Baykeeper publishes a monthly column on San Francisco Bay cultural, environmental, and maritime issues.
(January 2021) Happy New Year—and happy new beginnings!
I know. We’re already four weeks into the new year. And you may be wondering if this note is a little overdue. So, I’ll be honest: I've been delaying sending you my best wishes.
The first time I sat down to write you in December, I succumbed to 2020 fatigue. Hope of the vaccine inspired me after the holidays, but California’s pandemic surge...
(December 2020) “Nimble” is a word I use with pride to describe Baykeeper’s ability to rise to a challenge.
And boy, did the world test us in 2020! In response to the global pandemic, our dedicated staff smoothly pivoted to remote work, and we expanded our pollution patrols to include drones. As wildfires ravaged the state, we prioritized initiatives to make the Bay more resilient and took on...
(November 2020) We’re feeling grateful and relieved that millions across the country came together to choose Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, leaders who trust science and believe in protecting our health and environment. The week’s seemingly endless counting of votes made it clear that democracy works and our voices matter. And in the historic election of this country’s first female, South Asian,...
(November 2020) Nothing like a dramatically historic—and incomplete—election night to remind us all that it's still 2020. We've heard for weeks that we wouldn't immediately know the results of the election, but it's disconcerting nonetheless. With ballots still being counted in unsettled states across the country, and breaking news of requested recounts, there’s tension and uncertainty in the air...
(October 2020) We hold certain truths about nature to be self-evident: The sun rises in the east, gravity grounds us, tides ebb and flow, and the sky is blue. But leave it to 2020 to show us that even some of these truths can’t be relied on anymore. September's orange skies creeped me out—not in a scary Halloween way, but more like an anxious danger-is-coming way. My sense of impending doom was...
(September 2020) Maybe I’m singing the blues, but I’ll venture to guess we’re all experiencing a pretty unusual September, with pandemic shut downs still in effect and smoky air keeping us indoors. Typically, this is a month of fresh beginnings, the summer ending with the new school year and crisper nighttime temperatures. And at Baykeeper, it’s usually the exciting start of volunteer season,...
(July 2020) It's hard to believe we’re into month five of the coronavirus shutdown. These final days of summer are blending together, and some days are easier than others.
To keep our spirits up, my family shares what we're grateful for each night. The kids surprise us, expressing gratitude for intangibles like love and family—in addition to the usual kid stuff, of course. One common theme has...
(June 2020) Today millions of people are taking to the streets across the country with the energizing spirit of Juneteenth, Freedom Day, the day that commemorates the end of slavery. These millions are protesting injustice and bearing witness to the racial oppression that has shattered Black lives for centuries in the United States. And they're celebrating because Black lives matter!
For...
(June 2020) Shock. Despair. Action. People are lining the streets, filled with grief and rage, and justifiably lashing out against the institutional and systemic injustice burdening people of color – most especially Black lives.
The senseless killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Tony McDade, and Ahmaud Arbery are just the latest horrific examples of racial hatred in the United States, and...
(May 2020) With news of pending plans to reopen businesses around the state, I’ve started daydreaming about the little things I’m looking forward to once the pandemic is over. While dining out and happy hours with friends top my wish list, I’m also looking forward to getting out on the Bay again. There’s nothing like the feeling of cool, salty spray on my face, and the wind whipping around us as...