Who is the Sawtooth Society?
We are a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to preserving, protecting, and enhancing the Sawtooth National Recreation Area (SNRA). We devote our time, efforts, and funds to:
- Serving as an advocate and steward for the SNRA
- Preserving open space in the SNRA
- Enhancing recreation facilities and services in Idaho’s SNRA
- Facilitating volunteer projects within the SNRA
- Partnering with policymakers to protect the SNRA
- Educating the public about opportunities within the SNRA as well as the threats it faces
The Sawtooth Society has long been dedicated to these four outcomes:
Advocacy
The Society mobilized policy-makers and the public to address threats facing the SNRA; joined with the Forest Service to initiate Sawtooth Vision 20/20, and helped develop management plans for SNRA Wilderness Areas.
Preserving Open Space
The Sawtooth Society has worked with the Administration and Congress to secure $17 million in federal funds for the purchase of conservation easements in the SNRA; published “What Works” a document to clarify and distribute private land regulations to encourage inconspicuous development; educated private landowners about their responsibility in making development less conspicuous.
Enhancing Recreation Facilities and Services
The Sawtooth Society supported USFS efforts from 2005 through the present to design, build and fund the Stanley to Redfish Lake trail. The Society also coordinated nearly $1 Million in Goat License Plate grants for 220 enhancement projects to benefit the SNRA and all who live, work and recreate in it.
Facilitating Stewardship and Volunteer Projects
Since 2014 the Sawtooth Society facilitated and coordinated projects including 13,400 hours of labor which resulted in clearing more than 4,980 trees from 612 miles of trails and providing stewardship education opportunities to more than 400 youth.
