On May 3, Joshua Tree National Park had some important visitors. The Hispanic Access Foundation, in collaboration with Por La Creacion Faith-based Alliance and with the support of Congressman Raul Ruiz, introduced 100 Latino youth to Joshua Tree National Park’s sculpted boulders, juniper-studded canyons, scenic vistas and iconic desert animals such as bighorn sheep.

With 70 percent of Latino voters in Los Angeles County wanting President Obama to permanently protect the public lands within the San Gabriel Mountains– according to a recent poll– it shouldn’t have been a surprise that a recent U.S. Forest Service town hall meeting in Baldwin Park was a packed house.

Latinos are united in their support for the environment and candidates who agree with them. Over the last few years we’ve heard a lot about the changing demographics of the United States and how American Latinos will make up an increasingly larger part of the American electorate.  The 2010 Census showed about 1 in 4 people in the country under 18 are Latino, a number with serious implications for the nation’s political dynamic.

Hispanic youth flocked Saturday to The Living Desert Zoo & Gardens in Palm Desert to celebrate the almost-20th anniversary of the California Desert Protection Act and their increasing stewardship of the habitat.

President Obama designated the Organ Mountains-Desert Peaks in New Mexico as our nation’s newest national monument earlier this year, a significant step forward to ensuring Latino heritage and culture is woven into the broader narrative of American history. In fact, it’s the third monument the President has designated to protect places and events of significance to the Latino community, following the creation of the César E. Chávez and the Río Grande del Norte National Monuments. There is strong support within the Latino community to permanently protect these special places.

Los Angeles Latinos applauded news that President Barack Obama will protect the San Gabriel Mountains as the nation's newest national monument on Friday, proving once again that our community concerns extend beyond the issue of immigration.

PURPLE MOUNTAINS MAJESTY: The White House said on Wednesday that President Obama will make his 13th national monument designation on Friday, protecting 350,000 acres of California's San Gabriel Mountains. 

President Obama designated nearly 347,000 acres of California's San Gabriel Mountains a national monument on Friday, vowing that he is "not finished” preserving the nation’s wilderness.