We asked our local nonprofits how they could benefit from contributions during the holiday season, and here’s what they had to say on how donations ranging from $50 to $10,000 would enable them to help others.
Now it’s your turn. Take a look at our list to see how you can help spread hope and goodwill this season by making a contribution to one or a few of these incredible environmental organizations.
Your contribution restores habitats, maintains trail networks, supports wildfire resilience, and protects our coastlines for future generations.
Agricultural Institute of Marin (AIM)
The Agricultural Institute of Marin educates, inspires and connects communities, farmers and producers to create a healthy, Earth-friendly and equitable local and regional food system. AIM is building the Center for Food and Agriculture, which will be the permanent home of the Marin Farmers Market on the Marin Civic Center campus.
Photo courtesy of Jasson Minadakis
$50
Provides a set of 10 reusable tumblers to jumpstart the elimination of single-use plastics.
$100
Covers a single tie-down that holds one corner of a farmer’s tent in place on market days.
$250
Makes possible a Chef/Caterer/Food Service cart, allowing the region’s most innovative chefs and school food service staff to connect with small local farmers.
$500
Funds a dual-chamber compost tumbler, the foundational infrastructure for achieving a zero-waste market.
$1,000
Pays for one hydroponic tower for the educational gardens, providing free produce to the community.
$2,500
Provides a bicycle rack for six regular-sized bicycles or two cargo bikes.
$5,000
Secures one market stall space—featuring permeable pavers with built-in tie-downs and access to electricity—for a small, local farmer for the next forty years.
$10,000
Funds canopy lighting to illuminate the market in the predawn hours when farmers arrive to set up for the day.
Beauty and the Beast: California Wildflowers and Climate Change
Conservation photographers and climate activists Nita Winter and Rob Badger are creating an image-described audiobook of Beauty and the Beast: California Wildflowers and Climate Change for people who are blind or visually impaired.
Narrated by Peter Coyote and Annie Obermeyer with immersive soundscapes by Bernie Krause, the audiobook pairs vivid image descriptions with storytelling to make nature’s wonders accessible to all. Winter and Badger, recipients of the Sierra Club’s 2020 Ansel Adams Award for Conservation Photography, have spent more than 30 years photographing Western wildflowers, with work seen by over 100,000 people, published in a 12-time award-winning coffee table book and presented in more than 60 talks. Inspired by a legally blind friend who said their descriptions let her “see with her mind’s eye,” they are making their work fully accessible.
Donations through fiscal sponsor MarinLink support audiobook production, narration, sound editing, and outreach, helping everyone experience the beauty and urgency of California’s wildflowers
$50
Makes you a Seed Dreamer, funding recording time that helps bring voices to life and planting the first seeds of accessibility.
$100
Makes you a Sprout Caretaker, supporting vital pre-production essentials and laying the groundwork for the audiobook to flourish.
$250
Makes you a Keeper of Meadows, creating in-depth image descriptions that transform photographs into words blooming in the listener’s imagination.
$500
Makes you a Wildflower Champion, funding professional audio editing that weaves narration and soundscapes into an immersive experience.
$1,000
Makes you a Soundscape Spirit, licensing authentic field recordings by Bernie Krause to enrich the audiobook with the living voices of wildflowers’ homes—birds, bees, wind and water.
$2,500
Makes you a Visionary Steward, covering essential production costs to ensure the project runs smoothly and reaches full bloom.
$5,000
Makes you a Field of Dreams Patron, providing critical resources to expand distribution and connect underserved communities with the beauty of wildflowers.
$10,000
Makes you a Superbloom Super Hero, powering outreach and impact to create a lasting legacy of inclusion, accessibility, and wonder.
Conservation Corps North Bay
Conservation Corps of North Bay empowers youth to transform their lives through environmental work, career coaching and paid opportunities, guiding young adults into careers that benefit themselves, their communities and the natural world.
Photo by Anastasia Pryor
$50
Provides a first pair of eyeglasses for a corps member.
$100
Provides breakfast for eight crews of corps members before a day of work in the field on projects such as fire fuel reduction and habitat restoration.
$250
Covers the cost of a laptop for homework, résumé writing and job applications—helping the young adults in the program prepare for their future careers.
$500
Buys new work boots for five corps members engaged in preserving natural habitats, collecting and properly disposing of e-waste or reducing fire fuel on public and private lands.
$1,000
Covers the cost of tuition for supplemental courses at the College of Marin.
$2,500
Contributes toward tuition for corps members continuing their education and receiving specialized job training to support their journey toward meaningful careers.
$5,000
Covers behind-the-wheel training and testing fees for corps members working toward securing their driver’s license.
$10,000
Ensures the continuation of services that provide corps members with paid job training, career coaching and educational support as they take their next steps.
Friends of China Camp
In 2012, state funding was suspended for 70 California state parks, and China Camp State Park was among those at risk of closure. Since that time, Friends of China Camp, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, has taken on the responsibility of managing the park. The continued success of China Camp depends on generous community support—through volunteer time and donations—that keep the park vibrant and accessible to all.
Photo by Steve Ziman, Martin Lowenstein
$50
Buys a spool of weed whipper string to help keep grassy areas more fire-safe.
$100
Purchases square-cut nails used in historic village repairs.
$250
Buys redwood boards for the China Camp Village deck.
$500
Provides First Aid kits to be placed throughout the park.
$1,000
Supplies, buys and installs a durable outdoor bike repair.
$2,500
Provides two 8-foot, ADA-compliant redwood picnic tables.
$5,000
Buys a special attachment for a mini-excavator to improve restoration work.
$10,000
You become a sponsor of Heritage Day — China Camp’s largest annual event — helping to preserve cultural history and support community celebration.
Friends of Corte Madera Creek Watershed
Friends of Corte Madera Creek Watershed works to protect, restore and enhance the natural ecosystems within the watershed, with a focus on urban creeks and wetlands. The organization understands that human and natural activities in a watershed are interconnected, requiring a comprehensive approach to address the full range of environmental challenges.
Photo by Joanna Dixon
$50
Supports habitat restoration, water quality testing and field supplies.
$100
Advances habitat work and helps publish the community newsletter, Creek Chronicles.
$250
Helps purchase essential field equipment—such as water quality loggers—and native plants for our habitat projects. It also supports habitat restoration, water quality testing, field supplies and contributes to publishing the community newsletter, Creek Chronicles.
$500
Funds advanced equipment, more plants, ongoing testing, supplies and Creek Chronicles publication.
$1,000
Supports design drawings, studies for future projects, restoration and advanced equipment.
$2,500
Accelerates design work and studies, boosts restoration and funds advanced equipment.
$5,000
Funds crucial design drawings and studies for future restoration projects. This information is critical for proof of concept and grant applications.
$10,000
Could cover matching funds needed to qualify for grants, design drawings and/or preliminary studies for future creek and habitat restoration projects—critical information for proof of concept and grant applications.
Global Climate Collective
Global Climate Collective addresses climate change by empowering Indigenous communities, supporting ecosystem clean-up and public health, and strengthening Indigenous economies.
Photo by Christine Parini
$50
Helps purchase 7.5 acres of Amazonian rainforest by Indigenous natural curators, protecting it from government sale to industry.
$100
Supports the Indigenous-led purchase of 15 acres, safeguarding the forest from industrial exploitation.
$250
Provides essential medications and remedies to treat Indigenous community members affected by river pollution from mining.
$500
Helps purchase 74 acres of rainforest, preserving biodiversity and supporting traditional Indigenous stewardship.
$1,000
Provides start-up capital for a women-led Indigenous cooperative, fostering economic empowerment and sustainability.
$2,500
Indigenous purchase of 350 acres of Amazon rainforest by Indigenous natural curators from a government sale to industry.
$5,000
Funds travel and pay for medical staff to visit and treat Indigenous community members whose river has been polluted by mining, or for Swedish technology to decontaminate the river.
$10,000
Purchases 1,470 acres of Amazon rainforest by Indigenous natural curators from a government sale to industry.
Marin County Bicycle Coalition
Marin County Bicycle Coalition advocates for safer places to ride, increased access for mountain bikers, and equitable opportunities for every student in Marin to have a bicycle of their own, regardless of financial circumstances.
Photo courtesy of Tarrell Kullaway
$50
Buys bike lights for a student in need.
$100
Provides a bike light, lock and helmet for a student in need.
$250
Pays for a month of workforce leadership training for student interns.
$500
Buys a commuter-style bicycle for a middle school student in need.
$1,000
Supports one month of advocacy to promote access to more trails.
$2,500
Pays for one month of policy research to reopen the Alto Tunnel.
$5,000
Enables us to deliver bikes to 20 schools for safety education programs.
$10,000
Helps keep the lights on as we fight for safer streets.
Refugia Marin
Refugia Marin is a nonprofit that creates native plant habitats to support local ecosystems and biodiversity. By transforming public landscapes, it promotes environmental stewardship and community education.
Photo by Helen Jenkins
$250
Create a Monarch Waystation filled with nectar plants and milkweed, with an educational sign to inspire visitors to help protect these beautiful butterflies and raise awareness about the importance of monarch conservation.
Slide Ranch
Slide Ranch is a nonprofit teaching farm and nature preserve on the West Marin coast. It connects kids and families to nature through hands-on experiences with animals, gardening, cooking and exploring the outdoors.
Photo courtesy of Slide Ranch
$50
Pays for a child’s first visit to Slide Ranch.
$100
Allows us to say ‘yes’ to one more child attending an overnight experience at Slide Ranch.
$250
Funds garden and cooking supplies for Farm-to-Table meals, reaching over 200 students as they learn about healthy eating and food systems.
$500
Sends one child from an underserved community to a full week of joyful summer camp.
$1,000
Provides ten youth with their first overnight camping experience.
$2,500
Facilitates a daylong, transformative experience at Slide Ranch for an entire class from an under-resourced community.
$5,000
Brings a full class for a two-night, three-day program and campout under the stars.
$10,000
Transforms the scholarship pool, dramatically expanding access for low-income students.
