ECOLOGY TEAM
Ecology is about mobilizing neighbors to safeguard land, water, and ecosystems. We work on the ground across New Jersey to preserve open space and reconnect people, particularly young people, with the places they fight for. That means hikes, door knocking, public testimony, research, digital organizing, and real pressure on decision makers.
PRESERVING OPEN SPACE
One of our largest ecology campaigns helped permanently protect nearly 2,000 acres of forest in the Pine Barrens at the Black Run Preserve.
CRAN organizers brought college students and community members out in busloads to walk the land, learn its history, and understand what was at stake. We organized residents to attend council meetings, knocked doors, met directly with legislators, and coordinated public pressure on local governments and the Pinelands Commission.
Our digital organizing helped drive hundreds of thousands of views on videos explaining why this land mattered, generating thousands of letters to planning board members and local elected officials. – something else pics
STOPPING BAD DEVELOPMENT BEFORE IT STARTS
In North Jersey, CRAN has been working with We Care New Jersey and local partners to stop development on the Second Watchung Mountain. This fight has brought together Indigenous leaders, local environmental commissions, engineers, the Sierra Club New Jersey Chapter, and the New Jersey Conservation Foundation to push back against proposals that would build on top of a mountain without adequate infrastructure, utilities, or environmental planning. CRAN organizers have helped research applications, mobilize residents to testify, and explain in plain language why this kind of development puts drinking water, ecosystems, and surrounding communities at risk.
In South Jersey, CRAN partnered with the Pinelands Preservation Alliance and local farmers to protect water rights. Hundreds of New Jersey residents stood up to Winslow’s representatives to protect their community and other towns impacted. By organizing and acting, these residents prolonged Winslow's decision to drain the Kirkwood Cohansey aquifer and helped thousands of South Jersey residents and their farmers.
Winning Funding for Open Space
Ecology is not just about stopping projects. It’s also about securing the funding needed to protect land long term. At the very beginning of CRAN, our organizers were on the front lines fighting to secure billions of dollars in revenue for New Jersey’s Open Space Preservation Fund through the Corporate Transit Fee. That funding continues to support land conservation and preservation efforts across the state.
Reconnecting People to the Land
We believe people fight hardest for what they know and love.
CRAN regularly organizes hikes and field visits across New Jersey to help young people and community members understand local ecosystems firsthand. These experiences are paired with education on land use, development pressure, and how decisions get made at the local and state level.
Our ecology team also produces short form videos explaining New Jersey’s natural environment, from breaking down tree species to responding to wildfires and ecological emergencies. These videos are designed to make ecology accessible, relaxing, and sometimes actionable.
