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California has more than 14 million acres of rangelands within the Central Valley and the interior Coast Range. This area is a valuable natural resource for California as it includes a mix of oak woodlands, open grasslands, vernal pools, and wetland habitats. Most of these lands are privately owned and managed for livestock production. In addition to food, fiber and fuel, these rangelands provide multiple environmental benefits such as wildlife habitat, healthy watersheds, open space and recreational opportunities playing a vital role in supporting local economies. Some of the ranches in California have been in existence for more than one hundred years and are part of our rich historical heritage. California's rangelands are under severe threat from the pressures of land conversion and development. Every year 20,000 acres of rangelands in California are lost to urbanization an intensive agriculture. As each acre of rangeland is converted to other uses, vital environmental benefits are lost. In the summer of 2005, a group of ranchers, conservation organizations and government agencies met at a ranch in the San Francisco Bay Area and crafted the California Rangeland Resolution (Resolution). The Resolution is an effort to bring together disparate parties to conserve and enhance private working landscapes within the Central Valley, surrounding foothills, and interior coast range for all the environmental benefits they provide. Signatories to the Resolution formed the California Rangeland Conservation Coalition (Coalition). Today, the Coalition is comprised of more than 127 organizations. The goal of the Coalition is to protect and enhance rangeland habitats in the Central Valley while keeping ranchers ranching by applying the principles of collaborative conservation to research, outreach and policy initiatives. The Coalition has been successful at creating a place where all the stakeholders come together to address complex natural resources issues through dialogue and collaboration.