A Living Laboratory for Regenerative Agriculture
White Buffalo Land Trust has a vital purpose: to restore the ecosystem through agriculture and in the process directly address the climate, biodiversity, public health, and food security challenges we face today. It’s not a pipe dream for the Santa Barbara-based nonprofit as the trust has created the Center for Regenerative Agriculture at its 1,000-acre Jalama Canyon Ranch, a site 10 miles south of Lompoc that is serving as proof positive for the practices right here in our own backyard.
The ranch is perfectly suited for this reimagining of agriculture as Jalama possesses all five of the primary ecological sites of Mediterranean climates: Grasslands, Oak Woodlands, Vineyards & Orchards, Sage Scrub, and Riparian Corridors.
“We’re in a unique position with the opportunity to steward this 1,000-acre ranch,” says Founder and President Steve Finkel. “It’s truly a living laboratory that allows us to engage with each ecological site to grow food, fiber, and more in ways that create positive ecological outcomes. Our work supports climate, human, and soil health while bringing the bounty of the land into the marketplace.”
White Buffalo employs innovative monitoring and data collection systems to quantify its impacts and support research through its university partners including UCSB and Cal Tech. In turn, it shares the knowledge through diverse education and training programs to raise the ecological literacy of the whole community.
The need for bold ideas and impactful change in agriculture is critical. According to NOAA, the Coastal Curve from Santa Barbara through Los Angeles to the Mexican border is warming at double the rate of the continental U.S. Transitioning to Regenerative Agriculture offers solutions to climate change and builds more resilient and healthier communities.
Even though Jalama has only been operational for 18 months, White Buffalo has already trained 125 farmers and ranchers in regenerative principles and food grown at the ranch is making its way to the marketplace.
“We are just scratching the surface of what’s possible,” says Finkel. “Every day, every growing season, we better understand the relationships between agriculture and ecology, refining our ability to accelerate ecological restoration through agriculture. We’re just getting started!”
White Buffalo Land Trust
Donate now!www.whitebuffalolandtrust.org
(818) 426-1398
Director of Development: Sam Franz
Together We Are a Restorative Force
Together, we have the opportunity to bring a different perspective of optimism to some of the most daunting challenges we face today.
At our 1,000-acre Center for Regenerative Agriculture at Jalama Canyon Ranch, we are practicing, promoting, and developing systems of regenerative agriculture for local, regional, and global impact through our hands-on land stewardship, data collection and monitoring, and education and training programs. We are reimagining a resilient and nourishing food system.
We don’t have to settle for sustaining depleted resources. We can do better than that. We have the ability, the capacity, and the skills to implement these practices and be genuine positive stewards of this planet. Check out this short film to see our relentless optimism in practice.
Mission
White Buffalo Land Trust practices, promotes, and develops systems of regenerative agriculture for local, regional, and global impact.
Begin to Build a Relationship
We know you care about where your money goes and how it is used. Connect with this organization’s leadership in order to begin to build this important relationship. Your email will be sent directly to this organization’s director of development and/or Executive Director.
Our law firm is proud to support White Buffalo Land Trust’s work to make our world a better place. White Buffalo’s leadership is shifting our local agricultural and food systems while furthering climate goals, increasing biodiversity, restoring the water cycle, and improving soil quality and human health. Few organizations are true innovators, creating knowledge and a demonstration project that’s brand new. White Buffalo Land Trust is one of them.
Help Build the Climate-Appropriate Plant Nursery
White Buffalo Land Trust (WBLT) is seeking $20,000 to expand its nursery of native and climate-appropriate plants, a cornerstone of its mission to restore ecosystems, increase biodiversity, and foster community education. The nursery at Jalama Canyon Ranch supports key watershed restoration projects and enhances biodiversity in working landscapes.
“For too long, many people have assumed that agriculture cannot help address the biodiversity crisis. White Buffalo Land Trust is demonstrating that we can have our almonds and native pollinators as well as a model for a diverse farm that meets the needs of humans and the rest of nature. They are leading the way in showing how agriculture on the Central Coast needs to evolve so that all species can thrive,” says Steve Windhager, Ph.D., Executive Director, Santa Barbara Botanic Garden.
Key Supporters
Manitou Fund
Roberto Foundation
WOKA Foundation
Macdoch Foundation
James S. Bower Foundation
Patricia & Paul Bragg Foundation
G.A. Fowler Family Foundation
Natalie Orfalea Foundation
UGG
TomKat Education Foundation
Coyuchi Philanthropy Fund
Dancing Tides Foundation
Santa Barbara Foundation
Zegar Family Fund
Williams Corbett Foundation
Hutton Parker Foundation
Ann Jackson Family Foundation
Land Trust
for Santa Barbara County
Gaviota Coast Conservancy
CA Dept of Agriculture
U.S. Dept of Agriculture