Our Vision, Mission and Values

Devin Dahlgren   Website

Vision

We envision a high desert in Oregon where eight million acres of public lands are conserved to ensure that fish and wildlife thrive and wild places exist for all people to treasure and explore, now and always.

Mission

Oregon Natural Desert Association (ONDA) exists to protect, defend and restore Oregon’s high desert for current and future generations.

Values

  • We are committed, tenacious, passionate, nimble and unwavering in pursuit of our mission.
  • We are science-based and solutions-oriented, bringing innovative, strategic approaches to achieving our conservation goals.
  • We are inclusive and welcoming, and seek to build a strong, diverse and interconnected conservation community throughout our staff, membership, volunteers, board of directors and partnerships.
  • When working with stakeholders, agencies, partner organizations, the public and others, we respectfully consider all perspectives while pursuing our conservation goals.

voices

John Cunningham, ONDA member and volunteer

John Cunningham, ONDA member and volunteer

Restoration is hard slow work. It takes hold, or it doesn’t, in fits and starts. The immensity of the need can be discouraging, but we must carry on. I am so thankful ONDA carries on.

voices

Craig Terry, ONDA member and stewardship volunteer

Craig Terry, ONDA member and stewardship volunteer

“The people I have had the privilege to share time with each season keep me volunteering again and again. Who else but those ONDA staff leaders would make fresh coffee at dawn each morning or pack a watermelon all day to serve as a reward under a juniper in a steep canyon?” Craig, who grew up in northwestern Nevada, says ONDA connects him with places he loves and a mission he believes in. “My grandfather and his father put up wire fences for their ranching needs. Taking out barbed wire sort of completes a circle for me.”

voices

Terry Butler, 2018 Volunteer of the Year

Terry Butler, 2018 Volunteer of the Year

“If I have to pick a favorite place in Oregon’s high desert, it would be Sutton Mountain, but I’m excited about all of the Wilderness Study Areas,” says Terry, adding, “Each is a gem to explore, and I hope they all get protection someday… I love the scale of the physical beauty of the desert.”

Our Commitment to
Justice, Equity and Inclusion

At Oregon Natural Desert Association, we are creating a more inclusive conservation community by actively welcoming, engaging and collaborating with people of all backgrounds, perspectives, races, genders and ethnicities to […]

Read More

Our Approach

Read More