Accelerating Conservation in Santa Barbara County

Meredith Hendricks, Executive Director, The Land Trust for Santa Barbara County

Meredith’s family history in ranching dates to the late 1800s in Goleta and informed much of her work in conservation nonprofit leadership for the last 20 years in northern California. Her career has focused on permanently conserving land for future generations and developing public open space in the San Francisco Bay Area, including 7 years as the Director of Land Programs at the nationally accredited land trust, Save Mount Diablo. Meredith holds a bachelor’s degree in Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology from UC Davis and a master’s degree in Environmental Business Relations from San Francisco State University.

Among Meredith’s most important career accomplishments is the creation of the Dr. Mary Bowerman Science and Research Program, providing small grants, especially to students, for research projects on Save Mount Diablo’s properties and protected land network in the Bay Area.

Meredith is the fourth executive director in the Land Trust’s four decades—her clear-eyed approach is guiding the organization’s next phase of ambitious conservation projects.