“Sonoma Valley is small enough that you can understand and influence the health of the land, water, biodiversity, climate, and community. The challenges we face aren’t unique to us, but the scale gives us a chance to work through them together in ways that are measurable and felt in daily life.”
— Richard Dale, Executive Director
What is important to us about Sonoma Valley?
Biodiversity
Sonoma Valley holds an amazing concentration of life within a small landscape. As many as a quarter of California’s species live here, in an area that makes up just a tenth of one percent of the state. This diversity reflects the range of habitats in close proximity, including oak woodlands, grasslands, chaparral, wetlands, and stream corridors.
Land
Sonoma Valley is a connected landscape of forests, grasslands, creeks, vineyards, and developed areas. What happens on one piece of land carries into the next.
Most of the Valley is privately owned, across thousands of parcels. The condition of the land reflects many individual decisions made over time, in different places. Since the Valley is mostly privately owned over thousands of parcels, it needs all of us to be good stewards to sustain this amazing legacy for the future.
Water
Sonoma Valley is a watershed, with its headwaters in the Mayacamas Mountains at Sugarloaf Ridge State Park, emptying into San Pablo Bay. Creeks, tributaries, wetlands, and groundwater are part of the same system, connected across the Valley.
The way we currently use and manage water in Sonoma Valley creates deficits in our groundwater aquifers and our creeks. Our surface waters are polluted by excess sediment, nutrients like yard fertilizers, and pathogens. A warming climate makes reversing these trends ever more urgent.
Community
Sonoma Valley is a community where people are interested in connecting with our beautiful surroundings and making Sonoma Valley ecologically healthy. Our community increasingly understands that environmental, economic, and equity challenges must be solved together.
Climate
Sonoma Valley is already experiencing the effects of a warming climate. Fire, drought, extreme heat, and changing rainfall patterns are part of life here. These conditions shape how the land is managed, how water is used, and how local communities prepare and respond. Efforts include reducing fire risk across the landscape, planning for water scarcity, and preparing for more extreme conditions. At the same time, work to restore natural lands and improve soil health helps store carbon and strengthen the Valley’s ability to adapt.