Since 1997 the foundation has provided environmental education to more than 85,000 K-12 students and it engages more than 10,000 participants each year through tours and public programs at the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area. Photo designed by Magnific

DAVIS, CA (MPG) - Yolo Basin Foundation has been named one of 10 finalists for the 2026 Impact100 Greater Sacramento grant program, making the organization eligible for $100,000 in transformational funding. This year’s awards, $100,000 for each Focus Area, total $500,000 and is the largest in Impact100 Greater Sacramento’s history. 

Yolo Basin Foundation expands public appreciation and stewardship of wetlands and wildlife in the Yolo Basin through education and innovative partnerships. Since 1997 the foundation has provided environmental education to more than 85,000 K-12 students and it engages more than 10,000 participants each year through tours and public programs at the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area. 

The Impact100 funding would put the foundation’s Mobile Visitor Center into full regional operation. Built on a recently acquired zero-emission vehicle and custom outfitted as a traveling education platform, the Mobile Visitor Center is ready for deployment. It would carry hands-on wetlands education directly to neighborhoods, events and communities where access to the wildlife area is limited. 

Grant funds would cover operating costs, a part-time naturalist and a portion of a community engagement coordinator position. This model will build organizational capacity in order to make the visitor center self-sustaining and volunteer docent lead after the grant funding is gone. 

“The Yolo Bypass sits 20 minutes from downtown Sacramento and stays invisible to most of the people who live here,” said Executive Director of Yolo Basin Foundation Efraim Lopez. “If a family cannot get to the wetlands, the wetlands should come to them. The vehicle is built. This grant puts it in your neighborhood.”

Less than 5% of California’s historic wetlands remain. The Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area protects 16,700 acres, including 6,000 acres of restored wetlands that support more than 200 bird species and more than a million migratory birds. The foundation brings wetlands curricula, long-standing relationships with regional schools, a trained staff of nine and more than 300 volunteers to sustain the program after launch.

“Yolo Basin Foundation already has the vehicle and the curriculum,” said Environment Focus Group Chair for Impact100 Greater Sacramento Ellen Mallory. “This funding will bring the wetlands to Title 1 schools and underserved communities, as well as local community organizations, thus serving a broad spectrum of people.”