FAQs
When will you break ground?
We are planning to break ground on our first habitat location in the San Francisco Bay Area in the second quarter of 2021. Our expansion plans are to open 3 more habitats in 2021. We will continue developing until we reach 9 stable habitat sites. We are always planning the next move, so get involved and be part of this impactful effort.
What is the minimum contribution amount?
We do not have a minimum, but we encourage to given what you can. This is an impact cause.
Are there rewards for contributing?
Every contributor will get a statement of progress based on how much they have contributed and how it has been used to repopulated the monarchs and how their contributions are earning butterfly interest. We will also send DYI kits for donations of $100 or more, if desired.
What is "Butterfly Interest"?
We made it up, but essentially it will be a way for you to see how your contribution will grow over time via natural repopulation of the Monarchs.
The concept is simple. When you contribute, we grow milkweed and then track how that develops Monarchs. This happens yearly as the Monarchs migrate.
In other words, you contributions grow milkweed which feeds Monarchs. We harvest seeds from the milkweed and feeds more Monarchs. This is like compound interest.
Can I see the growth of the Milkweed and Monarchs?
We will have live streams and contributor statements available online. These will go live once we build habitats.
Will you take a check or any non-electronic mail?
No. Think about the cost of the resources and menial labor involved in handling paper mail and check. Electronic donations and contributions online only please. No exceptions. It’s not green and it doesn’t align with our Values.
How will the money be spent?
We believe in transparency and so have budgeted for land, construction, finance, legal, labor, sustaining, and development. Contributors will be privy to this information.
How will you be transparent?
Yes. Contributors will be quarterly summaries, online “statements”, and real-time video feeds of the habitats once they are built.
What's next?
The California Milkweed Highway is slated for 9 development sites. As we grow our platform, we will be adding other non-invasive and symbiotic pollinators, including: lady bugs, humming birds, and Honey Bees.
Read more below in the "Are Monarchs the Only Goal?" question.
Why should I give my money to you?
If your thinking, "There are a lot of other sites like this." You're right. There are literally thousands of site dedicated to saving the Monarch Butterfly. We are the only one the we have found that is addressing this head on and on a large enough scale to make an impact in the first year. Specifically, we plan to double to present population capability in the first year and continue to double that growth for at least 5 years. We aim to be able to support the migration, feeding, and population growth as a legacy enterprise.
What is the downside?
Worst case scenario, we can't grow fast enough. We have had great success growing, so this isn't the biggest problem for us. Our biggest problem is not getting enough funds to grow at the pace that is needed.
Why aren't the grassroots efforts making a difference?
The good news is that they are. They have build awareness. The bad news is that they simply can't grow enough food and nectar plants and have safe havens that can foster millions of butterflies during their migration.
We put together a grassroots location map with results that show how tragic this picture is.
Can I contribute in other ways?
There are lots of ways to do this on a home scale. It’s been shown, scientifically, this isn’t really making the difference it needs to, but we will help you if you want to go this route. We sell DYI kits. Also, we keep our minds and eyes open, so if you have an idea, drop us a line.
Are you hiring?
We are. Positions include scientists, accountants, farmers, engineers, media specialists, inventors, creatives and more. Please use the website to schedule time to speak with us. We won’t look at a resume until we speak with you.
Are you looking for partners, suppliers, vendors, direct investors, etc.?
We are always looking for good people to work with. We are serious about our mission, vision, values statements so if you think we have good alignment reach out. We are serious, but really fun to work with. We don’t like time wasters though, so don’t bother if you are a “troll”.
Why didn't you answer my question?
We aren't mind readers, but we do try. Just get in touch with us. Your input is valuable to us.
What is Reconciliation ecology?
Reconciliation ecology is “the science of inventing, establishing, and maintaining new habitats to conserve species diversity in places where people live, work, and play” (Rosenzweig, 2003a) aims to modify human-dominated landscapes to support native biota without compromising societal utilization (Rosenzweig, 2003a,b; Francis and Lorimer, 2011).
Are Monarchs the Only Goal?
Glad you asked that one. Really. Nope. Monarchs are just the start. We are going to expand into several other pollinators as we grow. These will include Humming Birds, Lady Bugs, Honey Bees, Dragonflies, and other symbiotic pollinators.
We will make this a safe place for these creatures. After all, the rest of the world is already out to get them. We aren't going to be inviting predators into this safe place.
We will also be selling our platform template to other sites as well as creating and manufacturing Milkweed products.
Additionally, we will have an Innovation Center that will be focused on utility patents, milkweed experimentation, and publications.
Further, we will continue to develop the Banking system. We know this will keep people interested and coming back to make sure we don't get this close to extinction again.
Are you a non-profit or a 501c3?
We are not a non-profit (501c3). We are an LLC with sustainable commercial goals. 150left.com LLC was created to stop the Monarch Butterfly extinction. We believe the only way to do this is with a commercial approach. The scale of what needs to be done at this time is too large a burden to reside on land owners and citizen scientists.
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