Skip to content
Mushrooms of different sizes, shapes, and colors found at San Vicente Redwoods lie on a white sheet for mycologist Maya Elson to identify, by Orenda Randuch

Fungi of the Forest: Meet the Mushrooms of San Vicente Redwoods

Mycologist and researcher Maya Elson teamed up with photographer Orenda Randuch for a fungi photo essay to help us meet the mushrooms hard at work at San Vicente Redwoods. Learn identification tips to recognize mushrooms above ground, and their critical work underground to help the forest recover from fire, drought, flood, and human impacts in the fight against climate change.

Read More
Looking up a sun-dappled, lush forested slope covered in redwoods, ferns, and mosses at Henry Cowell Redwoods State Park, by Orenda Randuch

2023 News: What You’ve Made Possible

Without supporters like you, fewer forests would be protected and habitats restored, and they would be less resilient to fires, floods, and the increasing threats from our changing climate. You have made so many amazing things happen this year for redwood forests, and the people, plants, and creatures that need them. Thank you for protecting forests that help protect us all! Here are a few of the moments you made possible in 2023.

Read More
A group of five vertical panoramas shows a healthy old-growth redwood tree pre-fire on April 28, 2017 and as a charred standing snag post-fire from February 18, 2021 as the forest floor and surrounding redwoods recover with green growth through June 3, 2023, by Ian Bornarth

Awakening of the Silent Forest

See the resurgence of forest life after the 2020 CZU Fire through photographer Ian Bornarth’s lens. Over three years, Bornarth visited Santa Cruz mountain redwood forests every few weeks to capture their recovery and has captivated us with documentation of their resilience and signs of new beginnings.

Read More
Amah Mutun Land Trust Native Stewardship Corps members Marcella and Esak wear bright yellow hard hats as they sift soil during cultural landscape research amidst bright green post-fire regrowth several feet high from the ground contrasting starkly with the back drop of blackened tree trunks from the CZU Fire rising above at San Vicente Redwoods, photo by Ian Bornarth

Indigenous Stewardship at San Vicente Redwoods: Past, Present, and Future

After the CZU Fire an opportunity arose to study post-fire effects, survey a baseline of reemerging plants, and help Amah Mutsun Tribal Band members look for eco-archaeological clues to how the Awaswas-speaking peoples lived on and cared for this land. Dive into their research at San Vicente Redwoods as they look into Indigenous Stewardship of the past and help plan for the future.

Read More

Fuel for Fire: Framing Forest Resilience Three Years After the CZU Fire

Three years after the CZU Fire, the resilient land is recovering and fire-adapted species are restoring green to the landscape. But these lush signs of nature’s rebirth after fire can quickly become fuel for the next fire. How can we restore these ecosystems from a damaging past for an uncertain future? Take a look through a trained lens to witness the intersection of natural resilience and cutting-edge stewardship techniques.

Read More

Redwoods and Climate Part 4

In the final part of the redwoods and climate series by Julia Busiek, we explore research about how climate change is already affecting redwoods across their range, and how it informs our new plan to save redwoods, and the plants and wildlife that rely on them, before its too late.

Read More
Stems of native seedlings bare from winter rise out of black cone shaped pots at the UCSC Greenhouse by Orenda Randuch

The Seedling Saga

Plant a native plant and habitat is restored! Right? The saga of these seedlings, five years in the making, offers a look at the deceptively difficult process and planning that come before planting and the seemingly endless problems that stand between their roots and restoring native habitat.

Read More

Story of a Seedling

Seeds–the size of a tomato’s–can grow into the tallest trees on earth, restore the footprint of a decimated forest, and help support life–of plants, animals, and people–for thousands of years. But it won’t be easy. Many challenges lie in waiting first. Read on for the story of a redwood seedling plucked from its home to grow safely, only to return and valiantly help restore the forests and habitats of San Vicente Redwoods.

Read More

Monitoring Wildlife for Healthy Forests

While the size and majesty of a coast redwood often dominates the landscape, like all ecosystems, there is so much more than meets the eye–a complex, delicate, and intricate web of life comprised of the reciprocity of thousands of life forms from the microorganisms in the soil, fungi and insects, to the plants, trees, and wildlife. What can monitoring wildlife on the land, water, and air tell us about recovery and recreation in the forest? Read on to learn more.

Read More

Stay Connected

CLOSE

PROTECT REDWOODS

Your gift TRIPLED on

and MATCHED up to $50,000.
Match My Gift