The ​CalFauna Foundation

Our Mission and Core Beliefs

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The CalFauna Mission Statement

 

The CalFauna Foundation was founded to actively conserve, manage and restore habitats to enhance conditions for California’s wildlife. Additionally, we engage and support research that expands our knowledge of California’s wildlife and the habitat upon which they depend.

 

Core Beliefs

 

HABITAT. Quality habitat is essential to the maintenance of healthy wildlife populations.

 

SOCIAL AWARENESS. Public support and acceptance of wise conservation and management of wildlife and their habitats is essential for long-term sustainability of California’s wildlife.

 

NATIVE VS. NON-NATIVE. California is home to unique and diverse wildlife and plant communities. numerous nonnative plants and animals threaten these communities. We need to actively control and manage these species and work against the further introduction of new nonnative, invasive/exotic wildlife and plant species.

 

RESEARCH LEADS TO BETTER MANAGEMENT. Research to expand our knowledge of wildlife and their habitats must be the foundation of how we conserve and manage wildlife. Both basic research and management research has its place and offers insight into best management practices. CalFauna is dedicated to furthering research to help us better understand and manage wildlife and their habitats in California. We support extending and expanding our knowledge to add tools to the field managers’ toolbox. In addition, we encourage and support the use of adaptive management by the land management agencies to add new knowledge and to ensure we do not perpetuate the failures of the past.

 

“KEEPING COMMON SPECIES COMMON”. Managing for biodiversity is the key to keeping common species common. CalFauna is dedicated to the wise management and conservation of all species.

 

ACTIVE MANAGEMENT. The preservationist, or hands off approach to wildlife management has had limited success in addressing today’s complicated resource management challenges. Our National and State Park Systems were created in a time when resource utilization was the driving force and wildlife populations were seen as inexhaustible. Additionally, as the human footprint on the landscape has increased, we have learned that simply setting aside habitat will not result in the desired conservation outcome.  Even rare and endangered species require focused management--not a “hands off” approach. Thus, wise use requires an array of approaches from strict protection to active management.

 

COLLABORATIVE CONSERVATION. Conservation problems in the 21st Century are large and funds are limited. Thus, we must work together. State and federal agencies, Non-governmental organizations (NGO’s) and other general public groups must work collaboratively to solve these conservation challenges. No one agency or NGO has the knowledge, or resources to solve these problems alone. CalFauna is committed to work with any and all entities committed to conserving, managing and restoring habitats for California’s wildlife.

 

RESISTING URBAL SPRAWL. Much of California’s biodiversity has been threatened by habitat loss caused by the conversion of wildlands to agriculture and suburban and urban developments and the numerous associated water projects. Together with climate change, California has been confronted with growing land management issues like catastrophic wildfires, exotic and invasive species establishment, insect infestations, degraded forests and associated watersheds, and increased soil erosion.  While urban expansion is destined to continue in California, we must find ways to accommodate this growth without further loss of biodiversity. The CalFauna Foundation is dedicated to supporting projects that achieve this conservation goal.