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Garden for the Environment Joins Earth Island

Based in San Francisco, Garden for the Environment (GFE) has just joined Earth Island’s network of more than 75 fiscally sponsored projects working on environmental issues. GFE teaches people about the environment — soil, water, plants, creatures, and climate — to help grow a resilient, more beautiful world. GFE is currently accepting applications (due August 12) for Get Up!, a three-month program that teaches aspiring environmental leaders the fundamentals of regenerative gardening and urban agriculture. More information and application details here.

Announcing Food Culture Collective

Real Food Real Stories, a longtime project at Earth Island, recently changed its name to Food Culture Collective. Since 2014, the project has served as a place of convergence and powerful connection for folks in food. The project worked with its community to find a new name that would honor the relationships at the heart of the work and their commitment to resourcing, stewarding, amplifying, and contributing to the collective work of transforming food culture: Food Culture Collective. Watch the video announcing their new name and learn more about the project here. They have a great series of events and workshops.

Earth Island Adds Board Directors

Tiauna George, senior director of grants management at the Energy Foundation, and Ariana Katovich, executive director of the Santa Barbara Wildlife Care Network, recently joined the Earth Island Institute Board of Directors. At the Energy Foundation, Tiauna leads grantmaking and contracting operations, systems, and data. In 2000, Ariana received a Brower Youth Award from Earth Island for starting the University of California, Santa Barbara, Coastal Fund, which has generated millions of dollars for shoreline preservation. More information here.

New Group Monitors Environmental Consequences of War in Ukraine

Earth Island’s Altai Project recently joined a new initiative that reports on the environmental impacts of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Ukraine War Environmental Consequences (UWEC) Work Group verifies and analyzes relevant information, publishes articles, and provides expert commentary. Its founders are environmental activists, experts, and journalists from Ukraine, Belarus, and Russia. The war has ramifications for climate change, protected areas, nuclear safety, extractive industries, and the future of a green recovery for Ukraine. Learn more and sign up for the mailing list to receive updates here. Photo courtesy of the International Renaissance Foundation.

EPA Pressured on Oil Spill Regulations

Last month, Earth Island’s ALERT Project and its allies petitioned the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to ensure that its proposed regulatory rules concerning the use of toxic chemical dispersants in oil spill response plans take into consideration the most up-to-date science. Thanks to a lawsuit by Earth Island, the ALERT Project, and other plaintiffs, the EPA is under a court-ordered mandate to finalize the rules. The current science shows that dispersants can cause widespread long-term harm to people, wildlife, and the environment. Petitioners state that failure by the EPA to take current science into account will violate the Clean Water Act. Aerial photo of Deepwater Horizon oil spill courtesy of NASA.

New Film Honors Ohlone Land

Berkeley was the first city in the San Francisco Bay Area to recognize that its citizens live on Ohlone land by revising street signs to read, “Welcome to Berkeley, Ohlone Territory.” After the murder of George Floyd in 2020, the Berkeley City Council passed a resolution to paint two downtown streets with “Black Lives Matter” and “Ohlone Territory.” The former was completed, and the latter, designed by artist David Solnit, was finished in May, as documented in a short film by Earth Island’s Sacred Land Film Project. Check out the film here.

Living Schoolyards Strengthen Climate Resilience

Earth Island’s Green Schoolyards America (GSA) seeks to transform asphalt-covered school grounds into park-like green spaces that improve children’s well-being, learning, and play while improving community ecologies and strengthening climate resilience. In June, GSA CEO Sharon Danks had an opportunity to share her insights at a webinar hosted by Secretary Wade Crowfoot of the California Natural Resources Agency. The webinar is a great resource for communities anywhere looking to green their schoolyards and build climate resilience. Check it out here.

Safeguarding Human-Wildlife Coexistence

The National Animal Care & Control Association (NACA) and Earth Island’s Project Coyote have partnered to provide animal control officers (ACOs) with the knowledge and tools needed to foster peaceful coexistence between people and wildlife. During the summer, ACOs, animal shelters, and police departments typically receive more calls reporting wildlife sightings in neighborhoods. Project Coyote and NACA created co-branded, science-based resources — including fact sheets, brochures, tip cards, and signage — that inform and educate on human-wildlife coexistence. Check out the materials here. Photo by Annica Kreuter.

Upcoming Events

• Plastic-Free Business. On July 27, join Earth Island’s Plastic Pollution Coalition for a webinar with business owners who have succeeded in going plastic free. More information and registration here.
• Deep Hanging Out. On July 30, join Earth Island’s California Institute for Community, Art & Nature at Toby’s Feed Barn in Point Reyes Station, California, to celebrate founder Malcolm Margolin’s latest book, Deep Hanging Out: Wanderings and Wonderment in Native California (Heyday 2021). RSVP required. More information and registration here.