Sponsored by and in partnership with American Bird Conservancy's Conservation and Justice Program, the California Central Coast Joint Venture is proud to announce our inaugural Conservation and Justice Fellow, Ellen Sanders-Raigosa. Ellen joins a cohort of seven other fellows spread throughout the United States, each of whom will explore, through the 6-month fellowship, varied and context-based approaches to simultaneously supporting the needs of people and birds. See ABC's announcement to learn more about the 2022 Cohort, including their projects and anticipated outcomes.
Ellen Sanders-Raigosa is Nomlaki from Paskenta and was raised in Pecwan, California. She is passionate about traditional foods, food sovereignty, and working to restore Native lands and stewardship practices. Ellen graduated from the University of California Davis in 2019, where she studied Environmental Policy and Planning with an emphasis in conservation management. During her time as a student, she worked to facilitate partnerships between the university and local Tribes in an effort to support traditional land management and Native-led conservation. Through her fellowship project, entitled Envisioning Conservation with Indigenous Communities on California's Central Coast, she hopes to continue this work by finding ways to support Indigenous Stewards of the central coast and to amplify their leadership in conservation efforts.
Ellen will work alongside the California Central Coast Joint Venture to explore strategies for building a conservation approach that supports and uplifts Indigenous stewardship and sovereignty. She hopes to use this fellowship to lay the groundwork for building inclusive and mutually beneficial relationships with local tribes in a way that is reciprocal without being extractive. The C3JV is honored to welcome Ellen to our partnership, and eager to learn alongside her as we uncover our role in supporting and strengthening Indigenous-led stewardship efforts on the Central Coast.