The Canyon Institute
CRC, in partnership with the Watershed Conservation Authority, San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Rivers and Mountains Conservancy, California Conservation Corps and others, is currently creating “The Canyon Institute”. The Canyon Institute will be located on an historic property adjacent to the San Gabriel River in San Gabriel Canyon. This facility will provide many future opportunities to expand watershed education activities regarding the importance of respecting the San Gabriel River Watershed. Our short-term goal is to create a community space next to the river in San Gabriel Canyon that will serve as an outdoor education center, a meeting space, an information resource, and a youth mentor training facility at a local historic site. Site improvements will protect and enhance native flora and fauna. They will also demonstrate historic uses of land and water resources as well as measures that can be replicated to improve today’s use of such resources. Our long-term goal is to change social behavior through interacting and connecting with the river, creating a center where residents learn to appreciate and respect the place they live.
The Canyon Institute project has recently been awarded a planning grant from The Canyon City Foundation to develop a strategic plan for site layout, staffing, and programming.
The Canyon Institute is part of the Azusa River Wilderness Park. The Azusa River Wilderness Park is identified in the San Gabriel River Corridor Master Plan (SGRMP) adopted by Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors to revitalize the San Gabriel River from the mountains to the sea. The goal of the SGRMP is to create a healthy “corridor of an integrated watershed system while providing protection, benefit and enjoyment to the public” (SGRMP, 2004).
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