The Schwemm Family Foundation (SFF) funded the International Rescue Committee (IRC) in San Diego to enhance community garden and nutrition education programs, addressing food insecurity among underserved communities. Through two impactful workshops, IRC educated refugees, immigrants, and low-income individuals on water conservation and food nutrition, fostering knowledge-sharing and community collaboration. The program also improved 12 garden plots and added a new one, benefiting 26 gardeners with better tools, soil, and infrastructure. Overall, this initiative exceeded its original goals, positively impacting a diverse community while promoting sustainable practices and enhancing the quality of life for participants.
Read MoreThe Litter Free Supply Stations program, led by Friends of the Chicago River, aims to reduce plastic pollution in local waterways by providing community-hosted stations stocked with tools and resources for self-directed cleanups. Since 2023, the program has expanded to several new locations, strengthened community partnerships, and introduced multilingual toolkits to improve accessibility. With the addition of a full-time events coordinator, Friends has scaled the program to meet its growing popularity, despite challenges such as inconsistent usage data. This initiative highlights a community-driven solution to address local plastic waste, achieving significant environmental and educational impacts.
Read MoreThe Wishtoyo Foundation’s Watershed Monitoring Internship Program supports Indigenous and politically marginalized youth in acquiring land stewardship skills. In southern California the Santa Clara River watershed includes historic steelhead habitat that is being protected and restored. This project allowed youth in the program to learn water quality monitoring techniques, collect water quality data, and attend workshops aimed at teaching public speaking and other skills needed to successfully participate in environmental stewardship.
Read MoreThe California condor recovery program includes efforts to monitor condor nests during the breeding season to assess hatching success and chick survival. To minimize impacts to nesting birds the Santa Barbara Zoo established the Nest Guarding Program (NGP) across much of the range of condors in southern and central California. SFF funds contributed to the NGP with funds to purchase optical equipment such as spotting scopes and support their need for wireless transmission of data from remote sites.
Read MoreThe Mattole River Watershed is located in dense, Northern California rainforest. A history of logging reduced much of the timber in the watershed resulting in erosion and increased runoff which diminishes the groundwater supply. A high water table means that groundwater is critical for supporting native fish spawning areas. This project focused on increasing the amount of instream wood features such as check dams to provide habitat for migrating Coho and steelhead.
Read MoreLess than 1/100 th of original natural prairie lands remains in Illinois, most of the land being converted to farmland or developed for other human uses. Glacial Park Conservation Area is the largest contiguous area of publicly managed land in McHenry County, and this project aimed to convert 21 acres from row crop production to natural prairie grassland. The site supports numerous threatened or endangered species, including the Blanding's turtle, monarch butterfly, and the rusty patched bumblebee. The project also aims to decrease sedimentation into Nippersink Creek, a major recreational waterway in McHenry County, and improve the ability of this area to recharge groundwater, which is where McHenry County residents receive 100% of their drinking water.
Read MoreThis unique organization, out of Klamath Falls, Oregon, is focused on enhancing, preserving, and educating about the local wetlands utilized by migrating waterfowl and many other native species. To aid in this effort, a grant from the SFF was used to build a remote-controlled solar pump to help regulate the water level of a 2.5-acre pond. The pump was ‘deployed’ in October of 2023 and appears to be successfully regulating/enhancing this important wetland habitat.
Read MoreThe SOHS collects, preserves, and shares a variety of artifacts to generate an appreciation of regional history for present and future generations. An important part of this effort, and one that the SFF has been honored to help with, has been the digitization and preservation of over 6,000 glass plate negatives made by pioneer Western U.S. photographer Peter Britt from the mid-1850’s through the end of the 19th century. This unique collection, which will be publicly available and researchable, will provide a primary source look into what life was like for ordinary citizens in Southern Oregon during the early years of its pioneer history.
Read MoreThis organization, located in the greater Los Angeles area, is dedicated to educating about the connection between agriculture, health, and the environment. One way they are doing this is through the development of grow gardens at a variety of inner-city schools. To this end, funding from the SFF has been used in the building of a series of raised garden beds that are being used to help teach a variety of organic gardening techniques to students of all ages.
Read MoreThe Blue Zones Project is part of a multi-sector partnership in Klamath Falls, Oregon, committed to the promotion of healthy communities. The Trail Signage Project, which SFF helped to fund, is aimed at increasing trail utilization through signage and education. The completed signs, installed as part of the Lake Ewauna Trial system, are attractive, easy to understand, and certain to be helpful towards the goal of helping people be more active outdoors in a safe and enjoyable manner.
Read MoreThe Algonquin Garden Club requested funds to restore a historic downtown natural spring in the downtown area of Algonquin. The fountain area includes signage and photographs explaining the significance of this freshwater source for wildlife and local residents during the 1700 and 1800’s and its significance to the town’s history.
Read MoreThe Gresham Historical Society preserves and shares the Gresham Oregon community’s past to enrich its present and future. The Schwemm Family Foundation provided funds to the Society to enable them to digitize and make available online to the general public over 2,500 items of historical significance contained in their collection.
Read MoreThe Coastal Watershed Council's River Health Day Program brings together volunteers from the local community to plant and maintain native seedlings along the banks of the San Lorenzo River to increase biodiversity and revitalize the river ecosystem. The Schwemm Family Foundation partnered with the Coastal Watershed Council to bring out over 400 volunteers who planted over 300 hundred different native plants in 21 separate seed plots along the river.
Read MoreThe Wetland Conservancy’s mission is to conserve and steward Oregon’s wetlands in partnership with communities. Funds provided by the Schwemm Family Foundation were used to organize multiple restoration workdays at the Minthorn and Hearthwood wetlands where community volunteers conducted scientific surveys and performed wetland restoration and cleanup.
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The We Sow We Grow Project addressed the pressing need for local, healthy fresh produce and community connection in West Pullman, a neighborhood marked by a 50% household food insecurity risk and a staggering 53% adult obesity rate.
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Friends of the Chicago River's grantee project aims to enhance the ecological health of the Little Calumet River and North Shore Channel through native plant installations during their Paddle and Plants events, addressing the lack of native vegetation in these areas. This initiative supports local ecosystems, mitigates flooding impacts, and promotes community engagement in environmental stewardship, with funding from the Schwemm Family Foundation facilitating plant purchases and essential supplies.
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Focused on enhancing resilient ecosystems along the central coast of California, the Wild Farmlands Foundation is dedicated to the regeneration of the landscape, while at the same time, supporting the area’s current and next generation of farmers and ranchers.
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Wolf Creek, located in the Sierra Nevada foothills of California, has been a working alliance for over 20 years with the dual goals of preserving and protecting the local watershed while increasing public access to the creek and adjacent hillsides. As part of this effort, and with help from a SFF grant, Wolf Creek recently created a series of walking and biking tours within the watershed.
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Lost Sierra, working in remote Plumas County California, is dedicated to the reduction of food insecurity by providing training and education related to ecological farming. With help from a SFF grant, Lost Sierra has been able to add a much-needed outdoor classroom to their 2-acre interactive garden.
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White Buffalo (WB), located near Santa Barbara California, is committed to land stewardship practices that support biodiversity, water and soil resources, and human health. WB has recently partnered with the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians in the planning and implementation of a series of trainings focused on the building of resilient gardens. With the help of a SFF grant, these gardens are today being managed by members of the Ynez Band to grow a variety of food, fiber, and medicinal and ceremonial plants.
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