KEEP SEDONA BEAUTIFUL INC
Celebrating Our First 50 Years
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
We believe that in Sedona and the Verde Valley the environment is our economy. That environment is constantly under threat from pollution, overdevelopment, the mega-drought we're experiencing, unsustainable lifestyles and a host of other challenges. Keep Sedona Beautiful has throughout our 50 years of service worked to mitigate those threats while educating the public on how to live sustainably.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Native Plant Workshop
Annual Native Plant Workshop – Since 1979, KSB has educated thousands of community members on the benefits of using native plants and low water use landscaping.
Speaker Series
Preserving the Wonder ™Speakers Series – KSB brings experts to our community monthly to discuss their views on nature and conservation issues.
Awards of Excellence
Annual Awards of Excellence Program – KSB is a community leader in the recognition of excellence in building design, landscaping and community service through this awards program.
Litter Lifters
Litter Lifters - the famous corps of more than 120 KSB volunteers clear litter from over 65 miles of streets and roads in the “Greater Sedona” area.
Land Preservation Task Force
Land Preservation Task Force – KSB lead the effort to secure several millions of dollars in funding to purchase over 500 hundred acres of unique and sensitive lands around Sedona that are now part of the Coconino National Forest.
Water Sustainability
Water Sustainability - KSB administers the Water Wise Alliance which promotes water awareness throughout the region. We are also a founding member of the Verde River Basin Partnership which promotes the use of unbiased science and education in sustaining our surface water and groundwater within the Verde River Basin.
Enforcement of Water Quality Standards on Oak Creek-In the late 1980’s KSB lead an effort to sustain the water quality of Oak Creek getting federal and state agencies to enforce water quality standards.
Oak Creek Designated Unique Arizona Waterway-KSB lead the effort in having the State of Arizona acknowledge the importance of this significant natural resource.
Sign Ordinances
Sign Ordinances in Yavapai County and City of Sedona- Working with local government and the business community KSB lead the effort to establish outdoor sign ordinances.
Dark Skies
Dark Skies – KSB works to protect our fabulous night skies by collaborating with local government agencies and business and community leaders on dark sky compliant lighting design.
Sedona was named the World's Eighth International Dark-Sky Community. The designation of Sedona as an International Dark-Sky Community is the result of a renewed collaboration between the City and KSB. Intense, coordinated work by KSB's Dark-Sky Committee and City staff during the summer and fall of 2013 and more fine-tuning in the spring of 2014, resulted in a successful application to the IDA, and Sedona receiving the designation.
Covered Load Ordinance
Covered Load Ordinance – KSB wrote and championed a covered load ordinance which was adopted by the Sedona City Council in 2006 which made litter resulting from an unsecured load an enforceable offense.
Where we work
Awards
Dark Sky Defender 2015
International Dark Sky Association
Affiliations & memberships
Founding Member of the Sustainability Alliance 2014
External reviews
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of acres of land protected
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Land Preservation Task Force
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
We raised over 18 Million to purchase this land so it could be protected permanently by donating it to the National Forest.
Total pounds of debris collected
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Litter Lifters
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
This is our estimate of the number of pounds of litter removed each year.
Total number of organization members
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Total number of new organization members
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of coalition meetings
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Other - describing something else
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Meetings of the Sustainability Alliance of which we are a founding member
Number of press releases developed and distributed
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Context Notes
Describing events and achievements.
Number of community events or trainings held and attendance
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Related Program
Speaker Series
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
Speaker Series events, Native Plant Workshop events, Community Conversations, and Candidate Forums
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
We strive to maintain and enhance the scenic beauty and environment of our area, which entails many programs and initiatives. Some have been in place for all 50 years of our existence as a non-profit and some of which are newer. Our longest-running program, which is at the heart of our mission, is litter lifting. We keep over 50 miles of streets and roads clean of litter. This past year, we formally added a number of streets within the city limited, and look forward to expanding even more. Dark Skies are extremely important to residents and visitors, prompting us to lead the effort to become only the 8th dark sky certified location in the world. We are strongly supporting the initiative by Yavapai County to become the first dark sky county on the US. We're also leading a new effort to help businesses and residences replase noncompliant lighting by subsidizing replacements. Finally, we're planning to udtate our building to become a model of energy effic
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
We actively oppose unsustainable or inappropriate development proposals while supporting those that are sustainable and appropriate. In particular, we've begun focusing on the need for workforce and affordable housing in our area. We engage directly with county and city governments as they develop long-range plans, strongly advocating for the protection of our environment and for focusing on fostering sustainable communities. Our ongoing Speaker Series stresses educating the community on threats to the environment and on sustainable living. Our litter lifting program will continue to be a key focus.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
We have a corps of some 90 volunteer litter lifters. Our volunteers also include retired professionals adept at analyzing problems and arriving at proposed solutions. For example, when we needed to administer a survey to identify resident concerns on the various aspects of the new Yavapai County Comprehensive Plan, we called on both a retired Project Manager and a retired expert in survey development. The draft survey we offered to the county was used by them in its entirety. Our fundraising has been excellent over the decades, allowing us to support initiatives like donating the first GIS system to the City of Sedona, paying for an extensive study of the water quality in Oak Creek, and paying for a wildfire analysis that supported our strong opposition to a development on land completely surrounded by National Forest land. We have an endowment fund sufficient to see us through a prolonged financial recession resulting in decreased membership contributions.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
In our 50 years, we have seen significant successes. Prior to the incorporation of Sedona in 1988 we acted as a de facto city government, convincing businesses to remove unsightly signs and billboards and to redesign new buildings aesthetically. We wrote the first Sedona sign ordinance that was adopted. We likewise authored the first covered load ordinance. Our efforts, along with the efforts of others in the community, have resulted in a number of inappropriate development proposals being denied or withdrawn. We led the effort to raise over $18 million to purchase 518 acres of critically important private land that was then donated to the Red Rock District of the Coconino National Forest. Our efforts resulted in Sedona being named the 8th dark sky location in the world, and we supported efforts that resulted in the Village of Oak Creek, Cottonwood and Camp Verde also seeking and receiving Dark Sky certification from the International Dark Sky Association. We were the driving force behind a successful effort to enact the first voluntarily agreement with helicopter tour operators that sets minimum altitudes and restricts flight paths to prevent flying over neighborhoods.
We're currently working closely with Yavapai County to influence the development of the new County Comprehensive Plan. We're also working with the City of Sedona as they revise their Community Plan.
We're actively working to limit the damage that OHVs are causing on the Coconino National Forest, and we're engaged in an initiative to make our building (donated to us) an example of how to retrofit to become energy efficient.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
KEEP SEDONA BEAUTIFUL INC
Board of directorsas of 01/29/2024
Mr. Craig Swanson
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Term: 2022 - 2024
Carla Williams
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Term: 2022 - 2024
Abbie Denton
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Craig Swanson
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Peggy Chaikin
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Carla Williams
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Kali Gajewski
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Donna Hadland
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Rob Harrison
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Mark Lawler
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Tom Marlow
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Bob Rothrock
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Marshall Whitmire
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Lynn Zonakis
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Robert Adams
Keep Sedona Beautiful
DeAnna Bindley
Keep Sedona Beautiful
John Black
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Suzanne Castner
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Kevin Cook
Keep Sedona Beautiful
PJ Harrison
Keep Sedona Beautiful
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
The organization's co-leader identifies as:
No data
Race & ethnicity
No data
Gender identity
No data
Transgender Identity
No data
Sexual orientation
No data
Disability
No data
Equity strategies
Last updated: 01/20/2023GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.