Paul Epstein

Olompali State Park. Photo by Fred Davis.

How do you pronounce Olompali?

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Olompali State Historic Park, located just west of Highway 101 between Novato and Petaluma, is rich in both natural and human history. But despite its location right next to a major highway, it is less well-known and less visited than … Read more

Beyond Fossil Fuels

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Ever heard of California’s “Low Carbon Fuel Standard”? UC Berkeley prof Dan Kammen co-wrote it. What about the terms “cap and trade” and “carbon offsets”? Kammen helped popularize these concepts for the American public and transform the way we view … Read more

nature photographer Rick Lewis

Intermissions

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Rick Lewis evokes the phrase, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”  Where other people see industry and ugliness, he finds the bright and the beautiful. Where other people see steel yards, he spots great blue herons.  A self-taught … Read more

LOOMERY. Common Murres Painting by Jeff Long, photo by John Arbuckle

“Paint slowly and carry a small brush”

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Internationally acclaimed painter Jeff Long, known primarily for his abstract works, has lately taken up his brush in defense of Western birds and other wildlife. Referencing the classic bird illustrations of John James Audubon, Long’s monumental and highly detailed paintings … Read more

A Festival with Legs

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What has more than two thousand legs and is converging on San Francisco’s Corona Heights neighborhood?  A: The parents, children, insects and arachnids who collectively take part in Bug Day at the city’s Randall Museum.  Q: Who is responsible? A: … Read more

Kids at an Environmental Volunteers field trip to the Palo Alto Baylands

Helping Kids Make the Nature Connection

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For Palo Alto-based Environmental Volunteers, personal exploration of nature is what it’s all about.  By providing school kids with hands-on experiences of nature, Environmental Volunteers works to instill a love of the natural world and an interest in protecting it … Read more

succulents in Madeline Morrow's native plant garden

Madeline’s Garden

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A resident of Saratoga, Madeline Morrow sits on the Steering Committee of the 2013 “Going Native” tour, a two-day extravaganza of 60 open gardens around Santa Clara, including hers.  The event, hosted by the Santa Clara chapter of the California … Read more

Reed Holderman of the Sempervirens Fund

Keeping Santa Cruz Evergreen

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Nowadays Reed Holderman dedicates his time to the conservation of trees and their habitats, specifically the Coast Redwood. That’s because he’s been the executive director of the Sempervirens Fund since 2009. One of the oldest conservation organizations in the United … Read more

Running up the stairs in the Berkeley Hills.

Geocaching Oakland’s Belap Path

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The East Bay Hills are riddled with hidden paths and staircases.  Providing an athletic training ground for the hard-core runner, a short cut from elevation to elevation for the casual rambler, convenient access to transit systems that have long ceased … Read more