Archives

November 18, 2021

2020 Annual Gratitude Report

We recently sent out our 2020 Annual Gratitude Report with our Fall 2021 Friends of the Desert Newsletter. Please check it out today and feel good about everything we accomplished together during a very challenging year! Thank you!

» Read more

November 2, 2021

Friends of the Desert Newsletter #60

We hope our Fall 2021 newsletter brings some hope, joy, and positivity into your mailboxes and inboxes. Check out the following articles in the newsletter: New project will collect wildlife data on Sopori Ranch Thank you for speaking out against the proposed I-11 route in Avra Valley Two new member groups join the Coalition! And more! […]

» Read more

September 3, 2021

Diary of a Desert Identifier: Welcome to the Neighborhood or the Saga of the Clever Rodent

By Gay Russell Being a Desert Identifier means going through large files of photos captured on a disc from the desert cameras. The photos have usually been taken over several days, usually a week to 10 days. You quickly begin to see the site as the same as any neighborhood, populated by certain characters (species) […]

» Read more

August 12, 2021

Updated COVID-19 Response Plan

Pima County is currently under a high rate of transmission as the Delta variant spreads (data here). The situation continues to evolve. Here is CSDP’s response plan to help slow the spread and to help keep our staff and volunteers safe: All CSDP staff are fully vaccinated. We have in place a Pandemic Policy that provides […]

» Read more

July 21, 2021

Public comment period now open on I-11 Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement

On July 16, 2021, the Arizona Department of Transportation and Federal Highways Administration released the Tier 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS). The FEIS now identifies TWO possible Preferred Alternatives, a West Option through Avra Valley AND an East Option that co-locates I-11 with I-19 and I-10 through the Tucson region. Action #1: Please ACT […]

» Read more

May 26, 2021

Field Notes: a nest of great horned owls

By Gay Russell During the over twenty years I have lived in Sun City Oro Valley, we have had several sets of Great Horned Owls nest within our area. In 2017, a pair made a nest in one of two large trees next to a golf cart path on the edge of the golf course […]

» Read more

April 8, 2021

Crossing Through Your Neighborhood: A Presentation

Want to learn more about what’s happening around the Oracle Road wildlife crossings? Check out this recent presentation given by our Conservation Science Director Jessica Moreno: You can also view a pdf of the presentation HERE.

» Read more

April 7, 2021

Friends of the Desert Newsletter #59

We hope our Spring 2021 newsletter brings some hope, joy, and positivity into your mailboxes and inboxes. Check out the following articles in the newsletter: Increasing our impact through community science New strategies for protecting Sonoran Desert open spaces Coalition volunteers continue to make an impact And more! And, as always, thank you for supporting a […]

» Read more

Amor from the Desert by Mely Bohlman

This piece was written on the stolen lands and waters of the Tohono O’odham and Yaqui/Yoeme. Imagine yourself standing in the Sonoran Desert on a caliente summer day. Let’s paint the landscape by adding deep blue for the mountains that emerge in every cardinal direction and strokes of brown that create texture on the ground, […]

» Read more

March 1, 2021

Support the 30×30 campaign

Have you heard of the 30×30 campaign? While this campaign has circulated for a while, it hit the national news recently when President Biden pledged in an Executive Order to preserve 30% of U.S. lands and waters by 2030. This ambitious goal is being called a “moonshot.” According to this recent article in The Guardian: “One […]

» Read more