When the Trees Came Down, the Mission Changed

December 22, 2025

In Ventura County, monarch butterflies depend on pockets of mature trees to survive the winter—quiet, fragile sanctuaries that can disappear in a matter of hours due to development pressure, tree removal, or a lack of awareness about their ecological importance.

For Chris Amendt, the partial destruction of one of those sanctuaries marked a turning point—not only in her conservation work, but in the direction of her life’s mission.

Amendt is the founder of Native Monarchs, a nonprofit dedicated to protecting monarch butterflies and their habitat, and the founder of Monarch Botanika, a beauty brand created to help fund that work. For several years, she balanced both worlds—restoring habitat, educating the public, and attempting to grow a purpose-driven business to support conservation.

That balance collapsed when trees began coming down at a documented monarch overwintering site in Ventura just days before Christmas.

A Mission Rooted in Habitat

Amendt’s conservation journey began in 2020, when the western monarch butterfly population crashed to historic lows. Amid the uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic, she founded Native Monarchs and began transforming an out-of-play area at Sterling Hills Golf Course in Camarillo—temporarily closed at the time—into monarch breeding habitat.

Native milkweed—the only plant monarch caterpillars can survive on—was planted at scale, alongside nectar plants that support adult butterflies. What began as an emergency response quickly became one of Ventura County’s most visible monarch habitat projects, demonstrating that conservation can succeed even on unconventional landscapes.

As the work expanded, Amendt recognized another urgent need: education.

She began growing her own native milkweed, ensuring a safe, pesticide-free source for habitat restoration projects and for residents who wanted to help monarchs without unintentionally harming them.

“There’s a lot of confusion around milkweed,” Amendt said. “Where to plant it, where not to plant it, and how unmanaged tropical milkweed can actually disrupt monarch migration.”

Through workshops, school programs, and partnerships with institutions such as California State University Channel Islands, Amendt became a leading local voice on monarch conservation, emphasizing science-based guidance over well-meaning but harmful practices.

Turning Seeds Into Support

In 2022, Amendt took an unconventional step to help fund her growing conservation work.

While propagating milkweed for habitat restoration, she noticed that some seeds were unplantable—but still valuable. Those seeds were cold-pressed into Milkweed Seed Oil, a rare, nutrient-rich oil with unique properties.

That discovery led to Monarch Botanika, a for-profit skincare line created with a singular purpose: to fund monarch conservation and bring broader awareness to the species through a consumer product.

“I never wanted to be in the beauty industry,” Amendt said. “This wasn’t about trends. It was about creating another tool to support conservation.”

For the next four years, Amendt attempted to do both—build habitat and grow a mission-driven brand—while monarch populations in the western United States continued to struggle.

Vista Del Mar: The Breaking Point

That balancing act came to an abrupt halt in December.

Vista Del Mar Site #3139, a documented monarch overwintering site in Ventura, had long been a concern for Amendt. The eucalyptus grove is recognized by conservation organizations including the Xerces Society and the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, and is monitored as part of the Western Monarch Count.

Amendt had raised concerns about the site repeatedly at Ventura City Council meetings, warning that the trees could be removed at any time to prepare the land for development.

Just before Christmas, that fear became reality.

Without permits, crews began cutting down mature eucalyptus trees—critical roosting habitat monarchs rely on to survive the winter. Community members and conservation advocates quickly mobilized, documenting the destruction and contacting city officials. A stop-work order was eventually issued, but not before eight of the site’s approximately 35 trees were lost.

“When the trees came down, it became painfully clear how vulnerable these habitats are,” Amendt said. “They can disappear in a weekend.”

Choosing the Species Over the Brand

That moment forced a reckoning.

Amendt made a decision few entrepreneurs would consider: she paused actively promoting Monarch Botanika and donated 100 percent of her remaining product inventory to Native Monarchs. Rather than selling skincare, the products are now being offered exclusively as Thank You gifts to donors supporting conservation efforts.

Through NativeMonarchs.org, specific donation tiers include Monarch Botanika Milkweed Seed Oil facial care sets shipped free anywhere in the United States. One donation level provides one complete skincare set, while a higher tier provides two sets—one to keep and one to give, allowing supporters to share the message and impact of conservation with others.

Importantly, 100 percent of all donations go directly to Native Monarchs’ mission, funding habitat creation, protection of overwintering sites along the California coast, public education, and advocacy at a time when monarch protections are being delayed or weakened.

“A skincare business will always be there,” Amendt said. “But monarchs and their habitat—especially here in the West—are disappearing every year.”

The shift allows Amendt to focus entirely on direct conservation—putting every available resource toward protecting a species in crisis rather than sustaining a commercial brand.

A Call to Act

The urgency driving Amendt’s decision is grounded in a troubling reality.

2025 has been a devastating year for monarch butterflies. In California, wildfires continue to threaten habitat, particularly during the winter migration when monarchs cluster in coastal groves. At the same time, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was expected to officially list the monarch butterfly as Threatened under the Endangered Species Act by mid-2025.

That listing never happened.

Despite a massive public response calling for stronger protections, the decision has now been delayed by a year or more—leaving the species without federal safeguards at a critical moment. Compounding the issue, the current administration has proposed rolling back the Endangered Species Act to weaker 2019-era standards, a move conservationists warn would further reduce protections for monarchs and their habitat.

While eastern monarch populations overwintering in Mexico are showing signs of recovery this year, the western migration tells a starkly different story. Western monarch populations remain down more than 99 percent since the 1980s, and preliminary results from the 2025–2026 Western Monarch Count suggest this winter could be the second or third lowest population on record.

“The monarch can’t survive more delays or weaker protections,” Amendt said. “Habitat loss is happening faster than recovery.”

Through Native Monarchs, donations now directly fund on-the-ground conservation—planting native milkweed, protecting overwintering and migratory sites, educating communities, and advocating for science-based protections before more habitat is lost.

Amendt hopes her story moves people beyond awareness and into action.

“This species doesn’t need quiet concern,” she said. “It needs people to speak up, donate, show up at meetings, and demand that habitat be protected before it’s gone.”

For Amendt, the path forward is clear.

“When the trees came down,” she said, “the mission changed. And now everything I have is focused on saving what’s left.”