̽��ѡ Conservation Ranching in California Takes Flight: 2025 Year in Review

Alongside ranchers, chefs, restoration leaders, and bird lovers, we’re growing bird-friendly working lands through community engagement and stewardship.

At Bobcat Ranch this May (2025), the Conservation Ranching staff welcomed Sacramento local chefs and food leaders to its first The Land that Feeds Us event. Photo: Sydney Walsh/̽��ѡ.

Published December 13, 2025

This article is from ̽��ѡ California . Find ̽��ѡ near you here.

Community engagement was at the heart of California’s ̽��ѡ Conservation Ranching (ACR) work in 2025. From chefs and ranchers to restoration leaders, conservationists, and curious community members, our team spent the year sharing the beauty and ecological significance of California’s rangelands.

Across these gatherings, we were reminded, again and again, of a simple truth: birds and food bring people together. Ranchers remain deeply committed to stewarding natural resources. Chefs continue to seek food with meaningful stories behind it. Consumers want to understand where their food comes from and how their choices can support the landscapes they love. And at every event we hosted, organized, or attended, people stood in awe of the open spaces that nourish us.

California’s rangelands offer remarkable benefits: wildlife habitat, open space, food, clean water, and clean air. Yet these working lands are often overlooked, and each year, thousands of acres are lost to land conversion and fragmentation. Birds, our sentinels, warn us through their declining populations. But this year also brought reasons for hope. Through strong partnerships with ranchers, ̽��ѡ’s Conservation Ranching Program continues to demonstrate that thoughtful land management supports thriving ecosystems for birds and other wildlife as well as resilient, rural communities.

In 2025, ̽��ѡ Conservation Ranching advanced its mission by raising awareness, championing sustainable ranching, and creating opportunities for people and birds to thrive together.

Growth, Community, and Momentum:

New ranches began the journey toward ̽��ѡ Bird-Friendly Land Certification.

Ranches achieved full ̽��ѡ Bird-friendly Land Certification.

Ranches fully certified through the ACR Program in California statewide.

263K+

Acres of Bird-Friendly Land through the ACR Program in California.

A Platter of Events | 20+ Public Events and 5 Program-hosted Gatherings

The Land that Feeds Us: A Culinary Experience

: At Bobcat Ranch this May, the Conservation Ranching staff welcomed Sacramento local chefs and food leaders to its first The Land that Feeds Us event, offering chefs and food leaders a firsthand look at conservation ranching in action. Participants explored blooming rangelands, observed cattle grazing and butchery demonstrations, and heard how ̽��ѡ and rancher Adam Cline, Bobcat Ranch’s grazing lessee and owner of are shaping a bird-friendly food system in Sacramento. The event highlighted the essential role of working lands in supporting healthy soil, biodiversity, and, above all, the idea that what benefits herds also benefits birds.

Creek Habitat Restoration Workshop

: In partnership with Keystone Land and Livestock, the ̽��ѡ Conservation Ranching program hosted its first community-led restoration workshop at a ranch enrolled in the program. Volunteers built a series of in-stream restoration structures, including five Beaver Dam Analogs made from willow, manzanita, sod, and rocks gathered on-site. The hands-on day also included installing bank blasters and Zuni bowls, guided by restoration specialists from Symbiotic Restoration

Managing the Land, Protecting the Future

: This spring’s Field Day at Rancho Corta Madera united more than 50 ranchers, land stewards, and conservation partners for a full day of learning and connection in Pine Valley, CA. Through expert talks, hands-on tours, and a local lunch from Dinner Bell San Diego featuring ranch-raised beef, guests explored how responsible ranching supports fire resilience and healthy ecosystems, highlighting how collaborative land management strengthens habitats for people, birds, and biodiversity alike.

Terra Madre International Food Festival

For the first time ever, Terra Madre was held in the U.S.—and Sacramento welcomed 165,000 attendees. At the Conservation Ranching booth, staff engaged thousands of visitors, sharing how bird-friendly ranching empowers food lovers to make choices that shape the land. Many were surprised and inspired to learn how much their food choices matter to the environmental world

Rancher Round-Up

: 7 years after the program’s launch in California, the Conservation Ranching team hosted the very first Rancher Round Up. A celebratory gathering of ranchers, land stewards, and bird advocates in beautiful Marin County at Stemple Creek Ranch to share experiences and honor the work they are doing to steward the land with birds in mind. Conversations centered on value, impact, challenges, and opportunities for collaboration. The day ended with hamburgers made from Stemple Creek’s own bird-friendly beef—an especially fitting meal after the group was led on a ranch tour of the property showcasing how every bite can support healthy ecosystems.

Community Presence, Workshops, and Presentations

The Conservation Ranching staff presented at multiple gatherings, including:

California Native Grassland Association.
San Joaquin ̽��ѡ Chapter.
EcoFarm Conference.
Galt Bird Festival.
Future Farmers of America Annual Conference.
Rustici Science Symposium.

We also strengthened relationships with local ̽��ѡ chapters, including , , , , , and the Northern California ̽��ѡ Council.

Additional Community Events:

California Biodiversity Week Bioblitz: ACR staff and partners documented more than 40 species during Ohlone ̽��ѡ’s annual picnic, supporting the statewide “Find 30 Species” project and California’s 30x30 Initiative.
Film Screening of Common Ground in Quincy: Co-hosted with Plumas ̽��ѡ and attended by 60 community members.
Morro Coast ̽��ѡ fundraiser featuring the Conservation Ranching program.
Birding 101 Workshop with the Yocha Dehe Tribe, Yolo Bird Alliance, and Yolo Resource Conservation District.
Field Day with Yocha Dehe Tribe, participants exchanged knowledge on birds, plants, and ecological restoration.

Expanding Visibility and Educational Outreach

This year, the Conservation Ranching staff contributed to:

Two features in Edible Sacramento Magazine.
Articles in Grasslands Magazine and the California Oak Foundation Newsletter.

New Staff | The ACR team welcomed a new Conservation Ranching Intern, Stefhanie Godinez, who supports outreach, research, and rangeland management.

Looking Ahead

The Conservation Ranching Program’s 2025 efforts demonstrated the power of collaboration, community, and stewardship. We are deeply grateful to our supporters, especially the Wildlife Conservation Board, and all of our generous funders, whose commitment sustains the land we all depend on. Together, we are building a future where healthy rangelands support thriving bird populations, resilient ranching communities, and a deeper public connection to the land.

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