latest news

Executive Director Stephanie Buffum has submitted her letter of resignation and retired as of March 1, 2020. Under Stephanie’s 19 years of leadership, Friends has become central to the protection of what is loved by many about the San Juan Islands and the Salish Sea, including the health of marine ecosystems, fragile shorelines, forest and ... read more

Do you know what a tardigrade is? If not, it’s time to find out! It could soon become Washington State’s official micro-animal thanks to a partnership between students at Friday Harbor High School, Riverday School in Spokane, Jefferson Middle School in Olympia, along with Lynn Bahrych from the San Juan Islands Conservation District, and Katie ... read more

We walked into 2020 with some great accomplishments. Thank you for joining with us to protect and restore the San Juan Islands and Salish Sea in 2019! Here’s what we achieved together recently: Forage fish spawn on 3 new restored beaches on Shaw Island! Three recently completed beach restoration efforts with private landowners along Blind Bay ... read more

We finished our fourth and final 40th anniversary celebration in Seattle on November 8! We are honored to protect what we all love about the San Juan Islands and the Salish Sea with the help of our awesome community! Thank you for your continued support!

Join us next week as we speak up for the Southern Resident Killer Whales (SRKW). The National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) are holding a scoping meeting on Tuesday, November 12th from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Brickworks in Friday Harbor (150 Nichols St.). Click here to see the full ... read more

Please join us in asking the San Juan County Council to impose an immediate moratorium on the issuance of new Vacation Rental Permits. The moratorium should remain in place until the county implements regulations that meet the public need. It will not effect currently permitted vacation rentals. There are currently no county-wide limitations on the number of Vacation ... read more

We enjoyed working with San Juan County students last spring during our marine plastic education and reduction program featured in this video produced by Carl Davis and the San Juan County Marine Resources Committee. Thank you so much to our project funder Keta Legacy Foundation and local artist Brook Meinhardt for helping us bring this important ... read more

Celebrate the power of people coming together to make change and protect what you love. Enjoy seasonally inspired food and beverages while connecting with Friends! Tickets are $50 per person and space is limited. Click here to register today: sanjuans.org/40th. Celebration details: Orcas, Sep. 22 Odd Fellows Hall, 112 Haven Rd., 4 – 6 pm, ... read more

The 2019 Fall Great Island’s Clean-Up (GICU) is coming this Saturday, September 28. This twice a year county wide cleaning event is when residents and visitor’s, individuals, businesses, clubs, school groups, parks and land trusts come together to pick-up litter and marine debris. Friends of the San Juans helps organize the beach clean-ups for San ... read more

You’ll see a timeline of our major accomplishments over the past 40 years, get updates on Friends’ current programs, and discover how you can get involved to protect what you love about the San Juan Islands and Salish Sea. Enjoy! Click here to download our 2019 newsletter.