About Us

Over 40 years of mobilizing, making change, and protecting our Pacific Northwest home.

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Founded in 1982, RE Sources is a nonprofit organization working to protect the environment and communities of the central Salish Sea region and our climate. We catalyze community action to build a lasting legacy for all of us — clean water, protected shorelines, an end to dangerous fossil fuel projects, and recovery for orcas and salmon.

Based in Bellingham, Washington, we are a team of trusted and time-tested environmental advocates, educators and scientists. RE Sources gives people practical ways to make a real difference for the planet, from passing stronger laws that protect the environment and empowering youth voices, to holding corporate polluters accountable, reducing waste and our own carbon footprint. We do this through smart policy, grassroots mobilization, hands-on science and environmental education.

Our deep roots and broad connections in Northwest Washington allow us to inspire and mobilize thousands of people to protect the beauty and bounty of the region.

Our Mission

We mobilize people in Northwest Washington to build just and thriving communities and to protect the land, water and climate on which we all depend.

Photo by Buff Black
Photo: Buff Black

Our Vision

We envision an ecologically restored region with socially and economically just systems that benefit all people.

Together we can recover endangered wildlife populations and maintain shellfish beds clean enough for regular harvest. We can restore and protect our rivers, lakes, beaches and the Salish Sea so there is enough clean water for all who need it. We can accelerate a just transition to renewable energy, slash pollution and waste, and build up climate-resilient communities who can work together and care for one another despite differences. A brighter future for Northwest Washington is 100% possible.

Photo by Buff Black
Photo: Buff Black

Our Values

All of RE Sources’ work is guided by the following core values:

Interdependent ecosystems and communities: The resilience of our communities is directly tied to environmental and climate conditions. We work to ensure an environment capable of sustaining all species and peoples across Northwest Washington.

Accountability: We are accountable to our region’s communities. We work from a place of integrity and collaboration to find solutions that are science-based and community-minded.

Justice: We work to disrupt environmentally destructive and socially unjust systems. We work with communities to hold corporations, polluters and power-holders to account.

Impact: We develop, research and promote concrete steps that balance the need for nimble responses and proactive, long-term strategies.

Hope: Hope anchors our tenacity and propels us to act. We persevere and push for systemic shifts because we believe that change is always possible.

Our Commitment to Equity and Justice

RE Sources stands against racism, white supremacy, and injustice and the ingrained structures and institutions that enable and perpetuate them. Indigenous, Black and other communities of color, as well as low income families and children, are disproportionately harmed by environmental degradation and climate change. We envision a future where every person benefits from clean energy, less pollution and thriving outdoor places. Read more about our vision for a just and climate-resilient Northwest Washington.

Our Approach

We make it our job to understand the complex public processes and policies that can be harnessed to protect our environment. We then distill it into clear information, work collaboratively regionally and across sectors, and channel community concerns into real action that makes an environmental difference now. Learn more about what tools RE Sources uses (and does not use) to activate the community, advocate for sound environmental policy, educate voters and more.

We empower the people who live here to do all they can to protect our home. Our organization provides individuals with the tools they need to safeguard our marine and fresh waters and air. Our staff oversee a number of programs that help educate people of all ages, take climate action, protect the Salish Sea, cut waste and water pollution, and otherwise foster just and thriving local communities.

 

Photo: Hannah Gabrielson

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Photo © Buff Black