Chris Sturken applied to the Green Foothills Leadership Academy at the recommendation of his cousin, Andrea Savage (class of 2014). “It was right up my alley,” says Chris (class of 2017) who was taking a grassroots organizing course as an Environmental Studies major at San Francisco State. “I was excited and ready to soak up...
Author: Guest Author
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From Retirement to Reach Codes
After a long career at the Environmental Protection Agency, Kathleen Goforth had a 35-year backlog of personal projects to do. Yet, she decided to add one more to her list: she applied to Green Foothills’ Leadership Academy. “I was just starting to consider retiring and thought it would kick-start my thinking about what I might...
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People Who Give Us Hope: Cherise Orange
By David Simon What do marketing for Green Foothills, studying international affairs, and training people to do COVID investigations have in common? Don’t worry, we’re not giving up local conservation to work on intercontinental contagion. These, actually, are all past and current activities of Cherise Orange, who currently volunteers as the chair of our Marketing...
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Kyra Brown: More Than Just a Bench
Kyra Brown had been working at Youth United for Community Action (YUCA), a social justice and environmental justice organization, when her supervisor suggested the Community Advocates Leadership Academy (CALA). “Oh, hey look. Is this something you’re interested in?” she quotes. “I had never heard of CALA, but when I saw the words ‘community advocates,’ I...
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Ray Larios: Leading from the Back, For Now
Author: David Simon “You don’t just gain knowledge; you gain wisdom,” says Ray Larios of his experience in the 2020 Community Advocates Leadership Academy (CALA) cohort. Before applying to CALA, Ray was getting settled in his role with the Citizens Advisory Committee for Peninsula Clean Energy, and he thought CALA would be a good fit...
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People Who Give Us Hope: Gratitude for Both New and Outgoing Board Members
By: Jennifer Hetterly, Green Foothills Governance Committee Co-Chair Last fall, with several Green Foothills’ directors terming off the board, we published an article inviting the community to apply. We are deeply grateful for everyone who expressed interest and patiently went through our first open recruitment process. COVID-19 might have eliminated our in-person meetings for...
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Giving Nature Some Breathing Room
By Edmund Sullivan, Executive Officer of the Santa Clara Valley Habitat Agency We all need room to breathe: a period of rest in order for us to regain or increase strength. Nature needs that too. And the additional stress brought on by climate change has some natural environments needing a little more time than others....
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Valentin Lopez: Stewardship as a Way of Life
Valentin Lopez is and has always been a steward, selflessly caring for people and nature. From looking after his disabled grandmother and raising his children as a single parent to the restoration of indigenous landscapes, Chairman Lopez exemplifies an intentional sense of care, reciprocity, and respect toward others. He grew up in agrarian Santa Clara...
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Joint Statement to Redwood City Council commenting on Climate Action Plan Update 2030
On September 1, Green Foothills and a coalition of 23 other environmental and community organizations released the following joint statement and press release. Our coalition is calling on Redwood City to include specific and measurable climate adaptation actions in their Climate Action Plan Update for 2030. Read news coverage of our joint statement.
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No Caterpillars, No Baby Birds
By Maureen Draper The war on insects is not one we want to win, as Douglas W. Tallamy writes in his new book, Nature’s Best Hope: A New Approach to Conservation That Starts in Your Yard. I’ve been in the Green Foothills community for many years and thought other members of this wonderful community would...