Copeland Creek Corridor Initiative
A Living Laboratory for Resilience, Learning, and Community Impact
The Copeland Creek Corridor Initiative transforms the Copeland Creek watershed into a living, regenerative landscape where students, faculty, tribal communities, and regional partners collaborate to address real-world environmental challenges. With the SSU campus located along the banks of Copeland Creek, the initiative creates opportunities for academic-community engaged place-based problem-solving.
CEI plays a two-part role in the initiative: coordinating collaborative planning and implementation of restoration and education projects across the watershed, and managing academic engagement and volunteer activities on campus.
We are currently developing a plan and process for establishing this corridor as a long-term platform for academic-community collaboration, restoration, and environmental leadership. Whether faculty, student, community or donor, we invite you to join.
Why Copeland Creek?
At just 2.9 square miles, the Copeland Creek watershed is a powerful microcosm of regional environmental issues—from erosion and habitat loss to flood risk and water quality. As it flows from Sonoma Mountain through the SSU campus and across urban landscapes into the Laguna de Santa Rosa, it offers opportunities for developing and implementing new solutions to address climate resilience, biodiversity, and community well-being.
While the initiative addresses challenges throughout the watershed, a 15-acre area on the SSU campus - the Campus Corridor - serves as an integrated learning laboratory where students and faculty can conduct studies and pilot projects in ecological restoration, environmental monitoring, community resilience, public education, and regenerative land practices. The Campus Corridor includes:
0.6 miles of riparian habitat along Copeland Creek
The Kenneth Stocking Native Plant Garden, featuring over 15 native plant communities
The Agroecology Garden, a long-standing site for food justice and sustainable agriculture
The initiative integrates academic inquiry with community knowledge, offering a replicable model for how universities and communities can co-create solutions that benefit people and ecosystems alike.
Building the Initiative Together
The Copeland Creek Corridor Initiative is shaped through collaborative workshops and projects. These events bring together participants, including SSU faculty, staff and students, tribal leaders, agency staff, nonprofit partners, and local officials.
CEI plays a two-part role: coordinating collaborative planning and implementation of restoration and education projects across the watershed, and managing academic engagement and volunteer activities within the Campus Corridor.
Workshop I – May 2024
Participants explored the idea of designating the 15-acre campus corridor as an outdoor classroom and catalyst for broader watershed collaboration. Three core focus areas emerged:
Sustainable water management
Riparian biodiversity and ecosystem function
Nature-based communities—from self-care to civic action
👉 [Workshop I Summary]
Workshop II – February 2025:
Building on the shared vision, participants joined breakout groups focused on groundwater, biodiversity, agroecology, civic engagement, and community health. Dozens of project ideas emerged, spanning curriculum integration, tribal partnerships, public engagement, and ecological infrastructure. 👉 👉[Workshop II Summary]
Projects of the Copeland Creek Corridor Initiative
The following projects emerged at the workshops and are under development:
Education:
Educational Signage: a project to create uniform and flexible signage that would provide infrastructure for partners to provide connect people to Copeland Creek
Groundwater-Surface Water Connections
Enhancing Groundwater Recharge, Biodiversity and Flood Management
Regerative Landscaping and Restoration
Riparian and Pond Restoration
Agroecology
Food Justice Systems
Health & Wellness
Outdoor Classrooms
What’s Next?: The Sandbox
We’re imagining what's possible. The Copeland Creek Corridor is a growing platform with endless potential for new directions—future projects, partnerships, and student opportunities that will take shape as support and collaboration grow.
👉 [Coming Soon]
Get Involved
Have ideas? Want to partner, propose a project, or bring your class to the Corridor?