The Mellon Foundation has provided Los Angeles County with a $1.2 million grant to fund an initiative to preserve memories and artwork of communities impacted by the January 2025 wildfires, officials announced Friday, Jan. 30.

The grant will support L.A. County Library and Department of Arts and Culture, the Los Angeles Public Library, Altadena Library District and their respective foundations on their work called L.A. County Cultural Climate Commons: Community Memory Lab and Living Archive. Grant recipients began the project in January, which is expected to span through June 2028.

The project aims to preserve the lived experiences, cultural heritage, and collective memories of the Altadena and Pacific Palisades communities, which were burned down in January 2025.

Funding was intended to coincide with the one-year anniversary of the devastating wildfires.