Today we’d like to introduce you to Belen Bernal.
Hi Belen, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start, maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers.
Nature for All has been working to protect the public lands and green open spaces around Los Angeles since 2008 when we formed the San Gabriel Mountains Forever Coalition.
Since then, we have expanded our mission to conserve resources and be more climate-resilient; create more natural spaces such as parks and bike paths in our historically underserved neighborhoods; and connect people and public lands through more trails and other outdoor recreational opportunities to improve public health, and develop environmental leaders through workshops and educational programming.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
I have had the privilege of serving as executive director during these last three years. During this time, we’ve grown from a team of six to fourteen. With growth comes the opportunity to deliver our mission throughout Los Angeles County and work with many more community members. Our programs are possible because of generous donations, but also thanks to grants and government contracts. Navigating what each supporter requires and setting up our organization to ensure we meet these requirements is sometimes a challenge, yet completely doable because we want to ensure we deliver our mission.
In addition, the Nature for All Coalition remains engaged and active in our current campaign to expand the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument. We continue to build new relationships with tribal partners and local community groups that truly care about our local San Gabriel Mountains and being good stewards of our public lands. This ensures that we care for the cultural, historical, ecological, and recreational significance of our local mountains.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next, you can tell us a bit more about your business.
Nature for All is a nonprofit that works to build a diverse base of support for ensuring that everyone in the Los Angeles area—no matter where they live—has equitable access to the wide range of benefits that nature can provide. Nature For All advocates for policies and programs that will protect local mountains and rivers, create more natural spaces in our historically underserved neighborhoods, and connect people and public lands to improve public health. Nature for All aims to make the outdoors more accessible through free outings to our local mountains and beaches, introduction to hiking and camping workshops, teaching people how to recreate responsibly in nature, gardening workshops, free yoga at the park, and much more.
We also develop diverse groups of environmental leaders from all backgrounds and ages through our educational programs, like our Leadership Academy programs, Environmental Careers Pathways program, and our ambassador programs. Community members are able to participate in free training where they learn about different environmental topics and issues in order to encourage people of all backgrounds to pursue environmental careers and become environmental advocates.
In 2014, Nature for All supported the Proclamation by President Obama establishing the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument in order to secure protections for the mountains. In order to safeguard important public lands that were not included in the original designation, Nature for All currently joins Senator Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Rep. Judy Chu (CA-28) in calling on President Biden to add 109,000 acres of public lands to the San Gabriel Mountains National Monument. The proposed expansion area is considered the “gateway” to the Angeles National Forest and, as a result, is one of the most visited parts of the forest. We continue to advocate for the protection of the mountains in order to increase equitable access to nature and improve public health, honor the cultural and historical significance of the landscape, conserve a critical water source for Los Angeles County, and protect important habitat and wildlife corridors for future generations. We also are continuing to support efforts to advocate for more resources for the Angeles National Forest to encourage people to recreate responsibly and take care of outdoor spaces.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://lanatureforall.org/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/lanatureforall/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/lanatureforall/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/lanatureforall
Image Credits
Nature for All
