Cel Lopez shares her experience as an Environmental Education intern with our Explore Ballona® team!

Friends of Ballona Wetlands received a $2,000 donation from Pardee Properties as part of their 20 for 20 Giving Program!

Learn about the Ballona Wetlands’ connection to climate from California Climate Action Corps Fellow Mina Bedogne!

Friends of Ballona Wetlands hosted the Wilson Ornithological Society’s 2025 Annual Meeting attendees for tours of the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve and the Ballona Freshwater Marsh!

Despite heavy rains, volunteers still showed up to support native wildlife at Earth Day Community Habitat Restoration 2025!

Friends of Ballona Wetlands Received a $40,000 Grant from UCLA’s Philanthropy as Civic Engagement Course!

On Saturday March 15th, the Explore Ballona!® Environmental Education Team led a Project WET Workshop, in collaboration with Loyola Marymount University and their Center for Undergraduate Teacher Preparation. The workshop highlighted the relationship between humans and nature, and the important role that educators play in fostering the next generation of environmental stewards.

Friends of Ballona Wetlands’ founder, Ruth Lansford was honored by the City of Los Angeles with one of the Women of Impact Awards!

“The internship allowed me to learn more about native plants and see them in a place where they thrive, not just an image in my books.”

California Climate Action Fellow Samantha Perez shares her experiences in her first few months as a fellow with the Friends of Ballona Wetlands!

“By focusing on plant identification skills and practicing in the field, I am becoming more intentional when interacting with the natural world and aware of minute details I never noticed before.”

California Climate Action Corps Fellow Mina Bedogne shares her experiences in her first few months of her fellowship with the Friends of Ballona Wetlands!

Loyola Marymount University's student newspaper, The Loyolan, covers the volunteer work of Espérer, one of the university's service organizations, at the Ballona Wetlands. Read the full article by Mia Rivers here.

The trail along Jefferson Blvd along the Ballona Freshwater Marsh has seen some major changes over the past few years and has now been rehabilitated! Bring your friends, family, neighbors, and colleagues to enjoy this amazing space from dawn to dusk every day! 

You read that right- the Jefferson Trail is ready to reopen in early October! 

This Saturday the Ballona Wetlands Conservancy hosted a small walk to preview the restoration of Jefferson Trail and drum up excitement for the reopening coming soon. Dr. David Kay shares the information you want to know in his new article on the Patch.

Homewtown News, a newspaper sharing about Westchester, Playa Del Rey, Playa Vista, and Marina Del Rey has named us this year’s best nonprofit! Thank you to everyone who shared our story with the community, we look forward to continuing our work at Ballona and in communities all over Los Angeles.

Tom Carroll from the LA Times 404 visited the Celebration of the Blues on July 13th! He interviewed Patrick Tyrrell, our Manager of Habitat Restoration and Upper Education on the El Segundo Blue Butterfly and Friends of Ballona Wetlands’ efforts to bring this species back from the brink of extinction. Check out the video on Instagram by clicking here!

Journalist Jim Newton shares information about the Ballona Wetlands. Newton covers how the wetlands were saved by dedicated environmentalists, the power of compromise in environmental battles, and the Friends’ advocacy for more restoration in the future. Click here to read the full article.

Bob Shanman, retired Wild Birds Unlimited store owner and Emeritus Board Member of the Friends, led his first "Birding With Bob" bird walk at Ballona!

3,000+ feet of Jefferson Boulevard along the Freshwater Marsh and the Ecological Reserve are now cleared of RVs, cars, and the associated debris.

Rattlesnakes are common residents at Ballona Wetlands. There is no need to be fearful of these slithering predators if you are aware of where you step, stay on the trail, and let them be.

In response to a lawsuit challenging CDFW’s EIR for the restoration of the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve, despite claims to the contrary, the restoration project is not dead.

It's California Invasive Species Action Week!

The Friends hosted our biggest habitat restoration event on Earth Day 2023!

Five ways to celebrate Earth Month with Friends of Ballona Wetlands

Last week, the Friends’ staff were interviewed by Morgan Owen from the Argonaut to highlight Explore Ballona! and public programs offered to the community.

The Friends were one of 56 recipients to receive funding from the CA Coastal Commissions Whale Tail grant.

In honor of World Wetlands Day, Patrick Tyrrell was interviewed by the LA Times to highlight on our beloved Ballona Wetland's destructive past, challenging present, and hopeful future!

Last Monday, several City of Los Angeles departments and agencies came together for a long-awaited comprehensive cleanup to remove debris and hazardous materials on Jefferson Blvd at the Freshwater Marsh.

This effort was no small feat. The Friends and Ballona Wetlands Conservancy invested thousands of hours to find solutions to protect and repair the Freshwater Marsh.

Dive deeper into the controversial history of the Ballona Wetlands and the development of Playa Vista with the Playa Vista Institute’s documentary Playa Vista – A Four Decade Overnight Success.

Photograph: Peter Bennett