We are committed to improving the health, wellbeing, and environmental impact of communities living in critical Monarch Butterfly habitat.
In Mexico, we offer health and dignity to communities native to the eastern monarch population’s overwintering site by building fuel-efficient stoves that transform open cooking fires into safe, sustainable kitchens. In California, we implement sustainable agriculture along the western monarch’s migration route through aquaponics systems and environmental education.
We are redefining the concept of conservation to include human communities because that is the reality of a planet that’s home to 8 billion people. We focus our work in critical Monarch Butterfly habitat where community resilience and biodiversity conservation are deeply intertwined. At ECOLIFE, we believe that people and nature can prosper together, and that together, we can make it happen.
In Mexico, all households surrounding the 216 square mile Monarch Butterfly Biosphere Reserve (a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the border of Michoacán and Mexico State) have the option of applying to receive a fuel-efficient stove from ECOLIFE. To date, more than 16,000 families have received stoves.
ECOLIFE is unique in that we view conservation as a science to ensure our own survival as well as that of our valuable resources. We don’t just involve members of a community in our work – we involve entire communities in our work. When stoves are brought to a community everyone has the opportunity to benefit from a stove in their own home. Those who do not want a stove benefit by a healthier environment around them.
In California, we protect critical resources and monarch migration habitats by implementing food production systems that save water and space, reducing the environmental strain caused by traditional agriculture. Our sustainable agriculture program uses a three-tiered approach: Education, Community Systems, and Produce Donations.
Our incredible teams in the field are able to do what they do because of people like you.
