* …or 0.00185% of the Sonoran Desert’s time, based on its modern approximate age of 4,500 years.

This past year has been rich with reflection with the Coalition’s silver anniversary and Carolyn Campbell’s retirement. This fall and moving forward, we hope to continue connecting with our members, volunteers, donors, and supporters to learn from our collective histories and apply those connections to our future work and goals. 

Just this past month, we were delighted to receive an envelope containing a small handful of old photos featuring desert landscapes. They were sent from North Carolina by a fan of the Sonoran Desert and were intended for the Coalition’s “archives”.

While we are not archivists, we think of our collective Coalition as responsible for the care of the Sonoran Desert. Like archivists would, we protect the desert from damage, maintain detailed records, manage collections of its stories, and collaborate with others in using those stories to make positive, tangible change for Sonoran Desert wildlife and habitats.

History helps us plan for a future well beyond us. Much change in the Sonoran Desert is visible to the eye. For example, we can see the decline in mature saguaro populations from comparing historical photos. And Pima County’s population growth of nearly 2,400% over the past century (as based on census data) is obvious. If we want to feel really dwarfed by history and change, we can ponder on the billion-plus year-old schist and granite that sits deep beneath the Sonoran Desert and its more modern, and visible, geologic layers.

Some change is less visible but is made tangible by scientific data. The use of scientific data and records will continue to be a key part of the Coalition’s programs for the year ahead. We know our Sonoran Desert roadkill data and extensive wildlife camera photo data will underpin our arguments against I-11 and in support of more wildlife linkage infrastructure across the region—such as new wildlife bridges over I-10 near Avra Valley Road and across I-19 in Green Valley—and to defend our position on planning and development best practices.

We’re also excited to nurture a regional hub for wildlife tracking data and to further leverage and apply all this data in practical, tangible ways that benefit wildlife. Scientific data on extreme heat and the interdependencies between biodiversity and climate is also increasingly important to our work—we’re hearing more anecdotal evidence than ever of the changing climate’s detrimental impacts on our desert (record numbers of desert tortoise “carcasses,” as just one example).

Finally, we want to recognise those parts of our landscape and its history that are less visible, including the relationships and community labor that our Coalition is built on. Almost 27 years ago, the Coalition for Sonoran Desert Protection began with 40 organizations—a number that has fluctuated over time as groups retire or new groups form. A glimpse at an old version of CSDP’s own website (and its old list of our member groups) drives home just how long ago this was! Many communities, cultures, and stewards of the desert came long before us, too.

All to say: your histories drive our work forward and through times of change! Thank you and keep them coming in any form.

For the desert,

Kathleen Kennedy and Kate Hotten, Co-Executive Directors