Partners

“It’s always good to have a plan, but things often happen along the way.” This is a sentiment that Cleveland (Cleve) Justis has taken with him from his time with the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, to teaching at UC Berkeley and UC Davis, to his own executive search and consulting company Potrero Group. With this ethos, he has inspired and educated organizations and nonprofits at the intersection of business, government and social entrepreneurship around the world, and it all began at NatureBridge!

Referred to as “the last perfect place in California”, the Dangermond Preserve is one of the last remaining stretches of wild coast in California. The sprawling 24,000-acre preserve is located at Point Conception in Santa Barbara, CA and it is a living laboratory that facilitates scientific research and environmental education.

Welcome, Cindy Orlando, Principal Deputy Regional Director of National Park Service Interior Regions 8, 9, 10 and 12 and NatureBridge's National Park Service Liaison!

In the early 1970s, Jack Walston was approached by his friend Bob Maynard to help him with an idea – Bob, who was Vice President of Operations at Yosemite Park Curry Company, along with its president, Dr. Alan Coleman and then-Director of the National Park Service George B. Hartzog Jr., wanted to fill their less attractive, often-empty cabins with area students by providing them with educational programming. Why approach Jack Walston, a senior executive at a large brokerage firm at the time?

“I knew I could help make it succeed.”

In the months to come, Jack helped construct a potent board of conservationists, Yosemite enthusiasts and experts, thought leaders in the field and other successful people that would help found and guide Yosemite Institute (now NatureBridge) for years to come. Read the story of how NatureBridge was born and learn what it took to get Ansel Adams, a U.S Secretary of Defense and a famous astronaut to join the very first board of directors.

Hans Cole is Patagonia’s Head of Environmental Activism, Grants, and Campaigns, leading its strategic environmental partnerships and helping to achieve the for-profit corporation’s most important goal: to save our home planet. It was the three years he spent working as an educator with NatureBridge, honing his teaching skills and expanding his horizons, that opened his eyes to the possibility of having a life devoted to working on environmental issues.

NatureBridge is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Five years from now, The United States will be commemorating its 250th. One of the lead people responsible for planning the 250th Anniversary Commemoration is Tom Medema, Acting Associate Director of Interpretation, Education and Volunteers at the National Park Service (NPS), former Chief of Interpretation and Education at Yosemite National Park and a longtime supporter of NatureBridge. We sat down over a video call to discuss how NatureBridge and the United States have made it to these milestone anniversaries, the expansion of historically excluded stories and the resilience required to build the future.

Yosemite National Park’s official philanthropic partner has been responsible for tens of millions of dollars of park improvements and programs over the years. From supporting wildlife management and cultural history to funding more than 60 NPS summer positions, the organization has played an integral role in maintaining and expanding the park’s beauty and mission.

Davis Wright Tremaine LLP is one of NatureBridge’s 50th Anniversary sponsors. We spoke with Martin L. Fineman, one of Davis Wright Tremaine LLP’s partners, about the law firm’s longtime relationship with NatureBridge.

"It has been our pleasure to help NatureBridge on a pro bono basis with a variety of legal matters. Just in the last few years, 27 different Davis Wright Tremaine LLP lawyers have performed pro bono work for NatureBridge...The work done to bring children to the outdoors and expose them to the environment is absolutely vital. We have enjoyed being a sponsor of NatureBridge for years, and want to wish the organization a very happy 50th anniversary."