TWP is excited to announce two new staff members to our passionate team: Eunice Quintanilla, our new Community Outreach and Volunteer Coordinator, and Charlotte Pitt, our new Restoration Coordinator! Eunice comes from a strong background in facilitating partnerships in the Bay Area, specifically in the Bayview-Hunters Point community through environmental education programming to more recreational outdoor events. Additionally, Eunice has been part of a large restoration project in Southeast San Francisco at Heron’s Head eroding shoreline and was a key contributor to introducing an …
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Martin Luther King Jr. Day
“It really boils down to this: that all life is interrelated. We are all caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied into a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly . . . ”— Dr. King’s 1967 Christmas sermon Martin Luther King Jr. (January 1929 - April 1968) received a bachelor's degree from Morehouse College in 1948, was awarded the B.D. in 1951 at Crozer Theological Seminary and a doctorate at Boston University in 1955. He became a pastor of the Dexter Avenue Baptist Church in Montgomery, Alabama in 1954 and a member of the executive …
Love and Protect your Creek
By Sarah Haselton Urban Creeks face a multitude of challenges that threaten the overall health and biodiversity of our watershed. The Watershed Project has continuously acted to protect our local creeks, monitor local water quality and manage stormwater. Runoff from our lawns, roofs and streets possess a threat to creeks and overall watershed health. A very important issue our creeks are faced with today is water main breaks. If you have ever seen a water main break, you can imagine that there are dramatic repercussions! There are many environmental consequences to a water main break …
Flirting With Water, Love Through Time
By Haleema Tahir It is a truth universally acknowledged that the youngest child in a group of children must, by necessity, do all activities with the same efficiency if not better. It was because of this, that one day I found myself face-to-face with you. My god, you are loud. And you are in my way. Did you have to flirt and dance right in the middle? I don’t think I like you very much. Listen, you, I need to get across to the other side. That’s where the action is. This is the first time I am allowed outside the house with the older cousins! And you aren’t helping. I toe just to the edge of …
A Wet and Muddy Adventure in Wildcat Canyon
By Olivia Rose On an overcast, drizzly thursday, I along with several members of The Watershed Project staff rolled up to Wildcat Canyon, excited to celebrate this beautiful place with students from Ohlone Elementary. As a new member of staff, this would be my first field trip, and I was admittedly a bit nervous. Luckily, as I watched students pile out of cars and vans I could tell I wasn’t the only one. Some of the students were obviously very excited to be there, some a little tired, and with less than ideal weather, others were very skeptical about the whole thing. After greeting each …
Youth activism on climate change : Reactions to Greta Thunberg’s Friday for Future march
By The Watershed Project’s Albany High School EdSet team, and by Green Collar Corps team member Gabriela Suarez-Cruz and Outreach Coordinator Sara Gurdian Climate change activist Greta Thunberg is making waves across the world. Her message of defiance against the inaction by world leaders and denial of the impacts of a changing climate has struck a chord with the youth around the world as well as those who contribute their talents to The Watershed Project. We feature their voices in this article. Gabriela: I first learned about Greta while she was traveling from Sweden to the US. It …
Getting past grass: How to replace your lawn in 3 months
By Paula White and Paula Urtecho I grew up in West Virginia with a big yard and a lawn that required a riding lawn mower to maintain. Lawns make sense in many parts of the country where there is plenty of rain year round, but not so much here in the Bay Area where water bills can soar from watering the lawn during our long dry season. A great alternative to a boring, homogenous lawn is a native plant garden. Native plant gardens are far more interesting to look at than a lawn, (particularly a brown, weed-infested one), and they attract beneficial insects such as bees and butterflies - a plus. …
From Rails to Swales: Managing Stormwater Naturally on the Richmond Greenway
By Kat Sawyer Did you know that the Richmond Greenway is part of the Rails-to-Trails network, where old railway land is converted to greenspace across the country? What was once a right-of-way for the Santa Fe Railroad is now a pedestrian and bike trail for Richmond residents. Local nonprofits have adopted parts of the Richmond Greenway to create gardens and parks that provide an urban oasis where people can walk and ride bikes through the city apart from busy streets. The Watershed Project has played a role in the transformation of the greenway over the years creating swales and rain …
