Coastal Stories Program

Courtesy of PBS SoCal, Coastal Stories projects at various stages of development are displayed on an interactive map, each with a brief description, link, and image. Six of these projects were also featured in a special video series. Both the video series and map can be found at Stream Coastal California Seasons & Full Episodes | PBS SoCal.

About the Coastal Stories Program

California is marked by its diversity, and yet many stories told in the outdoors center around a white, settler perspective. A Coastal Stories project advances the Conservancy’s Strategic Plan Goal #2.4 by planning, developing, and implement storytelling installations or materials that represent communities and voices that have been systemically excluded in the storytelling of California’s coast and publicly accessible lands. These communities may include but are not limited to Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC) people, people with disabilities, immigrant communities, low-income communities, and other historically excluded communities.

Founding principles:

Promote a sense of belonging in outdoor spaces by presenting perspectives that include historically excluded communities.
Engage representatives of historically excluded communities to develop and share their coastal perspectives and stories.
Improve educational content in California’s outdoor spaces by correcting one-sided histories, retelling stories in more appropriate and inclusive ways, and developing new content that shares untold stories.
Use creative forms of interpretation and storytelling.

How to Obtain Funding

From 2022–2024, Coastal Stories projects were supported through a dedicated grant program created to elevate inclusivity in outdoor spaces—a need that was especially amplified during the COVID‑19 pandemic.

The Conservancy continues to actively support and welcome Coastal Stories–aligned projects. These projects must now be integrated into a broader climate resilience, sea level rise adaptation, or public access effort: Coastal Conservancy Grants – California State Coastal Conservancy

A valuable opportunity to implement a Coastal Stories project component is during the period between conceptual design and construction—a stage when community engagement often tapers off. Developing community‑driven storytelling products can sustain project momentum and deepen local involvement.

Please see our Inclusive Interpretive Material Guidelines for specific suggestions on producing inclusive content.

Examples

Examples of previous Coastal Stories projects can be found in the links below:

Please email coastalstories@scc.ca.gov with any questions.