San Francisco Estuary Institute

SFEI’s Resilient Landscapes Program is partnering with the Morro Bay National Estuary Program to complete one of our latest Historical Ecology projects. By assembling diverse historical data such as early explorer descriptions, Mexican and early American-era maps and surveys, aerial and landscape photographs, and botanical and zoological records, we aim to document and map landscape conditions in Morro Bay, California, prior to Euro-American modification. Be on the lookout for our digital map and accompanying report, which we expect to release in 2026. Updates and products will be posted here: https://lnkd.in/g_rZdSgU. #HistoricalEcology #MorroBay

What gets measured, gets improved! That’s why today we will talk about just a few tools used to measure restoration work for the estuary. Let's take a look at two important tools used locally to support a current analysis of the health of our estuary as well as to help us plan for its continued future. #DYK about the WRMP? The WRMP is the Wetlands Regional Monitoring Program. This program, co-led by the Estuary Partnership and the San Francisco Estuary Institute, collects detailed information on the health of ancient and restored wetlands, which is vital for helping practitioners plan for the future. Stop by our website to learn how the WRMP advances regional goals. Visit https://www.wrmp.org/ or sign up for our newsletter https://lnkd.in/gP8egnET. #WadeIn #EsuariesWeek

After four months of engaging with the DAG community in East Oakland, our "Green Stormwater Infrastructure (GSI) by and for Communities" project team presented their GSI design visions last Wednesday night. These designs focus on addressing community priorities—reducing localized flooding, capturing trash, and enhancing the community’s health and cultural identity. Using science tools from Green Plan-IT, advanced 3D modeling, and design expertise at SFEI, we helped the community evaluate the suitability of potential areas for interventions, compare quantifiable benefits, and develop conceptual design scenarios visualized in 3D for the community to review, vote on, and provide feedback for each scenario. Shoutout to our amazing team, including Marquita "Keta" Price and her team from the Hood Planning Group, San Francisco Estuary Partnership, and University of California, Berkeley! Anthony Hale, PhD and Vanessa Lee presented at the workshop on behalf of SFEI. Learn more through our project website (https://lnkd.in/gw3cmGzW).

We welcome our Geo-Pals to join us for a social gathering at?Jupiter?(Berkeley) on Oct. 2, where we will enjoy each others' company, surrounded by a broad selection of beverages, both alcoholic and non-alcoholic. Come with a thirst, an appetite, and an enthusiasm to meet like-minded professionals from the?San Francisco Estuary Geospatial Workgroup, a diverse group of researchers, managers and scientists engaged in coastal management and ecology. No presentations, no notes, no due dates? No worries! If you have an interest in geospatial information systems and natural resources management, or simply like hanging around those with those interests,?please reserve a spot. We look forward to seeing you!

The San Francisco Estuary Institute's Resilient Landscapes Program is seeking a Community Engagement Expert to foster effective collaboration and build trusted relationships with community-based organizations and Tribes. This role will support SFEI’s efforts to co-develop nature-based solutions with underserved communities, addressing environmental degradation and climate resilience. Please see the?Job Announcement?for more information and to apply: https://lnkd.in/gAERsDCE SFEI is an EEO/Affirmative Action employer, committed to the principle of equal?employment?opportunity, and to providing employees with a?work?environment free of discrimination and harassment.

Many hands make a rain garden ?????? Sustainable Solano hosted a rain garden installation at City Hall in Suisun City earlier this month, where community members helped build the garden and learned about nature-based solutions for sea level rise and urban flooding from SFEI scientists Jeremy Lowe and Annie Sneed. The rain garden design was created by Soilogical BioSolutions and Designs. Rain gardens are an excellent form of green infrastructure: they naturally improve water quality, cut down on stormwater runoff, create habitat for wildlife, and more. This rain garden includes California native plants and plants adapted to the local climate: - California fuchsia - California poppy - Ceanothus 'Concha' - Creeping ceanothus - Coastal oak - Pacific dune sedge - Western redbud - White sage - White yarrow - Woodland strawberry Sustainable Solano will host a second rain garden workday on Sunday, October 6. Find details about the event here: https://lnkd.in/gw2RihSa

Community engagement remains a focus of SFEI. This weekend, we collaborated with the Hood Planning Group, UC Berkeley, SFEP, and the City of Oakland in a meaningful discussion with the Dag neighborhood in Oakland. We learned from our local experts and shared some scientific information in exchange. As we approach ever closer to our shared goals, it feels like history in the making.

With more intense storms due to climate change, flooding is a growing issue in many Bay Area communities. Green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) provides mitigation measures through urban greening solutions that capture, filter, and absorb runoff, while empowering communities to create greener, more resilient neighborhoods. The GSI by and for Communities project is building the capacity of residents in East Oakland and Richmond, CA, to understand and improve local water quality. Through hands-on experience, technical training, and exploration of the links between GSI, environmental justice, and race, the project aims to help communities shape their future. The project is being developed in partnership with the San Francisco Estuary Partnership, Urban Tilth, and the University of California, Berkeley. Engagement in East Oakland is being led by Hood Planning Group, and in Richmond by Urban Tilth. Learn more through our project website (https://lnkd.in/gw3cmGzW), including the latest community-led GSI planning and design happening in the DAG neighborhood in East Oakland! #GreenInfrastructure #EnvironmentalJustice #UrbanGreening #ResilientCities #ClimateAction

Community engagement remains a focus of SFEI. This weekend, we collaborated with the Hood Planning Group, UC Berkeley, SFEP, and the City of Oakland in a meaningful discussion with the Dag neighborhood in Oakland. We learned from our local experts and shared some scientific information in exchange. As we approach ever closer to our shared goals, it feels like history in the making.

San Francisco Bay’s tidal marshes and mudflats could be submerged as sea levels rise. What can we do now to give these special habitats the best chance to survive into the future? One strategy is to focus on mud: tidal marshes and mudflats rely on mud to build elevation and keep pace with a rising sea level. Can we work with nature to direct more mud moving naturally from the hills down to the Bay via our creeks to deposit more directly onto marshes and mudflats? On Monday, we held a workshop to ask this question at a specific place in San Francisco Bay: where Lower Adobe Creek drains past Alman Marsh in Petaluma, CA. In partnership with Friends of the Petaluma River, San Francisco Estuary Partnership, City of Petaluma, and Sonoma County Water Agency we convened technical advisors, community members, flood managers, regulators, and many others for an all-day workshop to grapple with the questions of what a resilient landscape looks like in the face of sea level rise. These kinds of workshops are opportunities to talk early in the planning process, expand our shared perspectives, and dig into big ideas about how to achieve multiple benefits for people and wildlife alike. A special thanks to our guest speakers: Chase Takajo from Sonoma County Water Agency Eli Slick from the United Anglers of Casa Grande, John Shribbs from the Petaluma Wetlands Alliance , and Cassidy DeBaker from Far Western Anthropological Research Group, Inc. for bringing the local perspectives that are so critical to the planning process. This effort is part of a larger EPA-funded project called Sediment Solutions, which is focused on developing a suite of regional strategies for bringing more watershed sediment onto our baylands to help them survive sea-level rise.