King Range Alliance Wins 2026 Innovation Award

As the challenges facing public lands evolve, so must our forward-thinking solutions. It is in this spirit that Friends of the Lost Coast and our fellow partners in the King Range Alliance – Mattole Restoration Council, Sanctuary Forest, and Mattole Salmon Group – were awarded a 2026 Innovation Award!

This biennial award was presented to us by the Conservation Lands Foundation (CLF) at the recent Friends Summit in Denver, in recognition of our innovative and forward-thinking approach to addressing current and future public lands issues and community-based problems. We couldn’t be more appreciative and humbled by the honor – one of only 4 awards that were presented at event! The other 2026 award winners were: Conservation Leadership – Friends of Nevada Wilderness, Advocate of the Year – Kim Garrison Means of Friends of Avi Kwa Ame National Monument, and Friends Group of the Year – Grand Staircase Escalante Partners.

The larger Summit offered great speakers, panel discussions, and networking too – with over 150 in attendance, representing 54 of the 90+ Friends Groups in the Conservation Lands Foundation’s Friends Grassroots Network. Many thanks to CLF for hosting the Summit and for acknowledging the innovative work of the King Range Alliance with this award!