Biodiversity, ReWilding, & Local Solutions

Northern California is a global biodiversity hotspot. Protecting this large variety of plants, animals, and ecosystems is essential to the health of our environment — and ourselves! With loss of biodiversity threatening to amplify the effects of climate change, come hear how you can support local efforts to protect species and their habitats. 

We will also discuss:

• key concepts of native diversity and community conservation

• new thoughts in biodiversity loss

• local efforts to expand native habitats on private and public lands

• the importance of biodiversity corridors and how you can contribute

Get your hands dirty at Home Ground Habitats in Novato!
This program will be followed by an optional, in-person event on Saturday, March 18, 12:00 pm at Home Ground Habitats with Founder Charlotte Torgovitsky. Participants will learn how to select and cultivate native plants appropriate for their yard, the benefits of specific habitat values, and the needs for each species. Each participant will receive native seeds to take home. Click here for more information and tickets. Separate registration required: space is limited. 

Check out our upcoming event series:
Empowering Environmental Advocates: March 28 - April 20

This five-part series will teach you to transform your concerns into meaningful, effective messages to inspire action.

Are you just beginning to identify an issue or project that you want to get more involved with? Are you an experienced advocate and want to learn how to adjust your message for social media? Are you a previous Master Class or Forum member and want to refresh your skills? These classes are for you! Click here for more information. 

Biodiversity, Rewilding, & Local Solutions Speakers:

Paul da Silva 

Paul was fortunate to grow up surrounded by diversity. Although his childhood house was in the City, marine diversity was nearby in the ocean, and terrestrial diversity was close at hand in a small garden. Furthermore, his family was a diverse mix of people of different colors, shapes and sizes, speaking an assortment of different languages.

Perhaps this was why he was attracted to the study of biology and ecology, and particularly the way human beings interact with their environment. He pursued his studies in several stages, eventually earning a BA in biology, an MS in resource management, and a PhD in entomology, all at UC Berkeley. Research in California, Hawaii, and Latin America helped him to diversify his experiences with people and other species. His investigations have focused on natural ecological communities and the way these can serve as models for sustainable agricultural and horticultural systems.

He taught biology, natural history and environmental science at the College of Marin from 1997 to 2020, all the while participating in many local environmental and community groups, including EFM. One of his special interests then and now has been community science. In 2020, he was elected to the College of Marin Board of Trustees, where he continues to serve at present.

Marcia Basalla

It often takes the energy and vision of one person to get things moving in the right direction; California Native Plant Society member Marcia Basalla is just that sort of woman! Over the last several years, she has adopted several traffic islands in Novato, re-landscaping these areas with California native plants together with her energetic volunteers. Her work has been instrumental in regenerating biodiversity in Novato’s Pacheco Valley and other landscaped areas.

Marcia’s concept is to convert these traffic islands to habitat corridors, allowing more safe passages with needed resources between natural open spaces. Home Ground Habitat’s volunteers are growing many of the native plants needed for her projects. And the plant society has donated over the years to help Marcia’s team create these resource-rich passageways.

Thank you to our sponsor