The Community Envisioned Deschutes Estuary winter workshop series was so popular, we’ve decided to continue offering CEDE workshops on a quarterly basis! We hosted over 100 unique participants during the winter series, with an average of 50 people showing up for each workshop. Will you help us keep that momentum going?

Join us on August 19th at the Olympia Center from 6-8pm for the next CEDE workshop on Water Quantity & Conservation in the Deschutes. We’ll hear from guest speakers (TBA) on these issues, and then dive into community conversation around defining our role in conserving our most precious resource. And of course, we’ll have pizza! Hope to see you then.

The Sea Stroll Tours have been a hit! The Estuarium has now sold out tickets for our last planned Sea Stroll walking tour in August. It’s been a joy to partner with the Puget Sound Estuarium on this series, and we’d love to continue offering it next year. The walking tour explores changes to the Deschutes Estuary through time– including the filling in of the Moxlie Slough, the development of the Port Peninsula, and more recent clean-up efforts and expected changes with the removal of the 5th Ave Dam and restoration of the Deschutes Estuary. Interested in booking a private tour for your group?

This spring, the Legislature shifted the funding for the Deschutes Estuary Restoration Project (DERP) to the Department of Ecology (Ecology) from the Department of Enterprise Services (DES). Representative Lisa Parshley has been working with an interagency team that includes Ecology, DES, and the Governor's office, as well as the City of Olympia and the Squaxin Tribe, to ensure forward progress on DERP while putting together a new project management structure. DERT has met with Representative Parshley and will be meeting with Ecology’s project team to ensure continued community engagement and communication as the new management and project plan develop. We are excited to share with you updates about the project in next month’s newsletter– so please stay tuned!

Your continued support ensures our ability to stay up to date and engaged with issues impacting the Deschutes Estuary and watershed.

Please consider donating today to support our advocacy efforts.

On May 30, DERT hosted a Donor Appreciation Dinner to honor our donors and celebrate their impact. We were joined by guest speakers City Councilmember Dani Madrone, Rep. Marilyn Strickland's Outreach Director Sara Develle, and Rep. Lisa Parshley. Our guests shared the importance of the Deschutes Estuary Restoration Project and DERT's longstanding advocacy. Representative Lisa Parshley also provided updates on the project's shift to the Department of Ecology and the many ways she is working to ensure the Deschutes River once again flows free. We also heard from DERT Program Director Mackenzie Kleiva about DERT's impact over the last year, including the Festival of the Steh-Chass, community science, workshops, forums, and traveling to DC to share about DERT's story of advocacy. She then provided an update on DERT's current programs, including a 2026 Deschutes Watershed Guide (funded in part by Inspire Olympia), the continuation of the CEDE series, and other programs currently in the works. All in all, it was a joyful and intimate evening and we're grateful to all our supporters who joined us. We look forward to seeing many more of you at our open invite Fall Fundraiser on October 25-- more details to come.

We closed the evening out with a heartfelt celebration of one of DERT's founders, Sue Patnude. Not only was it Sue's birthday, but also her official announcement of "retirement" from the DERT Board. Sue has given so much to DERT, serving in so many different roles, including Executive Director, Treasurer, provocateur, and more throughout the years-- We honor and thank her for her many years of service! Don't be fooled, Sue is still actively engaged in the health of the Deschutes Estuary in her role as a volunteer with DERT and in her activity on the Port of Olympia Citizen Advisory Committee. We wouldn't be where we are today without her commitment and drive.

So hats of to you, donors, founders, supporters! We are so grateful to be in this community with you. Enjoy here some fuzzy photos of our celebratory evening.

Join our partners at OlyEcosystems this Saturday from 10am-2pm for a work party at Cooper Crest Preserve! They'll be collecting Riverbank Lupine seeds, sanding and painting two picnic tables, and weeding. They ask that you come prepared with work gloves and a bucket or container if you would like to collect seeds. As usual, they will provide water and snacks, and encourage you to arrive by bike or foot! Learn more about parking options and add it to your calendar here.

OlyEcosystems is Olympia's Urban Land Trust. A non-profit organization established in 2014, OlyEcosystems protects, preserves, and restores the diverse ecosystems in and around Olympia that include freshwater, shoreline, tidal waters, grasslands and upland forests.

Join the Olympia Sea Level Rise Collaborative to learn what the City of Olympia, Port of Olympia, and LOTT Clean Water Alliance have accomplished since releasing the Olympia Sea Level Rise Response Plan, and how your community continues to prepare for the future. On the tour, they’ll explore the environmental history of the area, learn about the impacts of sea level rise on Olympia’s infrastructure and community, and discover the different strategies they’re using to adapt. Along the way, they’ll highlight completed projects and long-term plans designed to prepare for sea level rise over the next decades.

Upcoming Tours:

• Wednesday, July 30 from 4–5:30 p.m.
• Tuesday, August 19 from 9–10:30 a.m.

The City of Olympia is updating its Comprehensive Plan. You can check out recently finalized chapters and find out about ways to get engaged in planning for other chapters like the Land Use & Urban Design chapter here.

Do you have watershed news to share?

Send it to us at

 info@deschutesestuary.org

DERT'S mission is to realize a fully restored Deschutes Estuary that reflects and respects the history and culture of the south Salish Sea, and advocate for a community managed Deschutes watershed that provides for all inhabitants

for generations to come.

SQUAXIN ISLAND TRIBE

COMMUNITY SUSTAINING FUND



CLIMATE COMMITMENT ACT

THE FREAS FOUNDATION

ROSE FOUNDATION

FOR COMMUNITIES & ENVIRONMENT

THE RUSSELL FAMILY FOUNDATION



INSPIRE OLYMPIA

PUGET SOUNDKEEPER

NISQUALLY INDIAN TRIBE



WA STATE COMBINED FUND DRIVE

THE PARC FOUNDATION

THE MARIA RUTH FUND