Project overview: Develop strategic programming for diverse California high schoolers to learn about and champion the environment via online lessons, community-based projects, and park-focused career exploration.

The backstory: WildLink, a long-running partnership between NatureBridge and the National Park Service, is dedicated to helping teenagers from traditionally underserved California communities — mostly students of color, who are underrepresented in Yosemite — access, experience, and build lasting relationships with public lands.

Yosemite Conservancy donors have supported WildLink almost every year since the program launched in 2000. During the past two decades, WildLink has served more than 1,500 students, including through more than 100 outdoor expeditions and 75 stewardship projects. Ten program alumni have gone on to careers in the National Park Service.

This year: In 2023, your gifts will help develop strategic programming for diverse California high schoolers. With your support, WildLink helps participants develop and share an appreciation for outdoor spaces and become active stewards and champions of the natural world.

Learn more about WildLink on the NatureBridge website.

Project partners: Yosemite National Park and NatureBridge.

Lissie Kretsch

Wilderness Education Coordinator, Yosemite National Park

Project Notes

“It is our collective opportunity and responsibility to provide programs that continue to bring and connect an accurate representation of California’s population to the parks.”