About Us
Ecology Action
"Achieving community and environmental excellence through partnership and innovation since Earth Day 1970"
 Ecology Action is a nonprofit environmental consultancy delivering cutting edge education services, technical assistance, and program implementation for initiatives that assist individuals, business and government to maximize environmental quality and community well being.
Since 1970 Ecology Action has combined municipal, foundation, and private funding to establish cutting-edge conservation programs, prove their effectiveness financially and operationally, and establish each program as a permanent community resource.
We continually seek innovative ways to instill environmental awareness, promote pragmatic change, and create opportunities for individuals, businesses, and community agencies to save money, create jobs, and contribute to a sustainable local economy. For more information on Ecology Action and our programs, visit www.ecoact.org.
 Resource Conservation Districts
RCD Santa Cruz
The mission of the Resource Conservation District of Santa Cruz County is to help people protect, conserve, and restore natural resources through information, education, and technical assistance programs.
Resource Conservation Districts have had a presence in Santa Cruz County since 1941. In 1978 the current Santa Cruz County Resource Conservation District was formed.
Through responsible land-use planning and conservation management, the Resource Conservation District is helping shape the present and future needs of Santa Cruz County, faced with a growing population and greater demands on the area’s natural resources.
RCD San Benito
The Mission of the San Benito Resource Conservation District is to develop and facilitate community-led conservation programs that conserve, protect, and enhance the natural resources of San Benito County.
The District will facilitate cooperative resource conservation and community planning in ways that recognize and value the interdependent nature of the varied land-uses within San Benito County. The District believes that the participatory involvement, leadership and collaboration of all interest groups is the most effective long-term means of conserving, protecting and enhancing natural resources.
Cooperative community planning and natural resource management are necessary to ensure the survival of agriculture in harmony with urban interests. Accordingly, the District will continue to develop its watershed and agricultural programs, while increasing its involvement in land use planning and development issues within San Benito County.
RCD Monterey
The mission of the RCD is to conserve and improve our natural resources, integrating the demand for environmental quality with the needs of agricultural and urban users.
The RCDMC provides direct assistance to Monterey County farmers and landowners working with us voluntarily to protect their soil, water, and natural habitats. The RCDMC also partners with agricultural and natural resource protection organizations and agencies throughout the Central Coast.
RCD San Mateo County
The San Mateo County RCD’s mission is to help local land owners and managers protect, conserve and restore natural resources through information, education and technical assistance programs, such as the Livestock and Land Program.
The San Mateo County RCD primarily serves the coastal portion of San Mateo county- over 157,000 acres of rural, agricultural, and open space lands as well as subdivisions. Established in 1939, it is one of the oldest environmental organizations in the county and was the first such district in California. The conservation work of the SMC RCD is accomplished through strong voluntary partnerships with land owners and managers, technical advisors, area jurisdictions, government agencies, advocates, and others.
Cachuma RCD
The Cachuma Resource Conservation District (CRCD) covers over 1.9 million acres of land including all of Santa Barbara County and portions of San Luis Obispo and Kern Counties . CRCD works with landowners and groups to voluntarily conserve and improve natural resources such as water, soil, and habitat. CRCD provides consulting and technical assistance services to local individuals and groups to implement projects. Projects are often related to irrigation and nutrient management; bilingual agricultural community education and outreach; engineering services, including field drainage, erosion control, and sediment management; habitat restoration; fire prevention, preparedness, and recovery; biological monitoring; and pollinator conservation on farms. The mission of the Cachuma Resource Conservation District is to promote land stewardship ethics that result in long-term, sustained use of natural resources while protecting and enhancing the environment.
Upper Salinas – Las Tablas RCD
The Upper Salinas-Las Tablas Resource Conservation District (US-LT RCD), a local governmental agency, was formed by landowner initiative in 1951 covering two-thirds of San Luis Obispo County and one-tenth of Southeastern Monterey County. The US-LT RCD provides farmers assistance within the Central Coast in the implementation of erosion control and water quality improvement measures.
Today, almost 60 years later, the RCD now provides a full range of technical assistance to cities, counties, organizations, landowners, contractors, AND farmers in improving water quality, reducing erosion, and restoring wildlife habitat. The RCD designs and builds projects that benefit the environment. Given County permit authority for some types of agricultural grading, the RCD often approves grading permits.
The US-LT RCD is known for our ability to initiate and help others build environmentally friendly projects, including stream channel stabilization and habitat restoration using Bio-Engineering methods.
Livestock & Land Program Staff
Angela Stuart, Program Coordinator, RCD of Santa Cruz County
 Angie comes to the RCD with over 12 years of sales and marketing experience from Silicon Valley start-ups and local non-profits. She joined the RCD in May of 2005 as the Livestock Program Coordinator and has been thrilled to see program participation nearly triple since her arrival. She loves supporting local landowners and has been inspired by their enthusiasm and openness for resource conservation on their properties. She looks forward to facilitating the continued growth and success of the livestock program.
Outside of the RCD Angie volunteers for local watershed efforts, is infatuated with exploring local creeks and streams, and is always up for a good rock climb. She attended Cabrillo College and San Jose State University and also served in the United States Airforce Reserves. She currently lives in Soquel with her boyfriend, his two boys, and their three dogs.
Kellie Guerra, Conservation Program Specialist, RCD of San Benito County
 Kellie became a member of the Pajaro Watershed Team in April ’07 as a Conservation Program Specialist, to implement the Livestock and Land Program in San Benito and Southern Santa Clara Counties, as well as to develop the San Benito RCD board and build the capacity of the agency. Kellie’s experience is primarily in the field of education and youth focused programs, with 13 years of grant, contract and project management spanning from preschool through a large number of diverse projects at the State University level, augmented by active participation with local (San Benito County) non-profits and collaborative groups. She holds a B.S. in Business Management and is excited about the opportunity to contribute her skills and knowledge to the field of conservation and about this new direction in her career.
Dina Iden, Program Coordinator, RCD of Monterey County
 Dina was born & raised in the heart of the San Joaquin Valley with a background in commercial farming. She comes to us with 20 years experience with specific emphasis in livestock marketing, veterinary medicine and animal law & welfare. Since making the move to the Central Coast, she has been involved as a participant in the Livestock and Land Program and has now joined the RCDMC team to launch the Livestock and Land Program in Monterey County. She has served the community in a volunteer capacity, including serving on various boards of directors. She is an avid & accomplished horsewoman active in the American Quarter Horse Association, National Reined Cow Horse Association, and San Benito County Sheriff’s Mounted Search and Rescue Unit.
Nick Sudano, Senior Program Specialist, Pollution Prevention/ Zero Waste Group
 Nick joined Ecology Action in October 2008 with over a decade of experience in the Environmental industry. His previous experiences include over eight years if program/project management for groundwater monitoring and remediation in the private sector. Nick has additionally worked in the public sector assisting with Household Hazardous Waste Programs, Recycling Programs and youth focused Environmental educational programs. He holds an Environmental Studies degree from San Jose State University and is enthusiastic to serve and grow the Livestock & Land program.
Karissa Anderson
 Karissa was born and raised on a small farm in northern San Luis Obispo County. She joined the RCD in 2010 after four years at the San Francisco Bay Area Regional Water Quality Control Board, where her work focused on water quality monitoring and data management for the Surface Water Ambient Monitoring Program. She holds a bachelor's degree in Geography from San Francisco State University and is currently working on her Master’s thesis project. Karissa currently runs several water quality monitoring projects for the RCD and is delighted to be the project coordinator for Livestock and Land in San Mateo County.
Kate Dickson
 Kate and her mare, Brandy, love to ride in the arena and trails that are surrounded by the beautiful hills of Santa Ynez Valley, where she lives. When Kate isn’t horsing around she is at work with the Cachuma RCD, busy with the Irrigation Mobile Lab and the Livestock and Land Program. Kate has been with the Cachuma RCD for three years and has gained great experience on quads in vineyards and in the strawberry fields of Santa Maria Valley. Kate grew up riding and showing with her family and holds a B.S. in Earth Science from Cal Poly, S.L.O. She is proud to be a part of the Livestock and Land team and is excited about bringing the program to Santa Barbara County.
Shayna Bailey
Shayna has been with the Upper Salinas-Las Tablas RCD since February of 2008 and feels incredibly fortunate to work in an office with others who share the same desire to conserve our natural resources. She enjoys that she is always learning and building her knowledge of the environment and how as humans we can minimize our impacts. Shayna was born in Colorado but raised in San Luis Obispo County where she currently lives. She graduated from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo with a BS in Earth Science with a minor in Soil Science.
Nicole Smith
 Nicole Smith has been with the CSLRCD since 2009, working with landowners, local organizations and municipalities to balance individual or group needs with the implementation of conservation projects. She brings her knowlege and experience with watershed planning, stream restoration, and stormwater management to landowner projects. Prior to joining the CSLRCD, Nicole worked with the non profit Central Coast Salmon Enhancement on watershed and fisheries planning while completing a Masters of City and Regional Planning from Cal Poly. Her Master’s Project was on Regional Planning for Water Quality: Policy and Regulation Recommendations for the Pismo Creek Watershed. Nicole has also worked with the California Conservation Corps and Americorps based in Humboldt County. Over the course of three years, Nicole co-managed numerous stream habitat restoration projects including cattle fencing, tree planting, instream habitat structures, road decommissioning and invasive plant removal. Nicole is also a Certified Professional in Erosion and Sediment Control – IT. Nicole grew up in Connecticut, and has lived for short stints in Maine, Georgia and Alaska. She is happy to now be living on the Central Coast
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