Brian Saunders
Email: info@saveoregondunes.orgOrganization: Oregon Dunes Restoration Collaborative/Travel Lane County
Community: Florence/Siuslaw Watershed to Coos Bay/Coos Watershed
Meet Brian Saunders:
Brian grew up in a small town of 6,000 people in Connecticut. After completing his Bachelor’s degree in Geography in the Spring of 2019, Brian was eager to come back to Oregon where he had been visiting for the past 6-7 years. During his senior year of college, Brian worked as an intern for a local non-profit food security organization. Brian loves to spend his time playing soccer, snowboarding, and biking.
Community and Organization:
The Oregon Dunes Restoration Collaborative (ODRC) is a collaborative organization made from different groups that use the Oregon Dunes for recreation, have businesses that rely on the dunes, or work to preserve the dune habitat. The collaborative includes tribal nations, politicians, non-profits, volunteers, county, state, and federal agencies. The Collaborative seeks to restore the famous Oregon Dunes to their original state. Since the 1940’s, European Beach Grass and human development has been encroaching on the dunes, slowly decreasing their surface area on the Oregon Coast.
Project:
One of Brian’s most important projects in his second year of service was to implement the 3-5 year strategic plan that was completed during his first term of service. In addition to the strategic planning process, he also regularly maintained and updated the ODRC website and social media platforms. Furthermore, he targeted specific media outlets each month and made pitches for outlets to cover dune related stories. His target outreach was to critical stakeholders, opinion leaders/influencers, and potential funders.