Author Archives: Save the Redwoods League

Since 1918, Save the Redwoods League has protected and restored redwood forests and connected people with their peace and beauty so these wonders of the natural world flourish.

coastal beach view

“This is Where You Live” – Celebrate Fourth Annual California State Parks Week June 11-15

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Mark your calendars and start making plans to join California State Parks and partners in celebrating the fourth annual California State Parks Week from June 11-15. Presented by California State Parks, California State Parks Foundation, Parks California and Save the Redwoods League, this exciting weeklong celebration with the tagline “This is Where You Live” offers more than 170 events, including both in-person and virtual experiences, highlighting the people, places and programs that make California’s 280 state parks truly unique.

roads apprentices

Video: Restoration “ripple effect” boosts local economy

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  View this post on Instagram A post shared by Save the Redwoods League (@savetheredwoods)   Griff Griffith describes the formerly clear-cut areas in and around Redwood National and State Parks as a “gaping wound”—one that Redwoods Rising and ‘O …

Yosemite’s Majestic Giants

Save the Redwoods League Applauds Reintroduction of Save Our Sequoias Act

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Save the Redwoods League supports the bipartisan Save Our Sequoias (SOS) Act, important legislation that empowers federal, Tribal, state and nonprofit partners to accelerate forest restoration, reduce hazardous fuels and safeguard the world’s largest trees from the increasingly destructive wildfires in California’s Sierra Nevada.

A Black boy wearing a cloth redwood tree costume raises his arms while an adult naturalist in an East Bay Regional Parks uniform points out parts of the tree.

Teaming up with East Bay Regional Parks a “no-brainer”

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At Learning Without Limits Elementary School in Oakland, California, fourth grade means fun field trips. The students have heard stories from older kids about hiking in a redwood forest and wading out into the San Francisco Bay. Now it’s finally …

Yosemite Valley from Glacier Point.

Save the Redwoods League Statement on Federal Directives to Increase Timber Production

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Forests need site-specific, science-based stewardship, not broad emergency declarations. As a conservation organization focused on restoring complex forest ecosystems in the coast redwood and giant sequoia ranges, Save the Redwoods League agrees with the USDA that the nation faces a serious crisis of forest health and wildfire risk—one that the USDA Forest Service is well positioned to address. However, the USDA Secretary’s April memo problematically blurs the line between ecological restoration, which aims to heal ecosystems, and timber harvest for commercial gain, which prioritizes extraction and profit over long-term forest health.

New Report Shows Significant Socioeconomic Benefits of Large-scale Restoration Projects in Redwood National and State Parks Region

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A new report, Assessing the Restoration Economy within Redwood National and State Parks, highlights the economic opportunities created by large-scale restoration efforts in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. As the region moves beyond its history of industrial-scale logging, programs like Redwoods Rising and ‘O Rew Redwoods Gateway are driving economic growth through environmental restoration. Led by Save the Redwoods League and California State Parks, these initiatives are bringing revenue, quality jobs, and lasting conservation benefits to Northern California’s redwood country—helping to revitalize an economically disadvantaged area while restoring one of the world’s most iconic ecosystems.

Steve Mietz

Save the Redwoods League Names Steve Mietz as Next President and CEO of Save the Redwoods League

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Save the Redwoods League announced today that its board has selected veteran national park and public lands conservation leader Steve Mietz as the new president and CEO of the century-old nonprofit. Mietz will join the League on April 28 and carry forward the organization’s mission to protect, restore and connect people to the iconic coast redwood and giant sequoia forests of California. Most recently, Mietz served as superintendent of Redwood National and State Parks (RNSP) for nearly eight years.

Video: How to repair a redwood “pseudo forest”

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  View this post on Instagram   A post shared by Redwoods Rising (@redwoodsrising) Springing up in the wake of clearcutting, unnaturally dense “pseudo forests” are a far cry from spacious, biodiverse old-growth groves. Griff Griffith dives into the differences—and …

Coast redwoods forest dotted hillsides

Save the Redwoods League Enters Agreement to Purchase 1,500+ Acres of Redwood Forest That Will Expand Adjacent Regional Park Near Russian River in Sonoma County

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Save the Redwoods League has secured an opportunity to conserve the 1,517-acre Monte Rio Redwoods Expansion property in Sonoma County. Less than two hours north of San Francisco, the Monte Rio Redwoods Expansion will link more than 22,000 acres of coastal redwoods forest, wildlife corridors and watershed, from the Bohemian Highway to the Sonoma Coast and north to Jenner Headlands.

A setting sun illuminates golden coastal grasslands with a large swath of redwood trees in the foreground.

Inspiring news from Sonoma Coast Redwoods

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Some great news that you made possible: Save the Redwoods League has met our $9 million fundraising goal and successfully acquired Sonoma Coast Redwoods. This means permanent protection for a one-of-a-kind property that combines a healthy redwood forest, biodiverse coastal …

Yes on Prop 4

Proposition 4 win brings $10 billion to climate fight

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Prop 4 delivers $10 billion to prevent wildfires, protect clean water, and conserve California’s forests and beaches. This historic funding prioritizes restoration, public access, and long-term sustainability—a transformative win for the environment.

Sam Hodder inspecting a stand of mature redwoods

Sam Hodder, President and CEO of Save the Redwoods League, Announces Plans to Step Down After More than a Decade Leading 107-year-old Conservation Organization

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After 11 years leading one of the nation’s oldest and most beloved conservation organizations, Sam Hodder announced today that he has decided to step down as president and CEO of Save the Redwoods League on March 31, 2025, at the close of the organization’s current fiscal year. A search for the League’s next leader will commence immediately, led by Vice Chair of the League’s Board of Directors Rosemary Cameron.

pipe cleaner trees at big basin

Three parks, multiple fires, one bold restoration plan

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The newly unveiled Forest Management Strategy helps ensure that future wildfires will not be as destructive to places like Butano State Park, which has provided recreation and renewal for generations of visitors.

Collage of parks

California State Parks and Save The Redwoods League Unveil New Plan to Safeguard Iconic Redwood Parks in Santa Cruz County

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SANTA CRUZ — California State Parks and Save the Redwoods League today released a new Forest Management Strategy (FMS) aimed at restoring and protecting three state parks in Santa Cruz County following the 2020 CZU Lightning Complex Fire. The devastating wildfire burned through more than 24,000 acres in Big Basin Redwoods, Año Nuevo and Butano state parks. The FMS outlines critical actions needed to help the forests recover and to improve wildfire and climate resilience in the parks and neighboring communities.

Woman walking in a redwoods forest where two paths converge. One is well trodden, the other less travelled.

Save the Redwoods League Acquires 750 Acres of Redwood Forest in Sonoma and Mendocino Counties for Future Parks Expansions

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Save the Redwoods League today announced that it has purchased three coast redwood properties totaling 750 acres in Sonoma and Mendocino counties that will one day be added to Armstrong Redwoods and Montgomery Woods state natural reserves (SNR). The League acquired the properties from private landowners, the Ayers and Robinson families and the Mendocino Redwood Company for nearly $3.5 million. The acquisitions are the first steps toward long-term protection for these coast redwood properties.

A drone shot of the coastal hills, with forested areas and farmland on one side, overlooking the blue ocean in the background.

Save the Redwoods League Secures Opportunity to Protect and Restore 1,600+ Acres of Redwood Forest and Coastal Prairies from Threat of Development along Sonoma Coast

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Save the Redwoods League (League) has secured an opportunity to purchase, permanently protect and restore the 1,624-acre Sonoma Coast Redwoods property, home to significant mature second-growth coast redwood forest, biodiverse coastal prairies, ocean views and opportunities for future public access.