NMERA Receives $5,500 Grant in Support of Eel River Youth Stewards: Source to Sea Project
The Northern Mendocino Ecosystem Recovery Alliance (NMERA) is honored to announce it has received a $5,500.00 grant from the Community Foundation of Mendocino County. This award, from the 2025 Fund for the Environment, is designated to support the Eel River Youth Stewards (ERYS): Source to Sea Project.
Project Origins
The ERYS project is a collaborative, watershed-wide effort. The idea was born from the 1st Annual Eel River Expo on April 19, 2025. Staged by Andrew Barnett (Eureka Rotary Club Environment Committee and CalTrout) at the River Lodge in Fortuna, the event brought together thirty-five presenters and 400 attendees to share their love for and dedication to the Eel River.
The Eel River Youth Stewards vision grew directly from this confluence of expertise, passion, and spirit. NMERA is proud to join this vision as a co-sponsor and fiscal partner, enabling the project to receive grant funding.
Mission & Vision
The project’s mission is to connect youth from all communities along the Eel River with their home watershed through hands-on experience, cultural education, and skills training.
Inspired by projects like Rios to Rivers and the “Paddling Tribal Waters” project on the Klamath River, the long-term vision for ERYS is to prepare local youth for an extended “source to sea” paddle. This event is hopefully timed to coincide with the removal of the Eel River dams, anticipated around 2030.
Project Activities
Grant funds will be used to purchase essential items like safety equipment, gear, youth travel expenses, and food for participants. Proposed activities include:
- Networking with co-sponsoring partner, the SoHum Family Resource Center in Redway, which is initiating the “River Wellness Community Celebration” in Alderpoint. This event will engage the community, promote the ERYS vision, and include a flat-water float to Fort Seward for participants.
- A series of one to two-day flat-water floats where youth will learn basic paddle skills, water safety, river ecology, and cultural history from professionals and cultural leaders.
- A multi-day boating skills intensive on the Eel River for the most interested youth, pending future funding.
A Community Effort
This project is a true collaborative effort. NMERA is proud to work with SoHum Family Resource Center, Andrew Barnett (Garberville and Eureka Rotary), CalTrout, Weston Boyles (Rios to Rivers), Stephanie Stephano Davis (Round Valley Superintendent of Schools), and many others dedicated to the health of the Eel River and its communities.
