’s solitude and peace.

7/2/2025 Longtime Inland Empire conservationist leaves a legacy of protecting the future with nature

In an era of massive urbanization, Shelli Lamb has spent more than four decades leading the transformation of a small government agency in a pivot to empower Inland area communities to be good stewards of the land.

6/5/2025 The concept of a gift economy and its parallel with nature

Recently, I listened to Robin Wall Kimmerer’s book “The Serviceberry: Abundance and Reciprocity in the Natural World” knowing I would enjoy it because I love all of Kimmerer’s work. More than this, I knew the metaphor at the core of the book was wrapped around the story of birds and berries. I love birds. I love berries. However, I wasn’t expecting to find myself pondering all that I love and the sheer abundance of these gifts.

6/3/2025 Acorns to Oaks celebrates 10 years of connecting Riverside County students with nature

On November 8, 2024, students from Banning High School’s 9th grade biology classes filed off their school bus. They followed a dirt path at the edge of Cienega Canyon Preserve in Calimesa to meet Rivers & Lands Conservancy staff. It was a cool winter morning, and the kids were subdued and still a little bleary-eyed from the early start to their day.

4/29/25 There’s a land trust near you working on land and water conservation

Land trusts throughout California work locally and in unison to create a network of protected private lands across the state. Federal agencies like the US Forest Service manage more than 45% of California’s land.

4/1/25 Training a red-tailed hawk, falconry bring a balancing perspective

On November 2, 2024, I trapped a juvenile red-tailed hawk and began the process of training. He will likely be returned to the wild after a year or two of guaranteed food, health benefits, and company housing, but he became my partner for the falconry season.

RECENT NEWS

10/29/2025 Riverside resident earns Girl Scout Gold Award for project encouraging youth to get outside, explore

10/2/2025 Spending time with birds has health benefits

9/8/2025 Recovery of conservation site will take time after Keith fire

7/30/25 Mystic Lake is a fascinating place in the San Jacinto Valley

7/2/2025 Longtime Inland Empire conservationist leaves a legacy of protecting the future with nature

6/5/2025 The concept of a gift economy and its parallel with nature

6/3/2025 Acorns to Oaks celebrates 10 years of connecting Riverside County students with nature

4/29/25 There’s a land trust near you working on land and water conservation

4/1/25 Training a red-tailed hawk, falconry bring a balancing perspective

Community Conservation News

Upcoming Events

Delhi Sand Dune Habitat Restoration Volunteer Event

California Native Plant Garden Volunteer Event at Villegas Park

Tabling at the REI Store

California Native Plant Garden Volunteer Event at Sycamore Highlands Park