Thanks to the work of Peninsula Open Space Trust, the Estrada Ranch in the Santa Cruz Mountains, overlooking Silicon Valley’s urban sprawl, has been preserved for future generations.
What’s your favorite view? The redwood forest? The endless skyway? The golden valley, or the diamond deserts?
If you’re like most humans, your ideal vista will be some sort of natural landscape—a preference described by psychoanalyst Erich Fromm as biophilia—“the passionate love of life and of all that is alive.” American biologist Edward O. Wilson used the term for a 1984 book in which he proposed a genetic predisposition for the desire to affiliate with nature. In this week’s newsletter, we salute those humans whose love of nature has led them to protect the natural world around us.
From Private to Public
Many of us have felt the loss of a beloved view: lush woodlands bisected by interstate highways, meadows plowed under to build shopping centers, patches of urban open space lost to infill development. There’s one sure way to protect the view, and that’s to buy the land—or at least the right to develop it. Land trusts are nonprofit groups that work with landowners to protect open space for various reasons—to maintain agricultural resources, protect habitat for endangered species, or to preserve areas beloved by members of the community. Read more in Kimberly Hickok’s article about how land trusts work.
What Is a Land Trust?
There’s one good way to save open space from development, and that’s to buy property outright. Land trusts are key to that solution.
Caring for the Commons
Once land has been acquired, there is still work to be done in maintaining public access and managing natural resources. Bryan Largay, conservation director of Land Trust of Santa Cruz County, talks with Naomi Friedland about the challenges his organization faces. One interesting point Largay brings up is how public lands would benefit from public support—either financial support through donations or volunteer labor. It’s a point that really resonates with us.
Take a Hike!
About 45 percent of California’s100,206,720 acres is owned by the federal government, and that doesn’t even include state-owned land, county parks, and open-space preserves owned by land trusts. We’ve listed 15 websites that offer easy-to-use guides to some of this vast territory.
Get to Know a Group
Big Brother Big Sisters provides children facing adversity with strong, enduring, professionally supported mentorship. The organization believes that all children can achieve success when given the proper tools and resources—and volunteer mentors are among the most important of those resources.
→ Learn more
• Google Unveils New Visitor Center in Mountain View
In celebration of its 25-year anniversary, Google is launching a new Visitor Experience center at its Mountain View headquarters.
(10/12/2023) → Mountain View Voice
• Retired Marine Wants to Serve San Jose District 6
Amatangelo Pasciuti, 39, moved to San Jose after 21 years of military service took him to 35 countries. He wants to continue serving locally by securing the District 6 council seat.
(10/11/2023) → San Jose Spotlight
• SVP Rate Increase on Horizon, $81M Expenditure Approved
The Santa Clara City Council approved $81 million in spending for utilities, kicked a plan to remodel a home in the Old Quad neighborhood back to the homeowners, heard details about a plan for a joint powers authority for the cities in Santa Clara County and more.
(10/11/2023) → Silicon Valley Voice
• Berman’s Election Bills Advance with Governor’s Signature
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a package of election bills authored by Assemblymember Marc Berman, including legislation that aims to improve ballot design and explicitly bans “double voting” in different states.
(10/11/2023) → Palo Alto Online
• San Jose Could Allow Homeless Residents to Sleep Outdoors
San Jose is considering adding safe sleeping sites to its long-running list of homelessness responses—an idea officials have shot down before.
(10/11/2023) → San Jose Spotlight
• Milpitas School District Opens Campus of the Future
The Milpitas Unified School District Innovation Campus has opened the first phase of a project designed to provide business development and hands-on learning opportunities to students of all ages.
(10/11/2023) → San Jose Spotlight
• Housing Element Expected to Clear Another Hurdle
The Los Altos City Council was scheduled to pass the second reading and adopt a housing element implementation ordinance—a proposal that has prompted residents near Rancho Shopping Center to fret about the fate of supermarkets, coffee shops and other forms of retail.
(10/10/2023) → Read the full Los Altos Town Crier report
• ‘Another Attempt to Industrialize the Coast’: California’s Central Coast Residents Want to Halt Offshore Wind
Massive ocean wind farms off Morro Bay and Santa Barbara County—which could transform these quiet coastal towns and affect marine life—face a turbulent path.
(10/15/2023) → CalMatters
• San Joaquin Valley Groundwater Pumpers Need to Slow Down or Face Fines, State Says
Hundreds of wells in Tulare Lake aquifer are at risk of going dry. Today's recommendation is the first time that state officials have moved to crack down on local plans that fail to stop excessive groundwater pumping.
(10/12/2023) → CalMatters
• Colleges Take Steps to Weed Out AI-Written Application Essays
With the growing use of AI, campus officials are trying to set clear guidelines for college application essays.
(10/11/2023) → CalMatters
• California Becomes First State to Ban More Than 2 Dozen Chemicals Used in Popular Cosmetics
A new California law will ban over two dozen chemicals from fragrances and cosmetics. It’s another first-in-the-nation law—and another instance of California following European Union regulators.
(10/09/2023) → CalMatters
• Climate Change Took Them to ‘Dark Places.’ Now These Californians are Doing Something About it
The facts of climate change can lead to feelings of hopelessness and despair. Some California activists are creating communities for people to talk about those feelings.
(10/09/2023) → CalMatters
Thanks to the work of Peninsula Open Space Trust, the Estrada Ranch in the Santa Cruz Mountains, overlooking Silicon Valley’s urban sprawl, has been preserved for future generations.
