Community Impact Fundraising Guide
April 1–4, 2027 | Patagonia, Arizona
Your ride can make an impact beyond the event.
Ruta del Jefe brings people together to experience the landscapes, cultures, communities, and challenges of the U.S.–Mexico borderlands through cycling, education, and connection.
As part of your participation, you're helping support six organizations working throughout this region in ecological restoration, wildlife conservation, Indigenous sovereignty, humanitarian aid, and environmental advocacy.
Our collective fundraising goal is $100,000, and every contribution helps support the people and organizations caring for this region year-round.
This guide provides information about the organizations you're supporting, ideas for reaching your community, and resources to help you learn more about the borderlands.
You don't need a large social media following or fundraising experience to make a meaningful contribution. Start with the people you know, share why you're participating, and invite them to get involved.
1. Meet the Organizations You're Supporting
We encourage you to spend time learning about each organization. Explore their websites, follow their work, and share the stories and projects that resonate most with you.
Borderlands Restoration Network
Ecological Restoration | Community Education | Watershed Health
Borderlands Restoration Network works to rebuild healthy ecosystems, restore native habitat, support watershed health, and reconnect communities with the land. Based in Patagonia, Arizona, BRN works across the Arizona–Sonora borderlands through restoration, education, and collaboration.
Kino Border Initiative
Humanitarian Aid | Migration With Dignity | Education
Based in Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Sonora, Kino Border Initiative provides humanitarian assistance and accompaniment to migrants while advancing education, solidarity, and advocacy for humane migration policies.
La Tierra del Jaguar
Regenerative Agriculture | Jaguar Conservation | Community Resilience
La Tierra del Jaguar works with rural communities in jaguar habitat to restore degraded landscapes, support regenerative livelihoods, and strengthen coexistence between people and wildlife. Its approach recognizes that effective conservation must also address the needs of local communities.
San Xavier Cooperative Farm
Indigenous Food Sovereignty | Traditional Agriculture | Cultural Preservation
Operated by members of the Tohono O'odham Nation, San Xavier Cooperative Farm supports traditional agricultural practices, Indigenous food systems, and the preservation of cultural knowledge. Its work strengthens connections among land, food, culture, and community.
Sierra Club Borderlands Program
Environmental Advocacy | Wildlife Corridors | Borderlands Protection
The Sierra Club Borderlands Program works to protect the ecological and cultural landscapes of the U.S.–Mexico borderlands. Its advocacy addresses the impacts of border infrastructure and militarization on wildlife, watersheds, and communities.
Sky Island Alliance
Wildlife Conservation | Habitat Connectivity | Community Science
Sky Island Alliance works across southern Arizona and northern Mexico to protect and restore the region's extraordinary biodiversity. Through scientific research, wildlife monitoring, restoration, and advocacy, the organization helps keep landscapes connected for wildlife and people.
Why these six organizations?
Together, they represent different but interconnected approaches to caring for the borderlands. Their work reminds us that protecting landscapes also means supporting the people, cultures, and communities connected to them.
2. Getting Started With Your Fundraiser
Every Ruta del Jefe participant has a $250 Community Impact Commitment, which can be met through fundraising, personal donations, or a combination of both.
Participants are welcome and encouraged to raise more than $250. Every additional contribution helps us get closer to our collective $100,000 goal.
Your fundraising page is the easiest way for friends, family, and colleagues to support your efforts.
Five simple steps
Personalize your fundraising page. Add a photo and a few sentences about why you're participating in Ruta del Jefe and why supporting the borderlands matters to you.
Make your first contribution, if possible. A personal donation of any size can help get things started and demonstrate your commitment.
Reach out to five people personally. Start with close friends, family members, or colleagues who might be interested in supporting you.
Share your fundraiser publicly. Post on social media, send an email, or share your page with a community group.
Follow up and say thank you. A friendly reminder and a personal thank-you can go a long way.
You don't need to do everything at once. A few thoughtful conversations can make a real difference.
3. Fundraising Through Social Media
Social media can be a useful way to introduce people to Ruta del Jefe, share what you're learning, and invite your community to contribute.
The best place to start is your own story.
Why are you participating? What interests you about this region? What are you hoping to learn? Why do you believe these organizations deserve support?
You don't need to be an expert on the borderlands to share your curiosity and commitment.
What to share
Introduce your fundraiser
Share a photo of yourself, your bike, or a landscape that inspires you. Explain what Ruta del Jefe is and why you're participating. Include your fundraising link.
Highlight an organization
Choose one of the six organizations and share something you've learned about its work. Link to its website or share one of its posts.
Share your preparation
Talk about your cycling preparation, the route you've selected, or what you're looking forward to learning during the event. Invite supporters to be part of the journey.
Celebrate your community
Thank donors, share fundraising milestones, and acknowledge the people helping you reach your goal.
Sample social media caption
I'm participating in Ruta del Jefe this April, a four-day cycling, education, and community gathering in the Arizona–Sonora borderlands.
As part of the event, I'm raising funds for six organizations doing important work in ecological restoration, wildlife conservation, Indigenous sovereignty, humanitarian aid, and environmental advocacy.
I'm especially excited to experience this region firsthand, learn from the people working to protect it, and connect my love of cycling to something bigger.
If you'd like to support my fundraiser, any contribution would mean a lot!
Donations made through the event's nonprofit fiscal sponsor are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by U.S. law.
Support my fundraiser: [Insert fundraising link]
A few tips
Put your fundraising link in your bio or use an Instagram Story link sticker.
Share updates occasionally rather than repeating the same ask.
Tag Ruta del Jefe and the organizations you mention.
Use your own photos and experiences whenever possible.
Invite people to share your fundraiser even if they aren't able to donate.
4. Ruta del Jefe Media Kit
We've put together a collection of photos, graphics, and resources to help you share your fundraising efforts with your community.
Whether you're posting on Instagram, sending an email, or sharing your fundraiser at work, these materials can help you introduce Ruta del Jefe and the organizations you're supporting.
What's included?
Event photos: Images of Ruta del Jefe, the Sky Islands, and the landscapes and communities that make this gathering special.
Social media graphics: Ready-to-share Instagram posts and Stories explaining the event, the Community Impact Fundraiser, and the six beneficiary organizations.
Logos: Ruta del Jefe logos for use in your fundraising communications.
Tips for using the media kit
We encourage you to make your fundraising outreach personal. Use these resources alongside your own photos, experiences, and reasons for participating.
You can also share posts directly from Ruta del Jefe's Instagram to help introduce your community to the event.
When using photos or graphics, please keep any included photo credits intact and avoid altering organizational logos.
Don't forget to include your personal fundraising link! That's how your community can contribute directly toward your Community Impact Commitment and our collective fundraising goal.
5. Fundraising Through Email and Personal Outreach
Personal emails, text messages, and direct conversations are often more meaningful than broad public posts.
Start with people who already know you. They don't need to be cyclists or familiar with the borderlands to care about the causes you're supporting.
Sample fundraising email
Subject: Help me support the Arizona–Sonora borderlands
Hi [Name],
This April, I'll be participating in Ruta del Jefe, a four-day cycling, education, and community event in Patagonia, Arizona.
One of the things that drew me to this event is its commitment to making a lasting positive impact in the region. Participants are raising funds for six organizations working in ecological restoration, wildlife conservation, Indigenous sovereignty, humanitarian aid, and environmental advocacy.
I'm hoping to raise [amount] as part of the event's collective $100,000 fundraising goal.
If you're able to contribute, I would really appreciate your support. Donations made through the event's nonprofit fiscal sponsor are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by U.S. law.
You can support my fundraiser here:
[Insert fundraising link]
Thanks so much for considering it. I'm excited to share what I learn and experience along the way!
[Your name]
Reaching out to your workplace
Your workplace may offer opportunities to extend your fundraising reach.
Consider asking whether your employer:
Offers a charitable donation matching program.
Allows employees to share personal charitable fundraisers through internal newsletters or community channels.
Has an employee giving or community impact program.
Would consider making a company contribution to support your fundraiser.
Employer matching programs can be especially helpful. Some companies will match eligible employee contributions, potentially doubling the impact of a donation.
Sample workplace message
Hi [Name],
I'm participating in Ruta del Jefe 2027, a cycling and educational event that raises funds for six organizations working throughout the U.S.–Mexico borderlands.
I'm reaching out to ask whether our company has a charitable giving or employee donation matching program that might support this effort.
The fundraiser operates through Borderlands Restoration Network, a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
I'd be happy to share more about the event, the organizations, and the fundraising initiative.
Thanks for considering it!
[Your name]
6. Understanding Tax-Deductible Donations
What does tax-deductible mean?
Donations to the Ruta del Jefe Community Impact Fundraiser are made through our fiscal sponsor, Borderlands Restoration Network (BRN), a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization.
This means qualifying charitable donations may be deducted when donors file their U.S. income taxes.
Borderlands Restoration Network
Federal Tax ID / EIN: 47-2581032
What this means for donors
Donations may reduce taxable income.
A tax deduction is not the same as receiving the full donation amount back. It may reduce the amount of income subject to taxation, depending on the donor's circumstances.
The amount of tax savings varies.
A donor's eligibility and potential savings depend on applicable tax rules, their income, and how they file their taxes.
Donors should retain their donation receipts.
For individual contributions of $250 or more, the IRS requires a qualifying written acknowledgment from the charitable organization to claim a deduction.
Employer matching may be available.
Donors can ask their employers whether contributions made through BRN qualify for their corporate matching gift programs.
Donations and event registration are different.
Charitable contributions to the Community Impact Fundraiser are separate from Ruta del Jefe event registration fees. Registration fees pay for participation and are not automatically tax-deductible charitable gifts.
The information above applies primarily to U.S. taxpayers. Donors outside the U.S. should check their local tax laws. Donors should consult a qualified tax professional about their individual circumstances.
Additional information
7. Learn About the Borderlands
The Arizona–Sonora borderlands are much more than a landscape to ride through.
This region is part of the Madrean Sky Islands, where isolated mountain ranges rise above desert grasslands and valleys, creating extraordinary biodiversity and important wildlife corridors.
It is also home to Indigenous communities with deep connections to these lands, ranching and agricultural traditions, shared watersheds, and communities whose histories and daily lives cross the international boundary.
The region faces intersecting challenges involving water, habitat fragmentation, migration, conservation, and border infrastructure.
We've selected a handful of resources to help you better understand the place you're visiting and the issues affecting it.
You don't need to read or watch everything. Choose a resource or two that interests you.
8. Remember Why We're Doing This
The Community Impact Fundraiser is about more than reaching a dollar amount.
It's an opportunity to introduce people to a region they may know very little about, support organizations whose work continues long after our event, and build connections between outdoor recreation and community stewardship.
Every conversation, donation, and shared resource helps extend that impact.
Whether you raise $250 or $2,500, your participation contributes to something much larger than your individual fundraiser.
Thank you for helping us make a lasting investment in the Arizona–Sonora borderlands.
Ruta del Jefe | April 1–4, 2027 | Patagonia, Arizona