Greetings Friend,

As the fall transitions to winter, I am reminded how fortunate we are to have the privilege of experiencing the magic that is coastal Marin County. Fall and the start of winter migrations are in full swing for birds, marine mammals – including the arrivals of the elephant seals at Point Reyes National Seashore – and our other winged friends, the western monarch butterflies. On these cool and crisp clear days, visits to the coast provide many opportunities to reconnect with the wonders of the natural world. 

This is also the time of year for the bi-annual King Tides! Tides will be as high as 6.7 feet and almost reaching negative 1.8 feet! The King Tides Project is asking folks to share photographs of the high tides as a way to visualize future sea level rise. If you are planning a trip to the beach, be sure to check tide charts before heading out and always remember to never turn your back on the ocean. 

This is a busy time of year, and I grateful for your engagement and continued support of our work. We are working hard to protect and sustain the unique lands, waters, and biodiversity of coastal Marin and can't do it without your support. We just finished our year-end newsletter which should arrive in mailboxes the week of December 13th. This program update includes some action alerts, ways you can get involved, and updates on some of our campaigns. 

We are in the home stretch of our year-end fundraising, with only $40k left to raise before the end of the year; if you have not renewed your membership or joined as a member, please consider making your year-end tax deductible gift before the end of the year. 

Wishing you and yours a healthy, safe, and wonderful winter season! We are all looking forward to celebrating our 50th, the bird festival, and so much more in 2022.  

In gratitude,

P.S. Did you know you can set up a recurring annual, quarterly, or monthly gift online? 

Whether you choose to set up an annual recurring gift, or want to spread out your giving monthly or quarterly, a recurring gift is a great way to provide stable income to our nonprofit, so we can stay focused on our environmental protection advocacy work and impact on our community - thank you! 

MISSION

To protect and sustain the unique lands, waters, and biodiversity of West Marin. 
We achieve this goal through advocacy, education and engagement opportunities.

VISION

Our work strives to provide long-term protection and conservation of the unique ecosystems and rural communities of West Marin, and serves as a foundation of environmental protection for future generations.

Scoop up your seasonal monarch gifts and enroll in a class to learn to paint the monarch by West Marin watercolor artist,
Birgit O'Connor. Gifts available at the EAC office (Ceramic Mug $15 or Tote $22).

Meet the Western Monarch Butterfly

We are excited to announce our first educational display featuring the western monarch butterfly. The monarch has migrated to the coast for the winter, and it’s a perfect time to learn why this 175-million-year-old species is now at risk of extinction and how you can help to ensure we all have a future with monarchs. The educational display is open Thursdays through Saturdays (closed holidays) from 12 pm to 4 pm through January 2022.

This multi-media, family-friendly exhibit is located at 65 3^rd Street, Suite 12, Point Reyes Station and features educational information about the environmental risks, the life history of the butterfly, and integrates local and regional culture with stories shared by the Coast Miwok Tribal Council, poetry by Lynn Axelrod, and local artwork by Luis Mora and Birgit O’Connor. In addition, you can purchase a variety of seasonal gifts including butterfly earrings, notecards, magnets, patches and two limited edition monarch inspired gifts (ceramic mug and tote bag) from West Marin watercolor artist, Birgit O'Connor. 

“Today’s remaining monarchs are calling us to get real. To not merely know things and feel things about them but to do things for them. To become attuned to what they need where and when, to think about the plants in our gardens and parks, about how we manage weeds, about where we place development. They are asking us to do for their lives as we do for our own." - Mary Ellen Hannibal, writer and advocate for monarchs

Learn more about how you can Take the Right Action, In the Right Place by downloading our Marin Monarch Movement Report. 

Call For Volunteers!
Duxbury Docent Program Training

Duxbury Reef needs our help! Increasing visitation is taking its toll on the intertidal life of the reef. If you would like to help educate visitors on the wonders of life on the reef, and help to protect the reef’s sensitive intertidal habitat and marine life, we invite you to join our FREE training program to become a volunteer Duxbury Reef Docent!

Our first Duxbury Docent training session will be for residents of Bolinas and Stinson Beach, to give local folks the opportunity to help protect the reef by engaging with the public through education.

Training Dates: January 15th, 22nd, 28th, 29th, and 30th, 2022
Trainings will be focused on Duxbury Reef flora and fauna, intertidal zonation, reef ecology, anthropogenic impacts, tidepool etiquette, docent protocols, and California Marine Protected Areas and relevant regulations. Instructors include: Joe Mueller, Ben Becker, Rebecca Johnson, Leslie Adler-Ivanbrook, and Kent Khtikian. 

Participants Requirements: Must be 18 years old, commit to two 4-5 hour, scheduled shifts per month (low tides in daylight), show proof of full COVID vaccination completed before January 5, 2022, and be able to move about comfortably on the slippery and uneven surfaces of the intertidal area.

Learn More and Sign Up Today

Action Alert!
Measure A Renewal

December 14, 2021, the Marin County Board of Supervisors will be taking public comments on the renewal of Measure A funding that will be voted on by the entire County in June 2022. 

Nine years ago, voters approved Measure A, a one-quarter cent sales tax to fund Marin County Parks, Open Space, and conservation easements on agricultural lands.

Since that time, priorities have changed in our community and now is the time to let the Supervisors know how you would like to see Measure A funds allocated to protect and preserve public lands in the future. 

If voters approve the quarter-cent sales tax in June 2022, we want to see more funding allocated towards climate crisis mitigation — acquisition of lands, waters, and wetlands that sequester greenhouse gases and protect water quality and biodiversity — and a greater focus on equity — including preservation of Coast Miwok cultural lands and to bridge barriers that prevent youth from accessing Marin's public lands, addressing language, transportation, and cost barriers, and hiring a diverse and inclusive team.

Please send in comments to the Board of Supervisors in advance of the December 14th meeting to let them know that priorities have changed and the funding allocations need an update.

Submit Comments

COP26 - Success, Failure, or ...?  

By: Richard Yates, EAC Legal & Policy Intern, third year law student at Berkeley Law, who attended virtual workshops and authored a blog update on the topic.

What should we make of COP26? Protesters and youth certainly had a healthy dose of skepticism that something different would come out of Glasgow (as opposed to the 25 other climate conferences to date).

The sheer imbalance of industry representatives to governments, with fossil fuel companies having more than 500 lobbyists present, more than any country’s delegation, was also deeply concerning.

And then there’s the bombshell report from the Washington Post, calling into question the efficacy of the entire international climate apparatus. It estimates that international climate emissions may be as much as 23% greater than the figure reported by countries, an amount roughly equivalent to the total emissions of China.

Yes, the process of reaching a global consensus on what to do about the climate crisis has been frustrating, slow, and, let’s face it, ineffective. After all, at the end of the day, countries are pledging to reduce emissions under a non-binding framework.  

But what was interesting about this COP, as opposed to its predecessors, is all the action taking place outside the formal negotiations. Rather than deals struck through the conference proceedings, countries like the U.S. enticed other states to sign-on to independent pledges.

Learn More

California Pesticides Lawsuit Victory

In October 2021, a long-fought victory was achieved in a pesticides related lawsuit that EAC was a plaintiff in along with the City of Berkeley and 10 other public-health, conservation, and food-safety organizations.

“The court affirmed Californians have the right to know when dangerous pesticides are sprayed in their communities and what the risks are to people and to pollinators crucial to our food supply,” said Jonathan Evans, environmental health legal director at the Center for Biological Diversity.

The ruling points to numerous instances where the department evaded its responsibility to analyze and disclose the health and environmental harms of the more than 75 pesticides that the agency proposed to use statewide into the indefinite future. The court decision highlighted that the proposal was made largely without public notice and without evaluating local impacts or allowing opportunity for affected communities to opt out.

Thank you to EAC’s supporters that made our participation in this lawsuit possible! 

Learn More

Past Copies of Print and Email Newsletters

Western Monarchs - Videos, Working Group Update, Resource Library 

Point Reyes General Management Plan Finalized

Marin MPA Watch Volunteer Program

Protect the Pacific - Fight Against Offshore Oil and Gas

Safeguarding our Coast and Ocean Blog

Did you know you can set up a recurring gift online? 

Whether you choose to set up an annual recurring gift,
or want to spread out your giving monthly or quarterly, a recurring gift is
a great way to provide stable income to our nonprofit, so we can stay focused on our environmental protection advocacy work and impact on our community - thank you! 

Our Online Store - Giving with Purpose

Give a gift with purpose and support our nonprofit mission with a gift from our online store. Shop hats, totes, tees, sweatshirts and more in a variety of styles. Shop Now