DBG Strategic Plan | 2019-2025 by dbgphx

DESERT BOTANICAL GARDEN

STRATEGIC PLAN 2019 – 2025 SECOND EDITION

SUSTAINABILITY | THE TRIPLE BOTTOM LINE Environmental Sustainability • Economic Sustainability • Social Sustainability

2019 – 2025 Celebrating its 85th anniversary in 2024, Desert Botanical Garden is committed to accomplishing the goals set forth in the following strategic plan by December 2025. This plan was originally published in 2019, and was intended to guide the Garden’s growth through the five-year period ending in 2023. However, with the onset of COVID-19 in 2020, the Garden suspended the original five-year strategic plan for a total of two years, and focused instead on health: first, on protecting the wellbeing of its staff; second, on securing the safety of its visitors: and third, only after the first two goals had been achieved, on the fiscal health of the Garden. The essence of this second edition of the strategic plan remains the same as the first. No major initiatives were added to the second edition, nor were any deleted from the first edition. What has changed in the second edition is that progress to date is noted where appropriate, and some timelines for accomplishing the remaining goals have been extended beyond their original completion dates. Like the edition that preceded it, this edition of the strategic plan is ambitious yet readily achievable. It is lofty in its reach but also grounded in the Garden’s history and traditions. And it is holistic, drawing inspiration from the four corners of the mission while forging a new path for the Garden.

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This new plan comes on the heels of more than 25 years of dramatic growth at Desert Botanical Garden. Starting in the late 90s, Board members and staff have completed three ambitious capital campaigns that have transformed the Garden. •

Growing a Legacy for Generations was completed in 2000 and raised $17 million to build the Garden’s world-class science and education campus.

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Tending the Garden was completed in 2008 and raised more than $18 million. These funds were used to construct dramatic new exhibits for the Garden’s plant collections and to create a $9 million endowment, which is now valued at $16 million.

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The Saguaro Initiative was completed in 2017 and it, too, raised more than $18 million. This campaign served to construct state-of-theart greenhouses and exhibits, as well as further build the Garden’s endowment and other reserve funds.

Following the investment of more than $50 million during the past 25 years, the 2019-2025 Strategic Plan builds upon and celebrates the gains made to assure that the Garden will continue to be a powerful force for conserving and sustaining desert plants, habitats and valuable community resources. The 2019-2025 strategic plan articulates the Garden’s focus on “Sustainability: The Triple Bottom Line.” In so doing, it emphasizes the three pillars of sustainability commonly recognized in the business and nonprofit sectors: economic, environmental and social. To these, a fourth area of focus has been added: branding and communications. This was done to recognize that success in the other three pillars requires effective and inspirational communications from the Garden. In the pages that follow, we define what each type of sustainability means to the Garden and its mission. We are proud that hundreds of dedicated people generously devoted countless hours to create this publication. We extend our gratitude to each and every person who has been a part of this endeavor.

Ken Schutz The Dr. William Huizingh Executive Director

Harold C. Dornbecher President of the Board

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The Garden is here to help you enjoy the

beauty of the desert

AND CARE ABOUT IT.

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H I STORY For nearly 85 years, Desert Botanical Garden has been teaching and inspiring visitors from the local community and around the world, providing research, exhibits and experiences designed to help understand, protect and preserve the Sonoran Desert. In the 1930s, a small group of passionate local citizens saw the need to conserve our beautiful desert environment. One was Swedish botanist Gustaf Starck, who found like-minded residents by posting a road sign that said, “Save the Desert,” with an arrow pointing to his home. Another was Gertrude Divine Webster, who challenged us “to preserve, not destroy” the Sonoran Desert. More than eight decades later, thanks to leadership and investments from many individuals, the Garden has blossomed from a dream into a living museum unlike any other.

Today, the Garden features: • 140 acres of Sonoran Desert habitat • 55 acres under cultivation • More than 50,000 desert plants in dramatic outdoor exhibits • The national collections of agaves and cactus, as designated by the American Public Gardens Association Plant Collections Network. • Accreditation by the American Alliance of Museums since 1983 • An exuberant volunteer program with more than 700 members • Attendance of more than 500,000 visitors each year • 37,000 member households

GARDEN VA LUE S

STEWARDSHIP

| To protect and preserve desert plants, animals and habitats

INTERDEPENDENCE | To embrace biodiversity and respect the connections among people, plants and all of nature

AUTHENTICITY | To reflect the Sonoran Desert’s natural heritage and cultural history within a public garden setting

ACCOUNTABILITY | To act ethically and responsibly as we serve our increasingly diverse communities

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MI SS IO N The Garden’s commitment to the community is to advance excellence in education, research, exhibition and conservation of desert plants of the world with emphasis on the Sonoran Desert. We will ensure that the Garden is always a compelling attraction that brings to life the many wonders of the desert. (Articles of Incorporation, 1937, as amended in 2002.)

VI S I ON The Garden’s vision is to be the premier center in the world for the exhibition, research and conservation of desert plants. The Garden strives to be an indispensable resource for learning about cactus, agave and other desert plants of the Sonoran Desert and the world. Every element of the Garden reflects excellence, beauty and inspiration to transform the guest experience into one of discovery. The Garden is here to help everyone enjoy the beauty of the desert and to help them care about protecting and sustaining the natural world for the benefit of future generations.

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T H E PL ANNIN G P R OCE SS The Board, co-chairs of the Strategic Planning Steering Committee and members of the Garden’s senior staff undertook the visioning process. After considerable discussion and reflection, “Sustainability, The Triple Bottom Line” was selected as the unifying theme of this plan. Simultaneously, “big ideas” for advancing the Garden’s mission in the next five years were collected from Garden staff, trustees, volunteers and members of the community. As this list was being compiled, no idea was off limits, and all were evaluated by the Strategic Planning Steering Committee. Some were deemed operational, some were moved forward to be vetted by several different Strategic Planning Task Forces, and others were put on hold to be considered for the next strategic plan. The Strategic Planning Steering Committee developed Guiding Principles for use in evaluating all “big ideas” and for use as touch points for the Task Forces. Articulating the Garden’s definitions of sustainability was a critical step in the planning process.

GUI DI NG PRIN CIPLE S SUST AI N A B I L I T Y Desert Botanical Garden is committed to striking a balance between structured planning and operational flexibility in an ever-changing world. The Garden models responsiveness and resilience, while demonstrating that it can both endure and thrive in pursuit of its mission. This requires emphasizing “the triple-bottom line” by excelling in all three pillars of sustainability: economic, environmental and social. E C ON O MI C S U S T AI N A B I L I T Y Desert Botanical Garden will continue to responsibly manage its financial, human and other resources in order to support its mission for future generations. The Garden will utilize and expand existing revenue streams, while simultaneously identifying currently untapped revenue sources to diversify revenue and support future growth. The Garden will continue to strengthen its balance sheet by creating and funding various cash reserves. E N V IR O NME NT A L S U S T A I NAB ILIT Y Desert Botanical Garden will leverage its established reputation as an expert in research, conservation, collection and horticulture of cactus and agave to become the global leader in the conservation of desert plants. The Garden is committed to sharing its knowledge and best practices to conserve and protect desert plants and habitats. SOC IA L S U S T A I NAB I L I T Y Desert Botanical Garden ensures social diversity and inclusion by providing a supportive culture in which everyone feels welcome, engaged and valued. The Garden strives to support broader community efforts, reaching beyond its own boundaries, and encouraging conversations surrounding critical issues. As a founding cultural institution in our community, we will lead by example to develop and implement strategies to ensure that our Board, staff and volunteers reflect the diversity of the audiences that we serve.

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As part of the Garden’s plan to ensure continued revenue growth, the Economic Sustainability Task Force approached planning by considering two distinct questions. The first question explored how the Garden will continue to run at high capacity. The second explored priorities for revenue enhancement beyond current revenue streams, and strategies for strengthening the Garden’s balance sheet. Desert Botanical Garden intentionally operates like a business, because a major financial misstep could put the Garden out of business. Our customers are the communities we serve, and our products are those described in our mission. We are a compelling attraction for tourists and residents that brings to life the many wonders of the desert through events and the exhibition of desert plants. We also provide customers–our community–with educational programs, research and the conservation activities that are necessary to keep our collective desert home healthy and vibrant. We think of the annual operating budget from earned and contributed revenue as one engine in the Garden’s twin engines of support. This engine depends on offering appealing events, exhibits and programs that generate sufficient funding to cover the cost of providing all such programs. It also funds the operation of the mission-related “cost centers” of the Garden, namely education, research and conservation. These cost centers, however, are not considered as financial drains. Rather they fuel the Garden’s second engine of support. This second engine is the one that inspires community investment in the mission of the Garden. As noted in the foreword to this plan, more than $50 million has been invested in the Garden by our community in the last 25 years– for infrastructure, state-of-the-art buildings and exhibits, and the endowment. Such is the power of engine two–it has inspired extraordinary philanthropic support for the Garden’s mission pillars of research, conservation, education and exhibition. Between now and 2025, the Garden will focus on building its annual operating budget through earned and contributed revenue in order to achieve growth and provide economic sustainability. Also without conducting a formal capital campaign, the Garden will secure major funding to build the next phase of the Hazel Hare Center for Plant Science. This strategic plan would not be complete if it did not acknowledge the Garden’s secret asset in its fiscal success–the Volunteers in the Garden. Prior to the COVID crisis, more than 700 highly trained individuals dedicated to the Garden’s mission donated in excess of 61,000 hours of service each year. That is equivalent to 30 full-time positions. During the pandemic, in-person volunteering was suspended and the Garden remained in communication with volunteers through digital technology. Since the beginning of 2023, the Volunteers in the Garden program has resumed and participation is expected to return to pre-COVID levels.

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THE PLAN

ECO N O M I C S USTAINAB ILITY

ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY ONGOING INITIATIVES Following are the goals of the 2019-2025 strategic plan, as related to economic sustainability. The goals established in the first edition of the plan are printed in black. Progress reports, and refinement of goals, added in the second edition are printed in blue. ATTENDANCE AND EXHIBITION GOALS

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Continue to offer a temporary art exhibit each year, with a “blockbuster” exhibit every other year. Chihuly in the Desert was the first blockbuster exhibit presented during this strategic plan in 2021-2022. Fernando Botero: El Maestro exhibit to be presented in 2023-2024 will be the second blockbuster exhibit. Revenue and attendance shifted sharply during the COVID crisis, with large downward swings in 2020 and 2021. Here, as in all other similar places throughout this document, growth is measured by comparing actual results in fiscal year 2023 to actual results in fiscal year 2019. During that time frame, total attendance as measured by number of visitors increased by 12%, from 356,272 to 398,399 visitors. Total attendance as measured by revenue increased by 16%, from $7,854,147 to $9,099,048. Maintain the overall beauty and aesthetic appeal of the Garden through a program for perennial renewal of existing plant exhibits. The Horticulture Department has been reorganized and expanded by three positions since 2019 to provide even better care and maintenance of the entire plant collection. Two new major exhibit areas have been designed and funded, and construction of both will be complete in 2024.

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Design Garden marketing communications campaigns that utilize the best available data and technology to maintain our traditional audience base and develop new audiences. The Garden has migrated nearly all of its marketing communications strategies to digital formats and social media channels, fostering the strong growth in paid attendance observed since 2019.

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Add exciting new and fun experiences for Garden visitors of all ages. The Garden has added an 8,000 square foot nature play area with intensive programming for children 12 and younger, and greatly enhanced its fall programming to feature festivals and temporary exhibits during Hispanic Heritage month.

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Optimize admissions revenue through implementation of a dynamic pricing system. The Garden has implemented a very successfully dynamic pricing strategy through creation of tiered admission days, offering peak, regular and summer pricing.

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ONGOING INITIATIVES CONTINUED

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Grow other revenue lines, such as beverage and food sales and Garden Shop sales. Food, beverage and retail sales shifted sharply during the COVID crisis, with large downward swings in 2020 and 2021. These revenue lines have almost recovered to pre-COVID levels. Here, as in all other similar places throughout this document, growth is measured by comparing actual results in fiscal year 2023 to actual results in fiscal year 2019. During that time frame, net food, beverage and retail revenue decreased 4%, from $2,221,913 to $1,947,719.

PHILANTHROPIC GOALS

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Garden fundraising revenue, which consists of three distinct revenue streams, will be increased by at least 2.5 percent annually.

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Grow general membership revenues in tandem with annual visitation rates. Greater attention will be given to nurturing both aspects of the general membership life cycle: acquisition and retention. Annual general membership revenue shifted slightly during the COVID crisis, with downward swings in 2020 and 2021. This revenue line has almost recovered to pre-COVID levels. Here, as in all other similar places throughout this document, growth is measured by comparing actual results in fiscal year 2023 to actual results in fiscal year 2019. During that time frame, general membership revenue decreased by 5% from $3,034,040 to $2,888,996. Current membership renewal rates are at 58% per year, down from 60% in 2019.

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Philanthropic memberships that support the Garden’s mission pillars will realize growth as we strengthen donor programs and messages. Philanthropic membership revenue saw a slight decline during the COVID crisis, with downward swings in 2020 and 2021. Here, as in all other similar places throughout this document, growth is measured by comparing actual results in fiscal year 2023 to actual results in fiscal year 2019. During that time frame, philanthropic membership revenue increased by 5% from $1, 270,369 to $1,330,207.

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Strengthening other contributed revenue resources– annual giving, planned giving and grants from corporations and foundations, including donor advised funds and family foundations. Revenue from all other contributed sources increased during the COVID crisis, with upward swings in 2020 and 2021. Here, as in all other similar places throughout this document, growth is measured by comparing actual results in fiscal year 2023 to actual results in fiscal year 2019. During that time frame, total revenue from all other contributed sources increased by 53% from $860,341to $1,315,713.

EDUCATION GOALS

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Children’s education programming will increase the number of K-8 students served, expand preschool programs and develop on-site pop-up learning centers for children in anticipation of the opening of the Children & Family Garden. Nearly all K-8 school programs and on-site preschool programs were suspended in 2020. Post-COVID, a new Senior Director of Education was hired and is beginning to rebuild programs, in some cases reinventing them. By the end of 2025, programs for K-8 schools and preschool children will have been evaluated for their relevance in a post-COVID world, redesigned and brought online.

ONGOING INITIATIVES CONTINUED

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Adult education will streamline current catalog offerings while simultaneously designing new classes to attract additional audiences. Nearly all adult education programs were suspended in 2020. Post-COVID, a new Senior Director of Education was hired and is beginning to rebuild these programs, in some cases reinventing them from the ground up. By the end of 2025, programs for adults will have been evaluated for their relevance in a post-COVID world, redesigned and brought online.

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Las Noches de las Luminarias will continue to delight holiday guests of all ages–both new audiences and those that come back to visit year after year. Las Noches de las Luminarias was presented in a limited format in 2020 and 2021. It returned to normal capacity in 2022. As a mature program that has currently reached its maximum capacity for guests, and stabilized at an optimal price point, Las Noches de las Luminarias will focus on enriching the diversity of performers and audiences in 2023-2025.

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The newly redesigned Desert Landscape School will take in more students each year and offer its complete curriculum in online and physical formats. All in-person Desert Landscape School (DLS) classes were suspended in 2020. The Horticulture/DLS staff converted all DLS content to an on-line format in 2021, and began Beta testing digital classes in 2022. By the end of 2025, the in-person and on-line programming for DLS will have been evaluated for their continued relevance, and reintroduced with appropriate changes by 2025.

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Dinner on the Desert is another revenue stream that is not expected to realize growth in the next five years. This spectacular gala is the perfect size for guests to fully enjoy the experience and the goal is for the event to retain its historical character, while presenting a fresh experience each year. Dinner on the Desert was canceled in 2020 and presented in a limited format in 2021 and 2022. It returned to historical levels in 2023, and is expected to remain at those levels in 2024 and 2025.

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Devour Culinary Classic, in partnership with Local First Arizona and the Southern Arizona Arts & Cultural Alliance (SACCA), has found a new home at the Garden. The optimization of ticket pricing and experimenting with additional capacity for this beloved local event will contribute to revenue growth in this area. Devour was very successful in 2020 and canceled for 2021 and 2022. It was reintroduced in 2023 and attracted sold out crowds. In 2024, a new multi-year contract will be negotiated with partners Local First and SACCA, keeping the event at the Garden through 2026.

EVENT AND SPECIAL PROGRAMMING GOALS

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Music in the Garden concert series will continue to feature the performances that Garden guests have come to love and will expand to include programming designed to attract new audiences. Music in the Garden series was suspended in 2020, and has made a successful comeback to nearly pre-COVID levels in 2023. Growth in the Music in the Garden Series will focus on greater diversity in talent and audiences in 2024 and 2025.

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INCREMENTAL NEW IDEAS

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Develop a licensing strategy for retailing high-resolution scans of Garden images (such as digitized herbarium vouchers, historical botanical illustrations, and high resolution photographs of desert plant seeds) to retail through mass marketers in home decor, housewares and stationery. Prior to COVID, the Garden’s Past Presidents Forward (PPF) Committee, which is populated with previous Garden Board presidents, took on the task of creating a strategy for this goal. They researched similar branding and marketing done at Taliesin West in Scottsdale and began interviewing branding and merchandising consultants for the Garden. The onset of COVID stopped this planning process, and the retail landscape is so different postCOVID, that this idea has been removed from the Garden’s list of current projects.

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Sell more desert plants at retail prices by identifying one-of-a-kind plants and pots for sale to Garden guests and members. This initiative was also paused during COVID. Even though the Garden’s outdoor bi-annual plant sales continued during COVID, the emphasis switched from customized sales of “specimen” plants to high volume sales of traditional nursery stock. Planning is underway to resume “one of a kind” plant offerings in 2024 and 2025.

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Identify and grow out “famous” plant clones from the Garden’s collection to sell at biannual Plant Sales. Like the preceding goal, this effort was also paused during COVID and will be resumed in 2024 and 2025.

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Leverage the Garden’s brand through partnerships with local nurseries to offer unique types of desert plants through wholesale channels. Like the preceding two goals, this effort was also paused during COVID and will be resumed in 2024 and 2025.

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Create a master strategy for Schilling Events Plaza. Assess interest in and market demand for a permanent event/ performing arts venue, make a “go/no go” decision, and then create a business plan if appropriate. This goal was included in the original strategic plan to accommodate the desire of a major Garden donor to fund a significant capital expansion that is called for in the Garden’s 20-year Site Master Plan. The donor is no longer interested in supporting this project, and it will be deferred to the Garden’s next strategic plan.

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Assess opportunities for a Desert Design Expo for implementation in the next 5-year strategic plan. Develop and pilot a platform for local growers and designers to showcase Southwest floriculture by seasonally transforming an area of the Garden into an aesthetically vibrant living floral catalog. This project is well underway. A task force of Board, staff and community members has been meeting for over a year, and they have been benchmarking similar projects throughout the country. A final report and series of recommendations from this task force will be presented to the Board in 2024.

INCREMENTAL NEW IDEAS CONTINUED

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Complete the West Campus Master Planning process. Largely open and undeveloped, the West Campus provides space for future projects, including our planned Children and Family Garden. Preliminary research for the West Campus Master Planning process was completed in the summer of 2023, and the official planning committee will begin the planning process by the end of 2023, with a completion date of fall 2024.

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Conduct a feasibility study for capital improvements to be included in the next 5-year master plan, including a case statement for major projects to be located in the West Campus. This project will begin in 2025, following the completion of the West Campus Master Plan.

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Expand Food and Beverage Options for Garden visitors, testing different types of food and beverages at multiple price points. During COVID, all food service activity at the Garden went into “crisis mode” and both food service areas—Gertrude’s Restaurant and the Patio Café—survived the pandemic. Testing of new food venue concepts has been deferred until the next 5-year strategic plan.

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Conserving desert plants has been at the core of the Garden’s mission since its founding in 1939. Acting at “local through global” scales, the Garden leads in preventing the loss of plant and habitat biodiversity in the Sonoran Desert and beyond. The Garden has held steadfast in its mission “to advance excellence in education, research, exhibition and conservation of desert plants of the world” for all of its nearly 85 years of operation. The foundation for achieving this mission is an unparalleled collection of desert plants. Today, the Garden holds more than 50,000 plants, representing more than 4,800 species, including several hundred taxa that are rare, threatened or endangered. In 2010, the Garden’s prized cactus and agave family collections received the distinction of “nationally accredited” by the American Public Gardens Association Plant Collections Network. In addition to its value for display and education, Desert Botanical Garden’s plant collection of more than 50,000 plants can be thought of as a backstop against extinction for endangered plant species, especially in the cactus and agave families. The Garden is a founding member of the Center for Plant Conservation (1984), and as a CPC Participating Institution, works continuously to conserve imperiled native plants that live in the Southwest region. In this role, the Garden builds and maintains an ex situ collection of more than 30 species held as seeds and living plants and also holds several backup conservation collections for other CPC institutions. These holdings are tracked as part of CPC’s National Collection of Endangered Plants. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has determined that fully one-third of cactus species are threatened with extinction, making cactus one of the five most threatened groups of organisms in the world. In 2015, IUCN designated Desert Botanical Garden as the host institute for its Cactus and Succulent Plant Specialist Group, an honor and responsibility that the Garden has accepted with enthusiasm. In addition to the living plant collection, the Garden holds two additional significant collections, one in the herbarium and another in the library. The herbarium currently holds more than 95,000 specimen vouchers and is the only herbarium in the country to focus solely on plants of arid and semiarid regions with an emphasis on the Southwest U.S. The Garden’s library holds nearly 10,000 rare, out of print, or hard to find books and journals related to the natural history and horticultural care of desert plants. Much of the Garden’s plant collection is displayed along five themed trails: Desert Discovery Loop Trail, Harriet K. Maxwell Desert Wildflower Loop Trail, Center for Desert Living Trail, Sonoran Desert Nature Loop Trail and Plants & People of the Sonoran Desert Loop Trail. The remainder of the plant collection is held in greenhouses and shade structures in off-exhibit areas. Guests have an opportunity to view some of these areas during scheduled behind-the-scenes guided tours.

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THE PLAN

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY

Garden infrastructure to support research, conservation and horticulture is comparable to or exceeds most botanical gardens and includes a seed bank, molecular lab, plant physiology lab, soil ecology lab, seed photography lab, state-of-the-art greenhouse facility, a living collections management system and full GIS capabilities. The care of the Garden’s living collection is the combined responsibility of the horticulture department and the research, conservation and collections department. Together, these departments include more than 30 full-time staff with additional support provided by hundreds of highly trained volunteers. The core research team at the Garden includes eight Ph.D. scientists whose research and publications help fuel the Garden’s vision “to be the premier center in the world for the display, study and understanding of desert plants and their environments.” They also collaborate closely with Arizona State University (ASU) in mentoring graduate students in botany and related fields. In 2012, the Garden launched the Central Arizona Conservation Alliance (CAZCA) to bring together stakeholders across our region to focus on sustainability of the mountain park preserves in Maricopa County. Since then, the Alliance has grown from a core group of eight partners to more than 60 collaborating organizations. In 2018, the Garden and CAZCA published a signature document, the Regional Open Space Strategy (ROSS) for Maricopa County. The Strategy provides the road map for achieving a sustainable regional open space system that supports healthy ecosystems and communities.

ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY Following are the goals of the 2019-2025 Strategic Plan, as related to environmental sustainability. The goals established in the first edition of the plan are printed in black. Progress reports and refinement of goals, added in the second edition, are printed in blue. ONGOING INITIATIVES The Garden’s robust array of ongoing research and conservation programs described above will continue throughout the entire strategic plan. An inventory of ongoing activities, with appropriate performance benchmarks, is provided below.

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Publish at least 10 new scientific articles in peer-reviewed journals yearly. This goal has been met or exceeded each year.

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Mentor an average of three ASU graduate students each academic year, and recruit a new Huizingh Fellow in collaboration with ASU by 2024. The mentoring goal has been met or exceeded each year. The first Huizingh Fellow successfully defended their dissertation in 2022, and a new Huizingh Fellow has been selected.

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Recruit and hire a new Cactus/New World Succulents Specialist. This position was filled in 2021.

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Recruit and hire a part-time program officer for the IUCN Cactus and Succulent Specialist (CSSP) group. This position has been funded and filled since January 2019.

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Add at least 10 CPC taxa to the Garden’s ex situ collection. Seven new CPC taxa have been added to our ex situ collection, and three more will be added by 2025.

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Digitize and archive Dr. Ted Anderson’s slides, and do the same for other critical holdings in the Garden’s library and archives as part of our Library Collections Plan. More than 10,000, out of a total of 14,000, of Dr. Anderson’s slides have been digitized, and the original bound volumes of the Garden’s Living Collections Accessions Documentation are being preserved in digital format, with a completion date of December 2024 anticipated.

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Plan and host an annual Conservation Celebration that provides operating support for Central Arizona Conservation Alliance (CAZCA). An in-person luncheon was held in 2019, and a virtual presentation was hosted by the Garden in 2020. During COVID, this event lost its momentum and base of support, and will not be repeated in the future. Other means of operating support are now being sought for CAZCA.

INCREMENTAL NEW IDEAS In addition to strengthening and expanding the ongoing horticulture, research, conservation and collections programs listed previously, the Garden will undertake the following incremental new ideas:

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Conduct a major collecting trip each year in order to expand the holdings in the Garden’s Cactaceae and Agavaceae collections, especially living plants, but also including herbarium specimens, seeds, DNA sequences and digital images. The Garden currently holds approximately 70 percent of all the agave and cactus taxa that are called for in our collection plans. By 2023 we intend to complete 85 percent of the collection plans. In 2019 a major collecting trip was undertaken focusing on the Central Mexico region. International travel was suspended due to COVID in 2020 and 2021, resuming in 2022 with focus again on Mexico. Targeted domestic collecting trips resumed in 2021. Create and publish the Garden’s comprehensive “local to global” strategy for science and desert plant conservation programs. An ad hoc “local to global” committee of staff, board members and volunteers has been formed and will to identify institutional strengths, opportunities, and priority goals. Publication is anticipated in 2025.

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Co-host a national symposium to assess North American gardens’ success in achieving the objectives of the North American Botanic Garden Strategy for Plant Conservation. This goal was delayed until the new Global Strategy for Plant Conservation Targets is published. Draft targets were issued in July 2023. A national symposium to accomplish this goal may still be feasible prior to 2025, depending upon when the new Global Strategy is adopted.

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Continue collaborations with the Center for Plant Conservation (CPC) and North American Orchid Conservation Center (NAOCC) to expand our ex situ collection of rare and threatened orchid species. Ongoing collaborations have been very fruitful, including each organization obtaining additional funding to support this work. Accomplishments to date include the successful use of scent dogs to locate elusive orchids, and the creation of plans to use aerial drones to locate rare cactus in remote locations.

INCREMENTAL NEW IDEAS CONTINUED

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Publish, in collaboration with IUCN, the international assessment of the conservation status of agaves. Assessment of conservation status of agaves is in draft stage. Target for submission for publication is late 2024.

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Develop an IUCN-CSSG (Cactus and Succulent Specialist Group) internship program with ASU to provide additional technical capacity for the specialist group (particularly in regard to cactus conservation).

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Collaborate with Maricopa County Parks, the McDowell Sonoran Conservancy and the Sonoran Institute to formalize the CAZCA coalition to encourage shared responsibility, advancement of regional goals (ROSS) and financial stewardship, including a plan for ongoing funding and how the implementation of the ROSS will be coordinated among all partners over the next five years. The CAZCA Steering Committee was formalized with adoption of a charter in August 2019. The Garden is currently supporting the operating costs of CAZCA while the Steering Committee secures dedicated funding.

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Lead the ROSS objectives related to native plant material development, habitat restoration and invasive species management. CAZCA working groups have been established to focus on native plant material development (Sonoran Seed Collaborative) and invasive species management (Desert Defenders). Habitat enhancement and restoration will be initiated by these two working groups.

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Complete plan to raise $8 million dollars to fund Phase II construction of the Hazel Hare Center for Plant Science (HHCPS). During COVID, the work of the Garden’s development department shifted to long range planning to take advantage of the slowing of regular activities due to the pandemic. Creating a complete case statement for the HHCPS created enthusiasm among key Garden donors and several lead gifts (more than $2 million each) were pledged to various capital projects. Because of the strong response to the HHCPS case statement, the Garden’s Board in March 2022 voted to launch a new capital campaign for $15 million. By September 30, 2023 $14 million had been raised.

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Articulate the value of the Garden’s conservation work– in terms that resonate with our various communities. Multiple activities have been undertaken in support of these goals, including training of research/ conservation staff in communicating science effectively, engaging the media in support of new initiatives (e.g. The Saguaro Census) and serving as the “go to” source for international media seeking information about the record heat wave in summer 2023 and its effect on native plant populations—especially saguaros.

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Evaluate and analyze the Garden’s book publication opportunities, including the “Cactus of Arizona,” to result in significant publication. This activity will commence in 2024.

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The Garden’s Board of Trustees and staff members understand that authentically engaging new audiences is essential, and that building cultural capacity through IDEA (inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility) is essential to long-term success in achieving the Garden’s mission. The Garden is a good institutional citizen in our community, engendering a spirit of philanthropy and volunteerism, and it recognizes the importance of genuine community collaborations. The Garden enjoys strong annual visitation and currently engages many audiences through education and event programming, special exhibits, and community partnerships. Yet, the Garden is keenly aware that not all local audiences participate fully in what the Garden has to offer. The work of audience engagement through inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility at the Garden does not belong to any one person or department. It is a responsibility equally shared and celebrated by everyone involved with the Garden. At the Garden, Diversity refers to the variety of personal experiences, values and worldviews that arise from differences in culture and circumstance. It includes but is not limited to the influence of different cultural, ethnic and religious heritages and the differences that emerge from class, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, ability, socioeconomic status and other socially constructed characteristics. For the Garden, Equity refers to the assurance of fair treatment, access and opportunity for advancement for all individuals. Equity also aims to identify and eliminate barriers that have prevented the full participation of historically marginalized groups. The key to understanding equity is the idea that individuals and groups need varied policies, programs and practices to succeed. Inclusion at the Garden promises an environment in which a diversity of identities are not only represented but are also supported and embraced through consistent institutional behaviors, practices and policies. An inclusive and welcoming climate embraces differences and offers respect in words and actions for all members. At the Garden, Accessibility gives everyone access by making space for the different abilities that each person brings. Accessibility aims to provide inclusive tools and resource to experience the Garden without barriers.

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THE PLAN

SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY

SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY ONGOING INITIATIVES The Garden has made progress in its IDEA programs and what follows is a brief summary of the current initiatives underway, as well as key projects that represent how the Garden actively embraces its role as a good corporate citizen. Garden programming celebrates local culture with bilingual educational classes and Title One scholarships, which ensures all schools interested in visiting the Garden can do so. In addition, the Garden has built and maintained a monthly Community Day, which is free to all and offers guests the opportunity to visit and experience the Garden. It also maintains many successful partnerships, including with the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce and the urban agriculture initiative called Spaces of Opportunity. The goals established in the first edition of the plan are printed in black. Progress reports and refinement of goals, added in the second edition, are printed in blue.

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Garden programming celebrates Arizona’s deep cultural heritage. This includes ancestral and contemporary American Indian communities, colonial and current Hispanic communities, and Arizona’s rapid growth as a US territory in the late 1800s to full statehood in 1912.

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Monthly IDEA newsletters, complied by members of the Garden’s internal IDEA community, celebrate Pride Month, Juneteenth and Cesar Chavez Day and other once-non-traditional holidays.

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Renovation of the Plants and People of the Sonoran Desert Trail (ethnobotany of American Indians) was completed in 2023, using a $1 million restricted gift from a Garden trustee.

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The President of the Salt RiverPima-Maricopa Indian Community was elected to the Garden’s Board of Trustees in 2022, and is actively involved in Garden leadership.

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Cultural Programming for Hispanic Heritage month was presented in partnership with the Mexican Consulate office in Phoenix in 2022. Curatorial responsibility for the Garden’s Día de Muertos celebration was provided by an artist from Mexico City and featured the works of prominent Oaxacan folk artists.

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The work of Colombian artist Fernando Botero will be presented at the Garden in fall 2023, in collaboration with the Museum of Latin American Art in Long Beach, California.

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To increase access for all members of our community, the Garden has established a monthly Community Day, which offers free admission to all. An average of 60,000 guests visit the Garden each year on our 12 designated Community days. The Garden also participates in a local program called Culture Pass, which provides family passes in each public library that can be “checked out” just like a book. These passes offer free admission for two, and an average of 12,000 guests visit the Garden for free each year using these passes. The Garden frequently partners with community groups to jointly sponsor programming at the Garden that reflects the broad diversity of our city and region.

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INCREMENTAL NEW IDEAS There is abundant evidence that three potential audiences are currently underserved by the Garden, relative to participation by our current core audience, which skews toward white women, aged 55+ years old, with relatively high average household incomes, college degrees and—more often than not—no children living in their household. When compared to the demographic profile of the Phoenix metro area, there are three communities that, statistically, are least represented in the demographic profile of Garden visitors. These communities are: HISPANIC/LATINX

MILLENNIALS

This community represents 20 percent of adults in Maricopa County, yet only 10 percent of current Garden visitors are Hispanic/Latinx adults. Our goal over the next five years is to increase the total percentage of our visitors who are Hispanic/Latinx to 15 percent. Robust market research, new programs and repositioning of the Garden in an authentic way relevant to Hispanic/Latino communities will be needed to achieve these results. Since publishing the first edition of this Strategic Plan, new tools have become available to better measure community participation at the Garden. Utilizing geofencing technology, we now know that 34% of residents in the Phoenix metro area identify as Hispanic/Latinx, and yet only 22% of our visitors represent the Hispanic/ Latinx community. This ratio has remained constant before, during and after the COVID pandemic. Our revised goal is to close the gap in our service to Hispanic/ Latinx communities by 50% by the end of 2025, as measured by this newer technology.

This community represents 31 percent of adults in Maricopa County, yet only 21 percent of total Garden visitors are Millennials. Our goal over the next five years is to increase the percentage of our Millennial visitors to 26 percent. Robust market research, new programs and repositioning of the Garden in an authentic way relevant to the Millennial community will be needed to achieve these results. The COVID pandemic caused a shift in the generational profile of Garden visitors that seems to be a permanent change, as measured by the same geofencing technology referenced above. Consistently since 2020, the percentage of Garden visitors who are Millennials has matched the demographic profile of the Phoenix metro area.

Geofencing data has also revealed that visitation to the Garden by African American and Asian communities actually exceeds the overall demographic profile of the metro Phoenix area, while visitation by American Indian communities is still lower than the overall demographic profile of metro Phoenix.

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CHILDREN AND THEIR FAMILIES The path to serving this demographic audience is clear and has been accomplished already by several other public gardens of our approximate size. In May 2017, the Garden published the Master Plan for the Children and Family Garden, a 3-acre series of interactive exhibits that will encourage nature-based play and learning. A $10 million restricted gift for this project has been provided in the estate of a Garden member and, when received, it will transform the Garden’s appeal to, and visitation by, young children and their families. Currently the Garden is prototyping programs and classes for young children and their families in anticipation of this new $10 million facility. These programs will increase in frequency and content sophistication in 2024 and 2025.

INCREMENTAL NEW IDEAS CONTINUED COMMUNITY & AUDIENCE ENGAGEMENT Our Interpretive Master Plan reflects the significant preliminary work the Garden has already completed. This plan will help increase visitation to the Garden, and engagement in its programs by members of the three communities identified above. Key strategies of that plan include:

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Providing visitor-centered experiences that inspire and motivate connections to nature and the desert environment.

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Offering accessible visitor experiences to engage broader, more diverse audiences by understanding cultural and generational barriers and evaluating how we communicate and frame our messages.

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Evaluating the option of having designated picnic areas.

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Training staff, docents and planning teams to leverage the interpretive and cultural capacity of the Garden to transform how we engage with visitors through exhibits and personal interpretation.

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Creating a Garden-wide learning community to nurture and transform the way that staff and volunteers engage with visitors and align Garden messaging with fun and participatory programming and exhibits.

CULTIVATING EXCELLENCE AND HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGEMENT “Cultivating Excellence” is an internal initiative focused on staff recruitment, retention and recognition, and it is designed to increase inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility among Garden staff, board and volunteers. This program was initially supported by a $250,000 three-year grant received from The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) in 2018.

At the end of the IMLS funding period, the Garden created a permanent diversity manager position in its Human Resources department, and has since reclassified that position as part of the senior management team with a direct reporting structure to the Garden’s executive director. A task force composed of Board members, staff members and community members has been created to select diversity and inclusion consultants to provide ongoing guidance to the Garden in its IDEA programming starting in 2023. Between 2019 and the onset of COVID, the Garden made considerable progress in its IDEA programming. During COVID tangible progress was harder to achieve and track. But despite COVID, many achievements have been made since IMLS funding ended in 2021.

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Micro-inequities and generational awareness learning sessions were provided for all staff.

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A consultant was engaged to assess diversity on the Garden’s Board of Trustees, and proactive plans were implemented to increase Board diversity. Currently, 30% of Garden Board members identify as non-White.

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Overall Garden staffing has changed from 20% non-White staff members in 2019 to 35% nonWhite staff members in 2023.

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An additional fulltime position of Diversity Specialist was created and filled in 2023 to accelerate implementation of IDEA initiatives at the Garden. The Garden has twice received a grant from the Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture to fund a paid internship in IDEA for a local student currently enrolled in an undergraduate program.

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The Garden recognizes that implementation of this strategic plan requires a robust and coordinated communication strategy in order to achieve the goals of our sustainability pillars. The Garden’s marketing communications team and our Board Marketing, Branding and Communication Committee will lead this effort to ensure the following objectives are achieved:

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Messaging to our current members and visitors that the Garden is a place where all guests will have fun enjoying the beauty of desert plants, spending time with family and friends and experiencing the Garden’s programming.

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Messaging to those audiences currently under-served by the Garden–especially Latinx community members, Millennials and children and their families–that the Garden is a welcoming, dynamic place for all Arizonans to enjoy.

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Distributing messages through digital marketing, paid media and media relations that increase the visibility and value of our conservation and research work in terms that are relevant to the day-to-day lives of our members and guests.

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Positioning the Garden within the community as a leader and an agent of change for ongoing conservation efforts to ensure that desert life will be sustainable in the future.

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Reinforcing the Garden’s dedication to IDEA in all messaging and communication.

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THE PLAN

BRANDING & COMMUNICATION

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DESERT BOTANICAL GARDEN BOARD OF TRUSTEES 2023-2024 Officers Harold C. Dorenbecher, President, Amy Flood, Immediate Past President Ann Stanton, Vice President Amanda Burke, Ph.D., Vice President Laura A. Lo Bianco, Secretary Bruce Macdonough, Treasurer Trustees Rebecca Ailes-Fine

Mark Landy

Luis Avila

Jan Lewis

Kate Baker

Timothy Long

Quintin Boyce

David Martinez III

Scott Burdick

Rea Mayer

John Burnside

Geri Mingura

Shelley Cohn

Paul J. Mountain

Joe Colianni

Kathy Munson

Linda Elliott

Linda Norquist

Ann Ewen

Dan Perez

Barry K. Fingerhut

Robert S. Reder

Ursula Gangadean

Edgardo Rivera

Diana Gregory

Bill Rubin

Martin Harvier

Sara Schaefer

Lori A. Higuera

Joette Schmidt

Mary Hovden

Melanie Stuckenberg

Thomas R. Jones

Kathleen Taddie

Jane Jozoff

Jamey Wetmore

Chris Kline

Julie Williams

Trustees Emeriti Lee Baumann Cohn

Donald R. Ottosen

Cliff Douglas

Rosellen C. Papp

Barton Faber

Carol Schilling

Martha Hunter Henderson

Nancy Swanson

Carolyn Polson O’Malley

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DESERT BOTANICAL GARDEN SENIOR STAFF Kenneth J. Schutz, The Dr. William Huizingh Executive Director Margie Burke, Chief Financial & Operating Officer Dr. Kimberlie McCue, Chief Science Officer Elaine McGinn, Chief Experience Officer Mike Remedi, Chief Development Officer Andrew Cipriano, Senior Director of Education Kevina Devereaux, Senior Director of Social Responsibility and Inclusion Genevieve Ennis, Controller Marcia Flynn, Senior Director of Event Services Laura Spalding Best, Senior Director of Exhibits Courtney Stanford, Senior Director of Visitor and Member Services Anice Stonerock, Senior Director of Human Resources Dana Terrazas, Senior Director of Marketing Communications Tina Wilson, Senior Director of Horticulture Kelsey Wolf-Donnay, Senior Director of Development, Individual Giving Alana Turner, Executive Administrator & Board Liaison

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Dec. 2023