Disney's Cotino Community Partners with The Living Desert to Inspire Young Conservationists

Storyliving by Disney's Cotino community in Rancho Mirage hosted its first youth conservation program alongside The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens. Twenty students from Desert Mirage High School participated in career exploration, guided tours, and hands-on activities like creating pollinator pods for native desert plants.

Disney's Cotino Community Partners with The Living Desert to Inspire Young Conservationists

Storyliving by Disney's flagship residential community, Cotino in Rancho Mirage, California, has launched its first youth-focused conservation initiative in partnership with The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens and Disney's Animals, Science and Environment team. The Desert Defenders Career Exploration Camp welcomed 20 students from Desert Mirage High School's Green Academy for a day of immersive learning that connected classroom education with real-world conservation careers.

Dr. Zak Gezon, conservation director for Disney's Animals, Science and Environment, speaking to high school students at The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens in the Coachella Valley
Dr. Zak Gezon, Disney's conservation director, speaks to students from Desert Mirage High School's Green Academy during the Desert Defenders Career Exploration Camp.

A Day of Conservation Careers and Hands-On Learning

The camp marked Cotino's first community program focused on biodiversity youth education. Students participated in guided tours, career chats, and hands-on conservation activities designed to bridge the gap between academic study and professional practice.

"The most important species to focus on in conservation is people. They need to know they can make a difference and that there are great careers in the sciences. The students we're engaging with today are the decision makers of tomorrow." — Dr. Zak Gezon, Conservation Director, Disney's Animals, Science and Environment

Dr. Anna Young, vice president of learning and impact at The Living Desert, emphasized the program's goal of showing students the diverse roles behind environmental stewardship. The camp is part of Desert Defenders, a broader community education initiative engaging schools and neighborhoods across the Coachella Valley through creative projects like building native pollinator gardens and designing waste reduction strategies.

Dr. Anna Young, vice president of learning and impact at The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens, leading a conservation education session
Dr. Anna Young of The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens discusses conservation careers with visiting students.

Investing in Youth, Community, and the Future

Dr. Ramsa Chaves Ulloa, sustainability program manager for Disney Signature Experiences, shared her own career journey with the students, from her university education in Costa Rica to her current role at Disney.

Dr. Ramsa Chaves Ulloa, sustainability program manager for Disney Signature Experiences, describing her conservation career journey to students
Dr. Ramsa Chaves Ulloa of Disney Signature Experiences shares her career path from Costa Rica to Disney conservation work.
"Conservation begins with connection and with understanding the people who make it possible." — Dr. Ramsa Chaves Ulloa

During the camp, students created "pollinator pods" — small seed balls made from native plant seeds, clay, and compost. Gezon and Chaves Ulloa then planted them at Cotino, directly linking student efforts to tangible conservation outcomes in their own community.

Dr. Zak Gezon helping students create pollinator pods at the Desert Defenders Career Exploration Camp station Students creating pollinator pods from native plant seeds, clay, and compost during the Desert Defenders conservation camp

"It was a great experience to be with the animals, to be with the zookeepers and to learn new things," said Violeta, a Green Academy student who participated in the camp.

Walt Disney's Legacy of Desert Conservation

The partnership carries a deep historical connection. Walt Disney's relationship with the California desert began in the 1930s at Smoke Tree Ranch in Palm Springs. His love for the region inspired the 1953 documentary The Living Desert, which blended real footage with storytelling and helped inspire the naming of The Living Desert Zoo and Gardens. In 1993, Disney animators returned to the zoo to study meerkats for The Lion King, reinforcing the bond between Disney's creative work and desert conservation.

Key Details

"Walt Disney famously said, 'Conservation isn't just the business of a few people. It's a matter that concerns all of us.' He cared deeply about the natural environment, and that commitment has been part of the Disney difference for over a century." — Dr. Zak Gezon

What This Means for the Disney Community

This initiative signals that Storyliving by Disney communities are becoming more than just residential developments — they're evolving into active hubs for Disney-supported education and conservation outreach. For fans who have followed Disney's environmental efforts through programs at Animal Kingdom and the Disney Conservation Fund, the Cotino partnership represents a new frontier: bringing Disney's conservation mission directly into the neighborhoods where people live. Learn more about Disney's community impact at impact.disney.com and The Living Desert's education initiatives through their World Desert Day program.