Winners Announced! Emerging Writers Explore Culture of Conservation for M.F.K. Fisher Last House Writing Contest
November 06, 2020

M.F.K. Fisher Last House Program Coordinator Susie Allen announced today the winners of the “Last House Writing Contest.” Launched in late summer, the contest resulted in more than two dozen essays submitted in child, youth and adult categories by writers from as far-afield as Los Angeles, Detroit and Copenhagen.

Writers were asked to explore the connection between environmental conservation, science and nature, food and drink, and the cultures surrounding them. Many wrote about COVID-19, their gardens, and the wildfires.

The judging panel, coordinated by food and wine consultant Clark Wolf, included some of the most accomplished writers, chefs, naturalists, and mentors working today: Ruth Reichl, Harold McGee, Leena Trivedi-Grenier, Michele Anna Jordan, Elizabeth Fishel...

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WATCH: Community-based burning: Caring for our land together
September 17, 2020

ACR, in partnership with Napa County, Napa County Resource Conservation District (Napa RCD), Rebuild NorthBay Foundation, and Sonoma Water, has produced a five-minute film highlighting the efforts of the North Bay counties of Napa, Mendocino, and Sonoma to reduce fire fuels and boost the region’s defenses against mega fires. We hope the film will spark a conversation in communities throughout California looking for proactive ways for residents to mitigate the West’s increasing exposure to catastrophic wildfire.  

 
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ACR community doubles down in celebration of Marty Griffin's 100th birthday
August 10, 2020

Wow! Way to double down for the cause, ACR community! Through June and July, we received almost 200 gifts to support ACR's Martin Griffin Preserve and over 100 birthday wishes to forward to Marty! Thank you, Marty fans! We made him the sweetest scrapbook with your sentiments.

Still want to make a gift in honor of Marty's 100th birthday? Click here

We'll keep our campaign open and birthday wishes flowing.

Birthday Wishes for Marty

Dear Marty...

It’s hard to believe that you will be a centenarian. In addition to your passion for protecting natural environments, your enthusiasm and especially your energy is that of a much younger man. I became aware of your...

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Carrots for Mary Frances
July 29, 2020

Not long before M. F. K. Fisher died, a friend called to say she thought Mary Frances’s diet was lacking in interest and diversity.  The nurses who cared for her also prepared her food, my friend explained, and Mary Frances was growing weary of their bland purées. If I had the time, she suggested, I might want to do a little cooking for my friend.

I spent the next afternoon reading cookbooks and gathering ingredients. Not being one who makes refined French fare very often, I  used Madeleine Kamman’s books for inspiration and the results pleased me.  Soon my kitchen was filled timbales, flans, and delicate souflés. A mousse of chicken and morels was delightful; an aspargus timbale had great charm; something smooth and creamy and full of leeks was wonderful even...

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Five steps to becoming more aware of the natural world
July 17, 2020

Since the coronavirus “Shelter in Place” order went into effect, and the school program hikes at ACR preserves in Marin and Sonoma counties were put on hold, I have been exploring other ways to help youngsters connect with nature. My time is now spent creating resources to inspire children to explore the natural word within their reach. Though there is no replacing the feeling of holding a newt or learning to spot a turret spider tower alongside the trail, children can still learn from and be comforted by nature. Even in the bustling San Francisco Bay Area, nature is all around us: the lizard sunning itself on a nearby rock, the shade offered by a tree, the warmth of the sun on one’s face, the fragrance of new leaves and flowers. There is nature where you are, and you can experience it...

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West Marin nonprofits confront systemic racism

July 15, 2020

ACR is pleased to join other West Marin-based nonprofits who are working together to address systemic racism in our region. Earlier this month, a collection of organizations signed onto the following agreement:

West Marin Nonprofits Equity Statement

We, the undersigned nonprofit organizations of West Marin, add our voices to the protests against the killings...

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Celebrating M.F.K. Fisher's 112th birthday
June 30, 2020

We recently asked M.F.K. Fisher's daughter Kennedy Golden to reflect on Mary Frances' time living on the Bouverie Preserve. Fisher lived on the preserve for the last 21 years of her life, in a cozy house built to her specification by David Bouverie. During that time she wrote 13 books, one-third of her total catalog. The preserve influenced her deeply.

As Kennedy composed this guest blog post, she reflected on Fisher's upcoming birthday. "My mother was born in Albion Michigan on July 3, 1908. When I think of that day so long ago I am reminded of her story of almost being named “Independencia,” had she waited one more day to be born. I believe that “Mary Frances” was a much better name, and I am grateful to my grandmother, Edith Kennedy, for making sure that naming her new baby “...

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David Bouverie Scholarship awarded for 2020
June 15, 2020

We are very pleased to announce that Casa Grande graduate Lucia Garay is our 2020 recipient of the David Bouverie Scholarship, awarded to one extraordinary volunteer as they enter college.

Conservation work is a call to action that requires courage, and courage requires hope. Lucia Garay is one source of hope for us all. Lucia has been a Juniper for seven years and over that time has shown outstanding commitment to conservation and a deep interest in nature.

Over the years she has co-led many guided nature walks, participated in newt counts, took park in many stewardship events at Bouverie, and aided in the training of new Junipers. Before the fires she took it upon herself to redesign and build signal crayfish traps that could capture juveniles. When the original traps...

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Northern California prescribed-burning community brings expertise and enthusiasm to aid protected lands in Sonoma County
May 27, 2020

Congratulations to Van Hoosear Wildflower Preserve in the Sonoma Mountain area and Cooley Ranch in northern Sonoma County for hosting Northern California burners who put good fire on the ground this past Memorial Day weekend. Both of these controlled burns on privately held lands went off without a hitch, another sign of the growth of prescribed burn partnerships in the region.

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The enviable miles logged by migratory birds
May 09, 2020

While we work from home, the miles logged by shorebirds we have radio-tagged has us longing for an unconfined drive to points beyond—a birding trip to the Central Valley, a camping trip along the North Coast, or more miles logged on the Pacific Crest Trail.

Alas, we take solace in science and focus our gaze on two determined Long-billed Curlews fitted with radio tags in February at Limantour Beach under a partnership with the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center, the Coastal Bend Bays and Estuaries Program (Texas), and Boise State University’s Intermountain Bird...

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