Latino Conservation Week: Disfrutando y Conservando Nuestra Tierra is an initiative of Hispanic Access Foundation, that Nature for All has been participating in for at least 4 years! Each year, we take some time to gather and celebrate all the work done by Latinxs in the conservation movement! As our partners at Latino Outdoors says, #EstamosAqui!
This year, we have a number of ways that you can engage in Latino Conservation Week! Take it at your own pace, with the Scavenger hunt style Lotería, Los Angeles edition, or feel free to join us, in person or virtually, on Tuesday, July 20, 2021 to the Audubon Center at Debs park for an intimate conversation and celebration around public lands! See below for all the details!
- Get Outside!
- Visit the Arlington Garden, but don’t go empty handed! Take a minute to download and print this wonderful and all age friendly Nature Journal, as well as this Free Audio Tour to accompany. This audio tour was created by Leadership Academy graduates, Krystle Yu and Evellyn Rosas, to help folks get outside and enjoy nature in a safe, educational, and social distant way.
- Take a walk to your local park! Please feel free to download and/or print this Guide to the BIRDs OF LA, created by Samantha Avitia, to enjoy on your walk! Let us know if you find any of the birds listed in the zine!
- Look up and visit a new hiking trail in the Angeles National Forest. Make sure to also review Leave No Trace Principles and have your 10 essentials with you!
- Where is your local river? Walk, bike, take the bus or drive to check it out!
- Get Active!
- Pick up trash: Trash left out in our communities and in nature can end up in our oceans and rivers. Picking up trash can make a huge impact on local water sources and our drinking water. Make sure you take your trash with you when you’re out in nature!
- Buy and plant a native plant: Native plants are adapted to our local climate and therefore require less water and no fertilizers. They help reduce air pollution and provide shelter and food for wildlife.
- Don’t know where to shop native plants? Check out Theodore Payne Foundation and the Artemisia Nursery for local options.
- Volunteer for an event at the Angeles National Forest: Volunteering not only gives you valuable experiences but can also have a positive impact in your community and public spaces. Take the time to invest in the protection of the Angeles National Forest by joining a team to pick up trash, give interpretive talks, build trails, and study stream conditions!
- Upcoming Volunteer Opportunity!
- East Fork’s Golden Preservation RIVER CLEAN UP
- Sunday July 25th, 2021 from 8am to 10am
- “Using gloves, bags, and trash grabbers, we pick up trash around the Oaks Picnic Area and along the East Fork River. We weigh and toss after.”
- Register here
- Natives4Nature
- Volunteer events taking place after LCW, but well worth the support!
- Learn more here
- East Fork’s Golden Preservation RIVER CLEAN UP
- Another option is to grab some trash bags, water and some friend, and ADOPT A TRAIL this week!
- Upcoming Volunteer Opportunity!
- Talk to your friends and family about saving water: Take the time to learn about different ways to conserve water and talk to your friends and family. Having knowledge about the importance of saving water and different ways to do so can inspire others to do their part.
- Get Involved!
- Visit Arlington Garden in Pasadena’s website and learn more about how to support!
- Take a look at the LA County Parks Needs Assessment. You can read the final report, as well as locate the report for your neighborhood here. An Executive Summary of the Report can be found here.
- How much of LA County is park poor, meaning they have less than 3.3 acres of land per 1,000 residents?
- What percentage of Angelenos live over 1/2 a miles away from a park? In other words, how much of the population has access to a park?
- Take a look at the report for your city/neighborhood. Are you in a park poor area? What are your thoughts?
- Visit out website and learn more about how you can help protect public lands!
- Take some time to learn about the Safe Clean Water Program and the OurWaterLA Coalition. If you are a passionate water warrior, sign up to stay involved and receive action updates from the OurWaterLA coalition.
- Take Action!
- Contact your representatives: Contacting your representatives by email, phone, or writing letters expressing your support for environmental legislation like the PUBLIC Lands Act will encourage them to support. Make your voice heard!
- Write a love letter to your local park and send it to us and your local representatives.
- Write a love letter to our local forest, the Angeles National Forest, and send it to us and your local representatives.
- Be an advocate for NATURE!
- For Water Warriors, you can attend your local Watershed Area Steering Committee (WASC) meetings to stay update on local water issues and projects in Los Angeles. Learn more about how to find your local WASC and what even is a WASC and other ways to get involved, here. Help us advocate for projects that have nature based solutions!
- For our Park Equity Warriors, you can attend a Citizen Oversight Advisory Board meeting to stay involved and learn more about Measure A projects and status. Sign up for announcements from RPOSD to stay informed of upcoming meetings.
Submit your Lotería card here!
Latino Outdoors and Nature for All celebrate community and culture during Latino Conservation Week with a virtual conversation and in-person community event at the Audubon Center at Debs Park Tuesday, July 20, from 5:30 – 8:00 pm, and you’re invited! Free Food, Music and Activities- bring the whole family for this Family Friendly event, but you must register to attend!
Those who can not join in person are welcome to join via the Latino Outdoors Facebook page, where we will be streaming the event. Streaming beings at 6:30 pm.
SPACE IS LIMITED! Register for the event here.
If you would like to table at the event, please email Araceli at araceli@lanatureforall.org
