SAVE THE DATE: SFV Climate Reality Mtg.,Tuesday, April 8th, 7pm |
|
|
|---|
|
SAN FERNANDO VALLEY CHAPTER MEETING |
|
|
|---|
|
| Join our Chapter Meeting Tuesday, April 8th 7pm - 8:30pm Click Here To Register Everyone is welcome! Please spread the word. |
|
|
|---|
|
8 Meals A Week: A Call To Action Are you constantly worried you aren't doing enough in the climate fight? Our April guest speaker Sheila Morovati believes that environmentalism is not an all-or-nothing effort; you don’t have to be perfect to make a difference. Sheila will share her "8 Meals" initiative, aiming to mitigate the effects of agricultural emissions by reducing our animal product intake by 40%, which works out to eating eight plant-based meals per week. It's attainable and might be the most important thing we as individuals can do to protect our planet. Come learn about the free #8meals app (available in the Apple store, coming soon for Android); it's a fantastic resource for exploring plant-based recipes and tracking your carbon savings. Register Here for our April meeting. |
|
|
|---|
|
Guest Speaker: Sheila Michail Morovati Sheila Michail Morovati is the President and Founder of the non-profit organization HabitsofWaste.org (HoW). Habits of Waste focuses on creating collective change and impactful policies, with a focus on waste reduction for a healthier, more sustainable future. Sheila is focused on protecting the planet through a collective societal effort of individuals making slight changes to their lifestyles while pressuring lawmakers and large corporations simultaneously. She is also the author of the book Imperfect Environmentalist: How to Reduce Waste and Create Change for A Better Planet.
Register Here for our April meeting. |
|
| |
|---|
|
SFV CHAPTER NEWS & EVENTS |
|
|
|---|
|
| The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (ACE), Los Angeles District, has initiated a comment period for input on the revision of the Sepulveda Dam Master Plan. The public is invited to send comments, suggestions, and concerns until March 26th.
The current Master Plan, approved in 2011, is out of date and no longer compliant with existing laws and regulations. Substantial environmental, cultural, social, and recreational conditions have occurred since that master plan was approved.
|
|
|
|---|
|
Legislative Committee: Help Choose Which Bills To Support It's the time of year when we look at the legislation being proposed this session in the state Assembly and Senate, and we need your help! Working together, we'll rate each of the 45 bills that we feel are worthy of our consideration and support. Based on our ratings, we will determine the level of support that each of the bills will receive. The support that our CR chapters will provide can be as simple as signing a petition or as complicated as writing official support letters to the legislative committees or lobbying legislators to support our chosen bills.
NO EXPERIENCE IS NEEDED TO PARTICIPATE!! This is something we look forward to every year because we all learn and make important decisions together. We would love to have you join us! We will get together on Zoom and break out into small working groups to review and discuss bills. Thursday, March 27 from 5:00-7:00 pm. RSVP is required so we can organize our working groups accurately. Please RSVP Here. April Legislative Committee Meeting Please join us for our Legislative Team meeting on Tuesday April 1 at 7:00 pm. We will review the state legislation that we will be supporting to determine our action plans. No experience necessary - join us for the conversation! |
|
|
|---|
|
SFV Climate Reality April Book Club |
|
|
|---|
|
Imperfect Environmentalist: How to Reduce Waste and Create Change for a Better Planet by Sheila Morovati Join us on Zoom for our book club discussion! This is "a practical guide and inspiring story of how one person really can make a difference." You don't have to finish the book to participate, just bring your interest and be inspired to take action! We'll hear more about this book and the author at our April monthly meeting. "This is the book to read when the world's pollution problem becomes too overwhelming" - THE LIBRARY JOURNAL If you are interested in attending, please email Vice Chair Michele Ringler to reserve your spot. Thursday, April 3rd, 5:00pm on Zoom |
|
| |
|---|
|
Earth Day Celebration sponsored by Tarzana Neighborhood Council Our SFVCR chapter will be tabling at this Earth Day Celebration on Saturday, April 5, 10am-2pm, so stop by our table to say hello. Bring your family, enjoy some food, learn about sustainable practices for your home, and enjoy activities including arts and crafts, plant giveaways, gardening tips, exhibits, live music, and mingling with our community. Free admission for all! Volunteers needed: We need folks to sit at our table and share info about SFVCR with visitors, so if you'd like to meet some of your local climate advocates, please sign up for an hour here. Tarzana Recreation Center, 5655 Vanalden Avenue, Tarzana Saturday, April 5th, 10am-2pm |
|
|
|---|
|
Biodiversity Spotlight "Our task must be to free ourselves... by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty." - Albert Einstein |
|
|
|---|
|
Biodiversity Spotlight: Central California Coast Coho Salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) Range: The vast coastal, central, and northern California waterways from the Oregon border down to central California. Habitat: Coho salmon live in small coastal streams, rivers, and tributaries. Threats: Humans - we are reducing or destroying their natural habitats and their spawning areas. Impacts: Coho Salmon were overfished and their habitats destroyed, raising concern for the species' future. Thankfully, it was recognized that without intervention, the Coho Salmon would become extinct. In 1995, California Fish and Game listed Coho Salmon under the California Endangered Species Act (CESA) and the Federal Endangered Species Act (ESA). Coho Salmon spawn late summer through January. They swim upstream looking for shallow areas for females to deposit more than 100 eggs at a time in gravel "nests" where males can fertilize thousands of eggs. Water temperature affects incubation, so climate has a major impact on embryo growth and hatchlings. The tiny hatchlings are vulnerable at birth, so food sources, gravel, temperature, and exposure must be ideal for their survival. The entire Coho life cycle depends upon suitable environmental and water conditions. It is no wonder humans have adversely impacted their population. After about a year in fresh water, Coho Salmon begin heading downstream to the ocean. They will return to fresh water streams a year or two later to spawn, using all their strength to do and dying soon after. Their bodies decompose, adding nutrients to the soil and river ecosystem. |
|
| Credit: California Depart. of Fish and Wildlife |
|
The Recovery Strategy for California Coho Salmon, created and implemented by the California Fish and Game Commission in 2004, has increased the Coho Salmon population while maintaining its genetic integrity and meeting environmental criteria. There is great hope for a complete recovery of the California Coho Salmon population, despite the challenges of restoring the natural environment and related habitats of their spawning grounds. "Last winter, endangered Central California Coast Coho Salmon experienced a record-breaking spawning season, returning to Mendocino Coast rivers and streams in the highest numbers seen in 16 years! This is an exciting milestone for the endangered species, which is a genetically distinct segment of the coho salmon species. I've been at NOAA Fisheries for 25 years, and we've changed the trajectory for Central California Coast coho salmon," says NOAA San Joaquin River Branch Chief Jonathan Ambrose. "A lot of people think it's too late—it's too hard to bring back endangered species. This is a prime example of why it's not too late or too hard.” |
|
|
|---|
|
If you would like to suggest a California Native species to focus on or write a biodiversity spotlight, please contact Zina Block or Sherrell Cuneo. |
|
Pledge Drive Time! Our chapter has annual expenses: a Zoom account for our monthly meetings, a website hosting fee, and the service that sends these newsletters. If you're in a position to donate, please click here to make a small contribution to SFVCR so we can keep doing this important work. |
|
|
|---|
|
This email was sent to you because you are a subscriber of SFV Climate Reality chapter. Unsubscribe |
|
|
|---|
|
|
|
