From its early days as a fieldwork course site for undergraduate students until now, the PRI campus has played a crucial role in empowering future scientists with a deep environmental sensibility that gives shape and direction to their vocational lives. At the same time—from our ongoing work with endangered species to the cultivation and distribution of native plants and seeds—all of PRI’s efforts to promote ecological restoration are grounded in sound environmental science principles. We actively collaborate with other science-based organizations and universities, both local and global, in rigorous, site-based field research. And in our efforts to democratize scientific understanding, we communicate our results and findings in ways that are accessible, actionable, and inspiring to the general public.

We believe that environments are shaped by culture, and that culture itself is impacted by environments in turn. All places, then, are imbued with a diversity of stories. At PRI we seek to listen deeply to the stories of the forest, savannah, and prairie spaces under our care—and to let those stories shape our stewardship of the land. We believe that healing of the land often involves the healing of broken relationships—between people and the land, and between people groups. For that reason, PRI actively attends to the wisdom of regional Indigenous peoples and welcomes their active presence on the land we care for. At the same time, we call attention to unhelpful mainstream cultural assumptions—based in unthoughtful philosophies and theologies—that have historically led both to exploitation of the environment and to the objectification of Indigenous people. In our work with churches and civic groups, we encourage those whose cultural histories have been associated with these harmful legacies, to imagine more humble and sustainable ways to live as good relatives in the whole family of creation.

The PRI campus is a hub for community and welcomes all who seek to learn about and invest in the healing of the land as they work alongside others on activities like native seed harvesting or plant propagation. We encourage volunteers to feel a sense of belonging in the PRI community, as well as a sense of ownership about the conservation work we do together. Some of our volunteers in fact have worked with us for the all of PRI’s 15-year history. We cultivate the health and growth of our local island community as well by opening our facilities for regular, long-term use by local community groups, schools, and clubs. In addition, we encourage regional tribes to use the land for gatherings that strengthen community identity, and that provide a context for practicing and teaching traditions surrounding the harvesting and cooking of traditional, native plant food sources that grow abundantly in our restored prairies.

All of creation, human and nonhuman, depends on thriving, diverse ecosystems for health and survival; the promotion of such diversity through ecological restoration work is at the heart of the PRI mission. Aside from a treasured parcel of original, “uncolonized” native prairie on the PRI land, the rest of the 175 acres that we steward has, in the past, been thoroughly domesticated or otherwise exploited for human use. PRI works to heal and restore these prairie, forest, and savannah ecologies at our site; importantly, we are also committed supporting other ecological restoration efforts throughout the Salish Sea region. Our habitat recovery work includes cultivating native plants in our Native Plant Center; collecting, processing, and storing seeds from wild and propagated native plants; outplanting native plants including grasses, forbs, shrubs, and trees such as Garry oak; and providing seeds and young plants for restoration projects throughout the region. We have also joined collaborative efforts to save endangered species such as the golden paintbrush flower (which, thanks to collective efforts, was recently removed from the endangered list), and more recently the Taylor’s checkerspot butterfly.