Today, President Trump will sign an executive order instructing the Department of the Interior to review the designations of national monuments under the Antiquities Act. This executive order threatens the protections for the three California Desert national monuments – Castle Mountains, Sand to Snow, and Mojave Trails – designated in 2016 using the Antiquities Act.

The Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) recently received a grant to support its work with Outdoor Outreach to bring youth to Joshua Tree National Park for a weekend of camping and outdoor education. The grant is part of the National Park Service and the Outdoor Foundation’s 2017 Challenge Cost Share Program, which supports projects that promote urban outreach, youth engagement and connecting people to the outdoors. The partners selected 19 projects, from 134 applications, and will award more than $360,000 that will be matched by an estimated $760,000 in direct and in-kind contributions from recipients.

Today, the Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) hosted its annual Spring Open House at Amboy Crater, an extinct cinder cone in the Mojave Trails National Monument. MDLT’s Spring Open House is an opportunity for both newcomers to learn about MDLT’s projects and returning community members enjoy the activities. The event was “Backyard BBQ” themed and featured related crafts and guided hikes along the rim of the crater.

This weekend, the Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) partnered with the Joshua Treenial to launch Reading the Landscape, a set of guidelines to help artists make informed decisions about engaging with desert lands and their delicate ecosystems. The tips served as a resource to advise artists throughout their creative processes and ensure that each step is done in a way that will preserve the landscapes for future generations. This year’s Joshua Treenial, its second iteration since the first festival in 2015, was weekend of art, installations, and performances highlighting the artistic inspiration drawn from the desert lands.

Today, the California Conservation Corps’ (CCC) Veterans Conservation Corps joined the Conservation Lands Foundation (CLF), Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT), and Bureau of Land Management (BLM) for clean-up and restoration in the Sand to Snow National Monument. The work was funded by a $35,000 grant from Edison International to support training, mentorship, and paid job opportunities for post-9/11 military veterans. The crew worked with MDLT volunteers on Hondo Wash, located along the north side of Black Lava Butte near the Flamingo Heights neighborhood. Veterans spent the morning posting signs to mark trails and restoring habitats by planting native flora.

 This Saturday, a group of veterans and students joined the California Wilderness Coalition, Bureau of Land Management (BLM) California, and Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) for a tour of Camp Iron Mountain, one of the best-preserved World War II training facilities from the 12-million-acre Desert Training Center (DTC) located in the Mojave Trails National Monument. The three Mojave National Monuments – Sand to Snow, Castle Mountains, and Mojave Trails – were designated in 2016.

This month, the Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) transferred 110 parcels of land, totaling 3,100 acres, to the Mojave National Preserve. These parcels are both ecologically and historically significant to the California desert. Not only do the lands contain forests of juniper and Mojave Yucca, they also include a century-old homestead site that served as the setting for the local history book, Maruba: Homesteading in the Lanfair Valley. MDLT’s inholding work is a ten-year program focused on assembling key land ownership for the Mojave National Preserve, Joshua Tree National Park, and Death Valley National Park.

This morning, the Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) conducted a “Free the Trees” ceremony to celebrate the acquisition of the newly designated Bobcat Valley in Joshua Tree. Bobcat Valley comprises five land parcels totaling fifty acres and serves as a crucial wildlife linkage corridor for bobcats. The property also houses rich Joshua Tree forests and desert tortoise habitats. Prior to MDLT’s acquisition, this abundant desert land was slated for razing and development. When the property was purchased, all the Joshua Trees onsite were tied with ribbons to mark them for removal.

Yesterday, over 50 corporate citizenship leaders from Fortune 1000 companies joined the Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) for a stewardship event organized by Benevity. The desert clean-up took place on an MDLT property, a wilderness corridor located within the Sand to Snow National Monument. Benevity, Inc. is the global leader in online workplace giving, matching, volunteering and community investment software. Many of the world’s most iconic brands rely on Spark, Benevity’s award-winning cloud solution, to power corporate “Goodness Programs” that attract, retain and engage today’s diverse workforce by connecting people to the causes that matter to them.

A 640-acre parcel of land adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park, which had been slated for development, will instead be protected for local residents to use and recreate on. Local residents will be able to hike, enjoy nature, and eventually enter into Joshua Tree National Park from the newly-protected Joshua Tree Foothills parcel. The land, located south of the intersection of Acoma Trail and Golden Bee Drive in Yucca Valley, was previously owned by a developer who sought to turn the property into a residential housing subdivision.

The Mojave Desert Land Trust, in partnership with local chambers of commerce from the California Desert, has released a marketing toolkit to help local businesses and governments get the most out of tourism opportunities created by the new California Desert national monuments. Earlier this year, President Obama designated the Mojave Trails, Sand to Snow, and Castle Mountains National Monuments, permanently protecting these public lands. The toolkit is designed as an Adventure Kit, to encourage locals and visitors alike to explore the new national monuments and surrounding communities.

Mojave Desert Land Trust invites the public to its 2nd Annual Fall Gratitude Gathering open house and native plant sale on Saturday, November 12, 2016 from 9am-2pm. This event marks the organization’s 10-year anniversary and its evolving role and mission as a leader in desert conservation initiatives. A central theme of this evolution is the establishment of a Native Plant Restoration Nursery and Seed Bank, and the day will center around celebrating native plants and exploring their role in the desert ecosystem. “Plants are the foundation of all ecosystems and they are the foundation of biodiversity.

Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) applauds federal and state officials for the completion of the Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan, which seeks to strike a balance for development and conservation on public lands across California’s Desert. The Plan has identified the lowest conflict areas for renewable energy development that exceed what is needed for the State’s climate change targets. MDLT’s focus was the conservation component of the Plan with a particular emphasis on the protection of unique desert landscapes like the Chuckwalla Bench, a spectacular area MDLT is actively working to conserve. 

Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) and the Native American Land Conservancy (NALC) are pleased to announce their continued partnership through hosting a family-friendly cultural gathering and nighttime adventure at the Cadiz Dunes Wilderness Area on Saturday September 17, 2016. The Cadiz Dunes Wilderness Area is now part of the newly designated Mojave Trails National Monument. The new Monument spans 1.6 million acres and encompasses a striking variety of rugged mountain ranges, ancient lava flows, rare desert oases and spectacular sand dunes.

Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) is participating in the 3rd Annual Latino Conservation Week by leading a Spanish language ethnobotany plant walk and workshop on Wednesday, July 20th from 8 AM until Noon. The walk will be led by MDLT’s Yanina “Yani” Aldao along the boardwalk and trails within the Big Morongo Canyon Preserve (BMCP) and will be followed by a native plants workshop in the education center. The BMCP is the homeland of the Serrano and Cahuilla tribes whose knowledge of the native plants found within the Preserve span thousands of years.

Volunteers and staff of the Native American Land Conservancy (NALC) and Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) are collaborating to clean graffiti in the Coyote Hole area on Saturday, July 16th from 8 AM until Noon. The site is home to important cultural resources, indigenous plant species, and a variety of wildlife such as creosote and chuckwalla. San Bernardino County Board of Supervisors Chairman, James Ramos, will attend and give opening remarks, which will be followed by a short guided walk.

In an unfortunate situation, the musician Beth Orton recently filmed a music video during which she spray-painted a Joshua tree and a cholla cactus. The release of her video created a concerned response over such treatment of the rare and important ecosystem that is the Mojave Desert. Orton subsequently pulled the video offline and apologized for her actions. Beth Orton has personally reached out to Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) to express her extreme regret for this incident and her desire to work with us in an effort to educate others about the need to steward, protect, and respect the desert.

Mojave Desert Land Trust (MDLT) is pleased to announce it has successfully completed acquiring the final 100 acres of privately held land located inside the Whipple Mountains Wilderness, one of the most stunning wilderness areas in the California Desert. Rising from the Colorado River, sharp brick red and deep brown peaks are dotted with saguaro and foxtail cacti and surrounded by washes filled with palo verde, ironwood and smoke trees. Bighorn sheep wander the steep cliffs that are also home to prairie falcons and golden eagles.

On Thursday May 26 – from Noon to 1:00 pm The Mojave Desert Land Trust welcomes the public to enjoy its final brown bag lunch lecture of the season with Steve Rieman and Frederick Fulmer, celebrated artists and long-time advocates for the California Desert. The artists will engage the community in a discussion about how the desert inspires their work and the mission behind the Joshua Tree Highlands Artist Residency (JTHAR) program, which helps create the next generation of desert ambassadors through hosting artists from across the globe.

Today, Mojave Desert Land Trust and its conservation partners were amongst the hundreds of local desert residents, elected officials, community and faith leaders, business owners, veterans and more who joined with Secretary of the Interior Sally Jewell to celebrate the new California desert national monuments. President Obama designated the Mojave Trails, Sand to Snow, and Castle Mountains National Monuments earlier this year, permanently protecting these special desert lands.