California State Parks' First Community Access Pilot: Three Nonprofits Bring San Diego and Santa Cruz Youth to State Beaches Free, Pilot Runs Through Jan. 1, 2029
California State Parks has announced a first-of-its-kind Community Access Agreement pilot: the department has signed agreements with three nonprofits to bring youth and families in California's San Diego and Santa Cruz counties who have historically faced barriers to the outdoors into state parks and state beaches free of charge, with interpretive and visitor services included. The pilot runs through Jan. 1, 2029.
The three partners are San Diego-based Outdoor Outreach and Un Mar de Colores, and Friends of Santa Cruz County Parks. Made possible by Assembly Bill 1150 of 2023, the pilot lets eligible nonprofit and tribal organizations provide free access along with interpretive and visitor services in state parks, and it aligns with the Newsom administration's Outdoors for All initiative. Activities range from surfing, kayaking and camping to guided nature walks, environmental education and outdoor leadership training.
First-year results are already in. Un Mar de Colores used its agreement to connect approximately 100 participants with surfing, environmental education and community events across five state beaches; at San Elijo and Carlsbad state beaches, cohorts of about 12 to 15 students paired environmental education with surf sessions. The participants were primarily Latino, Indigenous and immigrant youth from low-income families across San Diego County and the border region — all of them visiting state parks for the first time, and for nearly all, it was also their first time surfing. The organization provided transportation, gear, bilingual instruction and free programming. "Every young person deserves the ocean," said Mario Ordoñez-Calderón, executive director of Un Mar de Colores. "This agreement opened five state beaches to young people who had never visited them before."
Friends of Santa Cruz County Parks introduced 64 participants to the outdoors through four guided family hikes at Manresa, Seacliff and Sunset state beaches and The Forest of Nisene Marks State Park. Around 94% were first-time visitors, including families referred through ParkRx Santa Cruz County from Pajaro Valley, Live Oak and San Lorenzo Valley, and each outing included a trained high school-age volunteer who helped lead the hike.
Since July 2025, San Diego-based Outdoor Outreach has provided more than 200 youth from underserved San Diego communities with free outdoor recreation and educational experiences at several state parks and beaches, including Cardiff, Carlsbad and Silver Strand state beaches, Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve and the Tijuana Estuary, with activities from hiking and camping to surfing, paddleboarding, kayaking, environmental education and stewardship. In recent surveys by the organization, 75% of participating youth reported lacking transportation to outdoor spaces, 44% said they were unaware of green spaces near their homes, and 13% said their local parks felt unsafe.
"Removing barriers to state parks and promoting a sense of belonging is at the heart of Outdoors for All, and this pilot program is a great example of how to make that a reality," said California State Parks Director Armando Quintero. "I hope every program participant leaves with the feeling that these are their state parks and that this is where they live."
The pilot will continue through Jan. 1, 2029. State Parks will collect data and prepare annual reports evaluating the agreements' effectiveness, benefits and impacts; findings will help inform a final report to the Legislature due Dec. 31, 2028, and could help shape future partnerships aimed at making California's state parks more accessible and welcoming to all.
Source: GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：Torrey Pines州立海滩（资料图）——试点机构Outdoor Outreach的活动地点包括Torrey Pines州立自然保护区一带。Andrew Yau摄，CC BY 2.0，经Wikimedia Commons。Photo: Torrey Pines State Beach (file photo), one of the areas served by pilot partner Outdoor Outreach. By Andrew Yau, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
