Bark

Mission

Bark’s mission is to transform Mt. Hood National Forest into a place where natural processes prevail, wildlife thrives, and local communities have a social, cultural, and economic investment in its restoration and preservation.

Bottom Line for Portland

Bark is the resource for community action to protect Mt. Hood National Forest.

Bark is the only watchdog organization dedicated to protecting Mt. Hood National Forest, a critical resource for Portland communities and beyond. We prioritize grassroots organizing and believe in the power of an engaged public. We’re not just defending Mt. Hood National Forest—through our FREE volunteer-powered timber sale monitoring program, beaver habitat and wetland restoration projects, forest ecology trainings, and public advocacy, we’re giving people the tools and knowledge they need to create lasting change.

Your donations directly help us safeguard the clean drinking water that millions rely on, preserve old-growth forests that are essential for carbon storage, and ensure that the voices of local residents, Indigenous communities, and conservation groups are heard in decisions that impact these lands. With your help, we can continue advocating for climate-resilient forest management and community-driven solutions to safeguard Mt. Hood National Forest for future generations. Every dollar you give strengthens our fight to protect the lands that sustain us all. 

Quote

Barkers are the best! Here’s a small sample of anonymous feedback we recently received from volunteers and supporters: 

-“Bark is a really important organization in the wider network of conservation. They are dedicated to pushing for the hard truths, and it’s important to me to support Bark and make sure they have the resources to continue to do it.” 

-“I felt a sense that I was doing something important that would actually make a difference in protecting nature.” 

-“What was really mind-blowing to me is that Bark showed me that just a small group of people, with barely any funding, if they put their minds together, they can not just rally but create a whole community of diverse stakeholders and actually do activities together around a central goal. Bark staff showed me how to create and maintain that, and I am so proud to know them for that." 

-“I appreciated seeing the firsthand restoration work that Meg organized and seeing the work and factors needed to help with ecosystem restoration. I would love to continue volunteering with Bark and have looked into more of the service opportunities that I could be involved with.” 

"-I feel as though I have a different perspective now when thinking about place, identity, decolonization, the human relationship to the natural environment and social change." 

-"I am not exaggerating when I say that it changed my life." 

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Bark affirms that these are the rightful homelands of the Multnomah, Molalla, Kalapuya, Chinook, Clackamas, Tenino, Wasco, Wishram, Paiute, and the many other Native people who have always belonged to and cared for this land and whose bold resistance to colonial oppression should guide us all. 

Bark recognizes and is accountable to the historical fact that environmental conservation work is embedded in the white supremacist legacy of colonization: land theft, cultural erasure and genocide, and the systemic use of the law to suppress Native sovereignty.

We are centering diversity, equity, and inclusion in our current strategic planning process, which is focused on supporting our shift to an environmental justice-centered mission, and are working to meaningfully incorporate practices based in Indigenous sovereignty, anti-racism, and DEI into all aspects of our work to defend and restore the lands now known as Mt. Hood National Forest. 

Partner(s)

Crag Law Center: Crag provides free or low-cost legal aid to people working to protect our water, air, lands, wildlife, and communities. Bark and Crag are hosting a "Do Good Get Down" dance party on December 14th at Left Bank Annex! A donation of $10 or more to either of our nonprofits gets you into the event. 

Columbia Slough Watershed Council: CSWC works to improve the health of our local lands and waterways, and inspire environmental stewardship across the Columbia Slough watershed. Bark and CSWC are partnering on a "Do Good Get Down" dance party on December 14th at Left Bank Annex! A donation of $10 or more to either of our nonprofits gets you into the event. 

Coalition of Oregon Land Trusts: COLT builds connections and advances policies that help protect the natural world, including water, wildlife, and open space, for all people, forever. Bark and COLT are partnering on a "Do Good Get Down" dance party on December 14th at Left Bank Annex! A donation of $10 or more to either of our nonprofits gets you into the event. 

Clinton Street Theater:  Clinton Street Theater has been Portland’s fiercely independent theater and community space since 1915. Clinton Street Theater will donate $1 from every ticket sold during their annual Lebowski Week. 

Hot Lips Pizza: Hot Lips serves handcrafted and sustainably sourced pizza (including vegan and gluten-free options!) out of two Portland locations. Hot Lips is hosting one of Bark's book club meetings at their Hawthorne location and will donate 15% of sales from dine-in proceeds on the day of the event to Bark. 

Sparka Studios: Sparka Studios specializes in custom guitars and henna body art. One of their artists, Liesel Svedlund, is offering her henna services at our “Do Good Get Down” event and will donate 25% of proceeds to Bark. 

Lemelson Vineyards: Lemelson Vineyards makes acclaimed Oregon Pinot Noir and white wines from their estate in the Willamette Valley. Lemelson donated a case of wine for our December 14th event. 

Healing Journey Massage: Healing Journey offers intuitive deep tissue massage and a variety of healing modalities including Fire Cupping, Thai Massage, and Craniosacral Therapy. They donated two Deep Tissue massage packages for the silent auction at our December 14th event. 

Well and Community: Well & Co. is a nutrient sourcer designing optimized nutrition so you can feel your best. They are donating premixed cocktails for our December 14th event.