Santa Fe Conservation Trust
Grants Awarded
The Passport to Trails program at SFCT provides elementary school children from primarily Spanish-speaking southside schools with enriching field trips to local trails. Participants gain outdoor skills, knowledge of the environment, and a sense of confidence, while fostering their connection to nature and improving community health through increased physical activity. Ultimately, the program aspires to cultivate a new generation of conservationists who can continue exploring and enjoying the trails with their families.
The Santa Fe Safe Routes to School initiative aims to increase the safety and accessibility of walking and biking for children by educating families, promoting regular biking and walking activities, and assessing routes to eliminate barriers. Desired outcomes include enhanced safety for schoolchildren, increased active transportation rates, and equitable access to safe routes, ultimately benefiting the local community by fostering healthier lifestyles and reducing traffic congestion.
The Santa Fe Conservation Trust's ¡Vámonos! program aims to double its annual participation from 500 walkers by enhancing marketing efforts and targeting recreationally underserved communities. By focusing on inclusivity for diverse backgrounds and abilities, the program seeks to promote social engagement and physical well-being through outdoor activities, ultimately benefiting both participants and the local community.
The La Tierra Chili Line Trail project will transform a section of the former Denver & Rio Grande Railroad / Santa Fe Branch into a natural-surface trail, promoting outdoor recreation and connectivity. Participants will benefit from enhanced access to 25 additional miles of public trails, while the local community gains a historically interpreted site that fosters engagement with the area's heritage.
The Santa Fe Conservation Trust's Conservation Homestead Accessible Trail project seeks to create a half-mile accessible trail loop and parking area, benefiting the 18,933 individuals with disabilities in Santa Fe County, as well as elders and others in need. By providing free access to the Galisteo Basin's dynamic landscape, the program will enhance recreation and promote inclusion for the 12.9% of residents with disabilities who may otherwise be unable to engage with their community environment.
Established in 1993, the Santa Fe Conservation Trust (SFCT) is a land trust serving Santa Fe, Rio Arriba and San Miguel Counties. We own four properties and hold 109 conservation easements (C.E.) totaling over 46,000 acres of protected land. C.E.’s protect scenic views, open space, wildlife habitat, working lands, historic sites and recreational access for the benefit of the public and future generations. SFCT’s strategic plan directs efforts to expand conservation and community programs to a more diverse population of people, including underserved communities, to ensure our services are being delivered equitably and successfully. SFCT’s strategic conservation plan calls for more connected conservation areas to allow plants and animals access to habitats more suitable to their continued survival. To achieve this goal, SFCT has created an innovative funding resource, Quickstart, to cover transaction costs so we can work with a wider diversity of landowners. At the Conservation Homestead, an SFCT property near Lamy, we are teaching restoration techniques such as how to deal with erosion, reseed scarred landscapes, rejuvenate wetlands, and build resilience to combat the effects of climate change. Our community conservation programs promote strong connections to nature for children, adults and elders who face a wide spectrum of equitable access barriers. SFCT believes that everyone deserves to live in a healthy community and enjoy a connection with nature. At the Conservation Homestead, we are wrapping up the design and planning of an accessible trail with the input from the area’s disabled community. We know that not everyone can easily access trailheads and walking paths and we aim to fill that gap with this new trail. The E.P.A. recently reported that the average American spends 90% of their time indoors. To ignite people’s passion for nature, we need to get people outside. Vámonos is an urban walking program that focuses on getting people of all ages and abilities outside and will be presented in this grant proposal. Passport to Trails introduces outdoor learning and exercise to 4th and 5th grade, primarily Spanish-speaking students, their families, and teachers and staff from south-side Santa Fe public schools. SFCT has a strong trails legacy and has participated in the development of 80 miles of trails in Santa Fe County over our 30-year history. Annually, we maintain 55 miles of dirt trails for the City of Santa Fe, coordinating hundreds of volunteers. Since the pandemic, trail usage has exploded, increasing the need for maintenance to keep the City’s trails safe and accessible. SFCT also has a dark skies program because light pollution is a threat to humans. plants and animals in numerous ways. We host free stargazing parties to raise awareness with the public on this issue. Through our conservation work and programs, we strive to improve public health, build community, and create the next generation of conservationists while promoting the outdoors. Our programs are inclusive, promote regional trails and connect people not only to each other, but also to nature and its health giving benefits.