Defense of Place is on the front lines defending the lands others were entrusted to protect. We also provide strategic advice, public relations, technical information, and legal assistance to landowners, communities, citizen activists, and land trusts seeking to ensure permanent protection for the lands they love.

How We Work

Launched in 1997 in response to the threat of development to a treasured nature preserve in Northern California, Pepperwood Preserve. Defense of Place has since joined open space activists to defend protected land from development and exploitation.

Our small, dedicated staff is on the front lines aggressively defending protected lands for future generations.

We also provide strategic advice, public relations, technical information, and legal assistance to those defending the integrity of protected lands.

We provide direction through the political process and work with the media.

We work to improve practices employed by land trusts and other land stewards.

We council landowners seeking permanent protection for the lands they love.

We publish information about best practices for protecting lands.

Recent campaigns include:

Byrne Nature Preserve in Los Altos, California where the city council had proposed selling a park and developing a 55-acre nature preserve to fill a budget gap.

Henry Coe State Park, an enormous state park neighboring bustling Silicon Valley, California, which has been threatened by a dam that would flood a wilderness area and is being eyed for a high-speed rail line.

Goldfields on the Yuba River near Marysville, California, extensively mined in the 19th century and again under threat of mining, despite the presence of endangered salmon and steelhead.

Home | What's New | Who We Are | Why Defense of Place | How We Work | Press Room | Take Action | Tools