An Update from Andrea Mackenzie

July 23, 2026

Dear Friends, Colleagues and Partners,

After 15 years as General Manager of the Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority, I have made the decision to step down at the end of 2026. I didn't come to this decision lightly. I came to it with a deep sense of gratitude for this agency, for our valued conservation partners, for the community and for the work itself.

When I joined the Open Space Authority in 2011, we had protected about 12,000 acres of open space. Today, that number has more than doubled to nearly 30,000. But the story is about more than acres. Beyond expanding beautiful places for people to enjoy nature, these preserved lands are demonstrating that nature is essential infrastructure for our valley; strengthening wildfire resilience, lowering flood and drought risks, providing clean air and water for everyone in the communities we serve, keeping local farms producing and protecting and connecting wildlands so that nature can thrive.

I'm especially proud of the conservation gains we've made in the Coyote Valley, changing the dominant paradigm of this last chance landscape from one that assumed this beautiful valley would eventually be a sea of sprawling corporate and industrial development to one that now favors regeneration and renewal of wild nature, regenerative farming and the reawakening of people to a sense of place and why nature matters.

With our partners, we've permanently protected more than 1,600 acres of valley floor natural and working lands, leveraging over $160 million to safeguard water resources, a vital wildlife corridor and productive agricultural lands for generations to come. Nothing as historic and profound as the protection of the Coyote Valley just happens of its own accord. It has taken intention, tenacity, partnerships, courage, and a belief in what’s possible. It has taken hope. I’ve considered this work a calling and one of the most meaningful endeavors of my career.

I've always believed that land conservation isn't just about the acres we protect and the funding we raise, but the benefits that nature provides to communities and the power of connecting people equitably to those benefits. In that regard, I’m proud we've grown our Urban Grant Program into a $14.7 million investment in community-led conservation, funding 94 projects since 2016 to bring nature directly into the neighborhoods that need it most; meeting people where they are. In June, voters passed Measure D, (the Santa Clara Valley Wildfire Protection, Clean Water, and Open Space Act) a significant and progressive conservation finance measure, which tells me, and tells all of us, that the communities we serve value nature and the work we all do.

But what I am most proud of is harder to count: It’s the way we have all worked together so effectively, creatively and with such heart to protect, heal and steward the irreplaceable natural and working lands of this region and the wild creatures that call this place home. It’s been the honor of a lifetime to do this work side by side with such amazing, smart, dedicated and like-minded nature enthusiasts – together we’ve made every conservation win possible.

My heart is full for the extraordinary staff of the Open Space Authority, a Board of Directors that has been willing to support bold ideas and a community that has never stopped showing up.

Stepping down from my dream job and from a landscape and community of people that I love was not an easy decision, but it is the right one and it is the right time. The agency is financially strong and we are ready to move to the next level. The Board is committed to a thoughtful search for my successor. And whoever comes next will know they will not be alone in leading the Open Space Authority – they will have an amazing community of partners and supporters standing with them as they chart the next chapter for this amazing agency.

I can’t wait to see what comes next for the Authority, our partners, and for the region. And as for me, I look forward to finding new ways to continue contributing to the protection and healing of our one and only Home. 

With deep gratitude,
Andrea Mackenzie, General Manager
Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority

Read the Authority's full blog update here: https://www.openspaceauthority.org/whats-new/after-15-years-andrea-mackenzie-announces-her-departure