Desert Awareness Committee

You won’t want to miss this annual FREE event! Held on the beautiful patio at The Holland Community Center, the Prickly Pear Fest is a treasured event in our Sonoran Desert. Come learn about the many things you can do with this abundant fruit including harvesting, juicing and flour processing. There will be delicious samples of smoothies, salsa, bread and more!

Take a trip with your class through Desert Awareness Park as a Desert Explorer! Gather data as you explore, learn all about the plants and animals of the desert, then share with others! We are excited to announce our Desert Reach Education Program is now available on a 7 segment professional video with teacher guide, ready to be downloaded and used in your classroom or home.

• Our desert edibles and medicinal workshops for the public at large explaining how to harvest, prepare and use desert plants.

• Our “Fragile Desert” publication, a practical and informative guide to living sustainably in the Sonoran Desert plus “Chloe and the Desert Heroes”, a book that will inspire people of all ages to respect the natural world and honor the dignity of every human being.

• Our “Taste of the Desert”  cook book with 77 recipes and how-to information on harvesting and preparing desert fruits, beans, nuts and flowers.

• Our 300 natural history articles written by members over 25 years.

Our stewardship of Desert Awareness Park, located in Cave Creek, is dedicated to those who yearn to understand our desert home. You will find short nature trails, an interpretive center, picnic areas, children’s playground and an abundance of meaningful information about our surrounding desert. 

Join us for a park tour on the 1st Saturday of the month, November – April, tours begin at 10am and last about 90mins.

Join us in our exciting hands on workshops which provide an opportunity to learn fascinating aspects of the Sonoran Desert. Speakers bring their knowledge, experience, and enthusiasm to you in these exciting and informative workshops. Watch here for our 2023-24 workshops coming soon!

If you love the desert, want to know more, or want to work with us to help us accomplish our mission, come join us! Complete our online membership form, or call the Holland Center office at 480-488-1090 for more information.

Our fourth grade school classroom program, Desert Reach, provides hands-on desert ecology experiences.

Check out our NEW Virtual Sonoran Desert Field Trip Video on YouTube and download the Virtual Field Trip Guide.

• A new recipe book from DAC with 77 recipes including prickly pear, mesquite & more.
• PLUS “how to” harvest & prepare desert fruits, berries, beans, nuts, flowers.

If you love the wildlife of the Sonoran Desert, you’ll want others to relish the characters in this tale from their perspective.

Much has been published about the lifestyle, plants and animals of the Sonoran Desert. The Foothills area is called “The Arizona Uplands” and has an elevation of 2500 to 4500 feet. The Fragile Desert addresses the issues that Foothills residents may encounter in adapting to, enjoying, and understanding the desert environment.

Great online articles about our Sonoran Desert and more!

This wonderful little park, located in Cave Creek is a community gem.

“At Home in the Desert” written by Phyllis Strupp, is a one-act play, seeking to help elementary school students sort out their difficulties by connecting with the natural world around them, the desert. The play promotes diversity and communication and is perceived as a tool for reducing bullying.  In the play, eleven year-old Chloe learns valuable life lessons from the Sonoran Desert with the help of some mysterious friends (historical figures, desert plants and animals).