California, the most biodiverse state, hopes to stave off the Sixth Extinction by protecting 30 percent of its lands and waters by 2030. How’s that going?
California's state park system is the largest and most diverse natural and cultural heritage holdings in the nation. Yet the century-and-a-half-old system has been in perpetual crisis mode for several decades, battered about by funding shortfalls and repeated threats of closures.
EBRPD Trails Challenge: So Many Trails to Choose From
January 2023 marks the 30th anniversary of the Trails Challenge—a beloved annual tradition that helps people of all abilities access the vast East Bay Regional Park District and inspires them to get outside.
Caring for the Land That Cares For Us
Today, Midpen’s expertise extends beyond acquiring land for the public and into the complex work of restoring and sustaining it. It funds studies of local species—from burrowing owls to the marbled murrelet—and awards grants to improve accessibility, interpretation, and education.
The Nearly Unkillable Eucalyptus Meets Its Match
Eucalyptus trees on Albany Hill are wasting away from blight. Some people may cheer—but these trees are also home to endangered monarchs.
Tracking Prairie Falcons, Mysterious Raptors of the Grasslands
“Peregrines are birds of the air,” says one expert. “Prairie falcons are falcons of the ground.” That makes them more sensitive to habitat loss throughout California, too.
Largest Tidal Restoration Project in California Will Make Way for Wildlife & Mitigate Floods
Two landscapes stand divided by the hundred-year-old Yolo Bypass West Levee in Solano County. To the south of the levee’s U shape, canals tangle toward the sprawling Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta, which teems with wildlife. North of the levee, former … Read more
In the Wake of Wildfire, Big Basin Redwoods State Park Partially Reopens to the Public
Big Basin State Park is not the lush, shady ancient forest it once was. In August 2020, 97 percent of the old-growth forest nestled in the heart of the Santa Cruz Mountains burned in the devastating CZU Lightning Complex fire. … Read more
Soon-to-Open Tunnel Tops Park Supports a More Inclusive Future
This weekend, on Sunday, July 17, the new 14-acre Tunnel Tops park opens to the public in San Francisco’s Presidio, a former military base turned urban national park that hosts around 10 million visitors a year
Tesla Park: Saved at Last
After 20 years, the state decides not to allow the expansion of an off-road vehicle park in the East Bay hills.
Public Lands Have Become a Refuge for People Priced Out of Housing in the West. Local Tensions are Increasing. What Now?
New questions about what — and who — public lands are for.