Chuckwalla National Monument

The Chuckwalla National Monument proposal would protect approximately 660,000 acres just south of Joshua Tree National Park. The proposal is named for the Chuckwalla lizard, one of the species found in the region. Establishing the monument would help ensure more equitable access to nature for local communities, and safeguard biodiversity, wildlife habitat, and wildlife migration corridors.
The lands proposed for protection include the homelands of the Iviatim, Nüwü, Pipa Aha Macav, Kwatsáan, and Maara’yam peoples (Cahuilla, Chemehuevi, Mohave, Colorado River Indian Tribes/CRIT Mohave, Quechan, and Serrano nations). The area continues to hold cultural, natural, and spiritual significance for Indigenous peoples today. A national monument designation could provide an opportunity to honor Tribal sovereignty through a collaborative effort with federal agencies to establish co-management or co-stewardship of the monument.
In addition to Tribal nations, the monument proposal is supported by current and former local elected officials, including California Representative Raul Ruiz, M.D., cities and municipalities, dozens of businesses, chambers of commerce, and local community members. The coalition supporting the proposal is urging President Joe Biden to use the Antiquities Act to designate Chuckwalla National Monument. There is also a legislative proposal to protect approximately 17,000 acres of public lands that are adjacent to the east side of Joshua Tree National Park.
Enacting both proposals for the national monument and the expansion of Joshua Tree National Park would qualify as significant progress toward reaching the national goal of protecting 30 percent of America’s lands and waters by 2030. For more information about the campaign, please visit protect chuckwalla.org.
Watch the short 5-minute film to hear from three people who know and love this region and want to see it protected: Altrena Santillanes is Tribal Council Secretary for the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indians. She shares her intergenerational connection to the area as an Indigenous person and the importance of bringing Tribal youth to experience the landscape. Conchita Pozar is a local community leader and conservation advocate who would like to see the monument designated for the benefit of current and future generations of Indigenous and Hispanic youth who live in nearby communities. She shares her connection to the region in Spanish. Frank Ruiz is the director of the California Desert and Salton Sea program for California Audubon. He speaks to the locally and Indigenous-led effort to protect the region and the area’s ecological importance, as well as the mental health benefits of spending time in nature.
To learn more about the campaign and to get involved, please visit protectchuckwalla.org.
To learn more about the Postcards campaign and to read, listen, or watch other stories, please visit www.RoadTo30.org/postcards. Stay tuned for more postcards coming your way in 2024!

[@karenbonime8874]

I love the flowers and the night sky shown here. Irreplaceable! I support birds, and this landscape supports them in their migrations. Essential to their survival and ours! Wonderful! Strengthening the bonds between people and nature, between children and ancestral land-centered culture -- priceless! Thank you for this glimpse of a place I knew nothing about. Blessings!

[@ajcarterfilms]

Beautiful!

[@jhonyermo]

OH too wonderful. So excited for this National Monument.

[@ronniefurbs]

Too bad the off road vehicles make these places a hell scape. So sad