The COVID-19 pandemic impacted nearly every aspect of life, including Colorado’s outdoors. Organizations were strapped for resources, while more people than ever flocked to outdoor spaces. To meaningfully respond to urgent and emerging challenges facing conservation and recreation partners, Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO) needed to invest differently.
From June 2020 to March 2021, the GOCO board awarded 62 Resilient Communities Program (RCP) grants totaling $15,050,247 to projects across the state.
To identify where help was most needed, GOCO gathered insight from partners through surveys and conversations. Results elevated four key priorities: capacity and operations support, stewardship, community vitality, and urgent and emergent land acquisitions.
Capacity and operations support
Unable to conduct business as usual, many companies and organizations were forced to reduce staff hours or lay off employees. Local governments, land trusts, and their partners were unsure if they’d have enough resources to maintain staff and activities. At the same time, they had more stewardship and maintenance needs than before.
Located in Fairplay, Pennsylvania Mountain Natural Area and Sacramento Creek Ranch (SCR) provide nearly 600 acres of publicly accessible land and host important high-alpine scientific research efforts. However, increased visitation during the pandemic threatened their fragile ecosystems. A $129,061 GOCO grant helped Mountain Area Land Trust (MALT) hire a full-time stewardship director to address damaged natural resources, broaden the land trust’s conservation portfolio, and continue ongoing efforts to expand high alpine research at SCR.
Stewardship
Trails and open spaces offered a safe and relaxing escape during lockdown. Along with frequent recreators, the pandemic brought many new outdoor recreation participants; a positive for community health and well-being, but also a challenge for land managers addressing impacts of increased use and more visitors less familiar with Leave No Trace principles.
On the banks of the Big Thompson River, the City of Loveland’s Oxbow Natural Area provides public nature access and numerous outdoor recreation opportunities like fishing, wildlife viewing, picnicking, and connection to the city's 21-mile paved recreation trail system. Faced with a 71 percent increase in visitation during the pandemic, a $330,332 grant helped the City restore and enhance critical facilities, including new parking, access points, trail connections, a vault restroom, and safety and stormwater improvements.
Community vitality
Neighborhood parks became go-to spots for residents to connect with nature and each other while socially distanced. Aging playgrounds and gathering areas were strained further and communities with no or few nearby green spaces may have been prevented from accessing the healing benefits of nature at a time when they needed it most. Quality parks are also economic drivers, bringing more visitors to nearby neighborhoods and businesses.
The Ute Indian Museum in Montrose explores contemporary Ute life and culture. Exhibits feature the Ute peoples’ history of adaptation and persistence, and unfold around a central theme of geography, highlighting significant locations in Ute history (Source: History Colorado). A $199,220 grant helped Montrose County and the Ute Indian Museum build a nature-themed exhibit and play area connecting to the Uncompahgre River Trail and downtown Montrose, expanding outdoor recreation and learning opportunities.
Urgent and emergent land acquisitions
The pandemic paused many activities, but development pressure continued. Partners elevated now-or-never opportunities to conserve lands containing important natural resources, wildlife habitat and migration corridors, and recreation potential that would greatly benefit Coloradans today and in the future.
Like many other mountain communities, the pandemic attracted out-of-state buyers to Hinsdale County to purchase valuable real estate. When the stunning, 10.3-acre Lake San Cristobal property came up for sale, Trust for Public Land and its partners needed to act fast. With help from a $1,305,000 GOCO grant helped Trust for Public Land purchase the property, protect it through a conservation easement, and establish it as a public open space. Now, its natural resources, wildlife, and public recreation opportunities will remain for future generations.
Grantmaking during a pandemic wasn't easy but brought important learnings informing GOCO's approach today.
Listening to and learning from partners is key to understanding what investments will be most effective, and being responsive to those needs requires flexibility. For GOCO, that meant reducing barriers to funding by simplifying our grant application and materials, limiting eligibility requirements to only the most necessary, and identifying ways to make the application process more efficient. And don’t shy away from supporting organizational capacity, in times of emergency or otherwise. Invest in people; nothing gets done without them.
Special thanks to our partners for your insight; it's invaluable as we continue to improve as a funder and partner for Colorado's outdoors. Have questions? Contact us at info@goco.org.