Eric Sophiea & C.A.S.A. -the Climbing Association of Southern Arizona

Eric Sophiea has been working as a volunteer for the Climbing Association of Southern Arizona, as President of the Board, for over three years and has recently taken an Executive Director salaried position with them. He is a native Tucsonan, working climbing guide, and Wilderness junky. His background is in Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, education, business management, geomechanical testing, and community organizing.

Sophiea will present on:
C.A.S.A. and Foundations: Building a platform for climbers to take care of the places they love and bring their unique projects to life.

The presentation will be focused on giving a short summary of C.A.S.A’s stewardship model and components as well as some of their unique projects and will allow time for questions. Sophiea hopes to engage the audience in thinking about the projects that they want to bring to life, and how they can make that happen.

The Climbing Association of Southern Arizona is structured around giving climbers opportunities to give back to their community. Several stewardship focused programs have grown from the fertile climbing community, and we are proud to facilitate and nurture them. Trail maintenance & erosion control (Adopt a Crag events & an RTP grant), litter removal, graffiti abatement, and the Youth Stewardship Day all prove that climbers aren’t just a user group; they’re invested and want to care for their climbing areas.

CASA’s volunteers have produced some unexpected and unique projects. These are three shining examples of what can happen when motivated volunteers are supported with the right foundation:

-the adoption of the Windy Point area on Mt. Lemmon – nationally precedent setting on Forest Service Land
-the Youth Stewardship Day – engaging non-climber youths for a day of stewardship, education, and an opportunity to experience climbing
-Stories From the Drylands – an anthology of local climbing stories written and edited by climbers.

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