2025 Feather River conservation successes

Conserve: Protecting priority lands and waters

Since 2000, together with you and our conservation partners, we have helped protect over 100,000 acres of ecologically important lands to benefit water, wildlife, and people for generations to come. 

Through unique partnerships, two exciting land conservation projects moved forward in 2025:

• Partnering with the new Wášiw-šiw Land Trust, supporting their historic land return effort of over 10,000 acres of Washoe homelands. 
• Protected 1,025 acres of incredible forest, meadow, and wildlife habitat, and transferred the land to outdoor education camp Sierra Nevada Journeys, expanding access for youth in nature. Read the conservation story.

Your support allows us to continue to make progress on a number of important conservation projects behind the scenes, and we can’t wait to share with you once they are finalized.  

Care for: stewarding lands for water, wildlife, and community

Our Stewardship team was hard at work in 2025 monitoring, maintaining, and restoring the places we love.  

• Monitoring conservation easements on 29 properties to ensure the conservation values of these lands are upheld
• Keeping FRLT’s five nature preserves visitor-ready and outdoor classrooms ready for students requires stewardship throughout the seasons
• Installing a cumulative 8,000+ feet of pipe for both irrigation and livestock water at the Heart K Ranch, making the existing agricultural operations more compatible with sensitive natural areas by better managing the riparian habitats along Indian Creek
• Hosting a seasonal intern to support land management across FRLT’s five public preserves

Connect: restoring relationship to land and place 

In December, we celebrated one year of opening and operating the Sierra Valley Preserve Nature Center. We are proud to reflect on all of the incredible programs you supported and took part in during 2025:

• Hosted over 50 unique events, from children’s art programs to educational botany and ecology talks, Indigenous foods workshops to birding walks, nature-themed art shows to musical concerts, we are excited to continue offering a variety of events for all ages and interests.
• Hosted 32 field trips for students of all grades—from Kindergarten to college, from Plumas and Sierra counties and Truckee/Tahoe.

Across the watershed, Learning Landscapes, FRLT’s outdoor education partnership with local schools continued to connect 2,500+ students to nature at outdoor classrooms within a 10-minute walk of their school.

Beyond the watershed, Conservation Director Shelton Douthit led the first Land Protection course through the Land Trust Alliance to help build and support the next generation of land protection leaders for land trusts across the country, de-mystifying the complicated process of conservation transactions.

Looking ahead to 2026

With your support, we are excited to conserve, care for, and connect people to the special lands of the Feather River region in 2026, including: 

• Conserve more important meadows, habitats, and watersways throughout the Feather River Watershed
• Kick off public access improvements at Olsen Barn Meadow (beginning spring 2026!)
• Host the California Naturalist certification program at the Sierra Valley Preserve
• Offer year-round events, educational programs, and volunteer opportunities at the Sierra Valley Preserve + Nature Center

None of this would have been possible without you, our community of supporters, partners, and visionary landowners. Because of you, we’ve conserved over 100,000 acres, protecting some of Sierra Nevada’s most ecologically important and climate-resilient landscapes. Thank you!