Meet the People Preserving the Grand Canyon
There’s So Much Worth Protecting
It takes many hands—and many generations—to care for something this grand.
The Grand Canyon is far more than a breathtaking destination. It is a sacred homeland, a living landscape, a vital watershed, a wildlife refuge and an irreplaceable part of our shared natural and cultural heritage.
Behind the views we know and love is an extraordinary network of Tribal families, conservationists, scientists, river guides, educators, historians, young people and philanthropists. They restore trails, study springs, protect wildlife, defend sacred places, preserve history and inspire new generations to care for the canyon.
Here are some of the organizations working to ensure that the Grand Canyon remains wild, meaningful and magnificent for generations to come.
Protecting the Heart of the Grand Canyon
Grand Canyon Conservancy
As the official philanthropic and collaborative nonprofit partner of Grand Canyon National Park, Grand Canyon Conservancy helps fund essential work that public funding alone cannot accomplish. Its support reaches across trail and habitat restoration, historic preservation, scientific research, wildlife protection, Indigenous cultural interpretation and visitor education.
Every donation, membership and purchase helps protect and enhance the park.
Grand Canyon Trust
For more than four decades, the Grand Canyon Trust has worked to safeguard the Grand Canyon and the greater Colorado Plateau. Its advocacy addresses threats to air, water, wildlife and surrounding public lands while supporting the rights and sovereignty of the region’s Native peoples.
The Trust’s work reminds us that protecting the canyon also means protecting everything connected to it—from flowing water and migration corridors to neighboring communities and ancestral homelands.
Save the Confluence
Tooh Ahidiilíní—the place where the Little Colorado River meets the Colorado River—is breathtaking, culturally significant and sacred.
Save the Confluence is a grassroots coalition of Navajo families committed to protecting this extraordinary place from inappropriate development. Its work brings together Indigenous stewardship, sacred-land preservation, environmental protection and the voices of families whose relationship with the land extends across generations.
Wild Arizona and the Grand Canyon Wildlands Council
Protecting the Grand Canyon requires looking beyond the park’s boundaries. Wildlife, waterways and entire ecosystems move through a much larger landscape.
Wild Arizona and its Grand Canyon Wildlands Council program work to protect and restore the connected web of life throughout the region—from the Colorado River corridor and surrounding watersheds to vital wildlife habitat and the lands now protected within Baaj Nwaavjo I’tah Kukveni–Ancestral Footprints of the Grand Canyon National Monument.
Caring for the River and Its Hidden Waters
Grand Canyon River Guides
No one understands the rhythm of the Colorado River quite like those who travel and work upon it.
Grand Canyon River Guides brings together guides, river runners and canyon advocates in support of the river and the natural resources surrounding it. Its educational and environmental work includes conservation advocacy, guide training, oral histories and hands-on stewardship programs such as Adopt-a-Beach.
Springs Stewardship Institute
In a landscape defined by stone and aridity, water is life.
The Grand Canyon’s springs, seeps and spring-fed tributaries provide essential freshwater and habitat for plants, animals and people. Springs Stewardship Institute advances the scientific understanding and conservation of these fragile ecosystems through research, fieldwork, education and collaboration.
Protecting Wildlife and Inspiring Future Stewards
The Peregrine Fund—California Condor Recovery
To see a California condor soaring above the Grand Canyon is to witness one of conservation’s most remarkable stories.
After the species came perilously close to extinction, The Peregrine Fund joined a broad recovery effort involving scientists, wildlife agencies and conservation partners. Its continuing work in Arizona and Utah is helping restore these magnificent birds to the skies above their historic range.
Grand Canyon Youth
The future of the Grand Canyon depends upon young people being given the opportunity to know it, experience it and care about it.
Grand Canyon Youth connects young people with the rivers and canyons of the Southwest through educational expeditions, outdoor adventure, community science and service. Along the way, participants build confidence, curiosity, environmental awareness and a lasting sense of stewardship.
Preserving the Stories of the Canyon
Grand Canyon Historical Society
The story of the Grand Canyon lives not only in its rock layers, but also in the memories, records and experiences of the people who have known it.
The Grand Canyon Historical Society promotes the study and preservation of the region’s cultural and natural history through oral histories, archival collections, research grants, publications, educational programs and public events.
National Partners in Preservation
National Parks Conservation Association
The National Parks Conservation Association advocates independently for Grand Canyon National Park and the larger landscapes upon which it depends. Its work addresses air quality, climate threats, water, wildlife, inappropriate development, uranium mining and the protection of surrounding public lands.
National Park Foundation
Chartered by Congress as the official charitable partner of the National Park Service, the National Park Foundation connects private support with projects throughout America’s national parks. At the Grand Canyon, that support can help advance conservation, cultural heritage, education, interpretation and visitor access.
Love the Grand Canyon? Help Protect It.
The Grand Canyon may appear eternal, but its future is not guaranteed. Water scarcity, climate change, habitat loss, development pressure, pollution and the erosion of cultural and historic resources all require sustained attention.
We can each play a part. Learn from the people who know the canyon best. Respect Tribal lands and sacred places. Travel thoughtfully. Volunteer when possible. Support science, education and restoration. Give to organizations whose work speaks to you.
The Grand Canyon has given generations of visitors wonder, perspective and a profound sense of connection. Protecting it is one way we can return the favor.
