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OAEC NEWS

We’re hiring! Nursery and Landscaping Assistant

Tuesday, November 22nd, 2022

The Mother Garden Biodiversity Program is Hiring! We’re looking for a Nursery Assistant (24 hours per week) and Landscaping Assistant… Read More >

2022 Update

Thursday, November 17th, 2022

OAEC works to inspire communities to build and imagine the ecologically regenerative and socially just world that we know is… Read More >

20% off at the Nursery Nov 5-6, 12-13

Friday, November 4th, 2022

20% off everything! We’re staying open two more weekends: November 5&6, 12&13 10am – 5pm 15290 Coleman Valley Rd (upper… Read More >

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The Mother Garden Biodiversity Program is Hiring!⁠
We’re looking for a Nursery Assistant (24 hours per week) and Landscaping Assistant (12 hours per week). Ideally this would be a combined position where one qualified person would do both jobs, but we will also consider hiring them separately. Both positions are non-residential, year round. The application deadline is December 9th or until positions are filled. Visit our jobs page (link in bio) for more information and to apply!⁠
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#greenjobs #nursery #landscaping #sonomacounty #organic #growyourown #permaculture #gardening #ediblelandscaping #californianativeplants #herbalism

We're staying open for 2 more weekends and discoun

We're staying open for 2 more weekends and discounting everything in the nursery at 20% off! Culinary herbs, fiber and dye plants, drought tolerant pollinator plants, perennial food crops and more. Take home some new perennials just in time for rain!!! ⁠💦🌿⁠
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Nov 5-6 & 12-13⁠
10am - 5pm⁠
15290 Coleman Valley Rd⁠
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#organicnursery #herbs #sonomacounty #organicgardening #permaculture #herbalism #salvia #perennial #californianativeplants #fibershed

What is your relationship with water? Do you know

What is your relationship with water? Do you know where your water comes from or how it gets to you? For the most part, modern developed societies have taken water for granted, viewing it as a mere commodity available on demand. But as the privilege of clean, plentiful, accessible water for the needs and pleasures of life is threatened by prolonged droughts, increased demand and enduring pollution, we are faced with an existential urgency to rethink our relationship with water.⁠
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In 2019, OAEC and Bioneers co-produced a Water in Agriculture convening at OAEC that brought together some of the leading thinkers on the future of water in the west. We are delighted to finally share the fruits of this event in this beautiful multimedia series produced by Bioneers’ talented communications team.⁠
Of particular note are Parts 2 and 5 which heavily feature the work of OAEC’s WATER Institute, including quotes from Co-Directors Kate Lundquist and Brock Dolman. ⁠
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Link in bio to explore this interactive story map. ⁠
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#waterscarcity #watersecurity #drought #cleanwater

Dan Hoyle dazzled us with his opening monologue at

Dan Hoyle dazzled us with his opening monologue at Chautauqua this year and we’ve decided to bring him back for his full solo show this November! Dan garnered critical acclaim for his smash hit of journalistic theater Border People. In 2020, a friend suggested that he do a new show about liberal white folks responding to the reckonings about race and power. link in bio to buy tickets⁠
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“Vibrantly entertaining. Nothing short of magical. Will surely capture your interest, entertain you, and give you plenty to think about.” –TheatreStorm⁠
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"Dan is a first-rate actor and journalist" - The New York Times⁠
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Friday & Saturday November 11 & 12th at 7pm⁠
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Tickets sliding scale: $35 – $50 ⁠
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Proceeds benefit OAEC’s Movement Building Retreat Fund⁠
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21+ All ticket sales final⁠
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Occidental Arts & Ecology Center⁠
Oak Hall⁠
15290 Coleman Valley Rd

Each year, OAEC hires a cohort of enthusiastic int

Each year, OAEC hires a cohort of enthusiastic interns to live and learn at OAEC for 11 months. Interns work 24 hours per week in one department – Program, Facilities or Garden – and are immersed in the day-to-day running a thriving land-based non-profit. In exchange for their work, all interns are given a private, cozy place to live, organic meals, and use of all OAEC facilities (hot tub, swimming pond, etc.) Interns also receive free participation in the OAEC Permaculture Design Course, generous vacation and sick leave, plus a $300 monthly stipend. We work hard and play hard! Join us! link in bio - visit our webpage for more info. Interviews start Oct 15 - open until filled. Apply now!⁠
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#greenjobs⁠
#internships⁠
#nonprofitjobs⁠
#careergoals⁠
#permaculture⁠
#westsonomacounty⁠
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Live at OAEC in 2023!⁠ ⁠ Each year, OAEC hires

Live at OAEC in 2023!⁠
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Each year, OAEC hires a cohort of enthusiastic interns to live and learn at OAEC for 11 months. Interns work 24 hours per week in one department – Program Administration, Facilities or Garden – and are immersed in the day-to-day running a thriving land-based non-profit and intentional community. Room + board + stipend + lots of other great bennies. Join us! link in bio⁠
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#nonprofitjobs⁠
#gardenjobs⁠
#permaculture⁠
#greenjobs⁠
#internships

Since our announcement in July about the State's m

Since our announcement in July about the State's monumental decision to fund the creation of a new Beaver Restoration program at the CA Department of Fish and Wildlife, there has been an explosion of news in major media outlets covering the ecological ingenuity of beaver restoration as a climate change solution! Our busy little mascot even made the front page of the New York Times! Check out these highlights from the paparazzi in our new blog post - link in bio⁠
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photo credit @NikiChanWylie of the New York Times⁠
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#bringbackthebeaver⁠
#beaver⁠
#processbasedrestoration⁠
#watershed⁠
#beaverbeliever⁠
@californiadfw

The Occidental Arts & Ecology Center (OAEC) seeks

The Occidental Arts & Ecology Center (OAEC) seeks a talented and passionate individual to join our WATER Institute staff to support our Bring Back the Beaver Campaign and related watershed projects through outreach, communication, research and project management. The main responsibility of this position is to articulate the importance of beaver and process-based restoration to watershed health, biodiversity and climate change resiliency and OAEC’s role in advancing more ecologically and socially just resource conservation policies and practices in California. They will develop and carry out a strategic outreach plan, manage projects, communicate conservation science and nature-based restoration practices to lay audiences, resource managers and policymakers, manage partner and press communications and provide general support for the WATER Institute towards the widespread adoption of innovative watershed restoration solutions. Full time. Remote. Interviews begin October 28th. link in bio for details. ⁠
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#bringbackthebeaver⁠
#beaver⁠
#greenjobs ⁠
#climateaction⁠
#jobs⁠
#processbasedrestoration⁠
#watershedrestoration

Live in or near Lake County? Join TERA's Good Fire

Live in or near Lake County? Join TERA's Good Fire Crew! Earn your Firefighter Type 2 qualifications and help bring prescribed fire and cultural burning back to the land. Learn & Burn!!!🔥⁠
link in bio, 📷️by TERA⁠
#goodfire #prescribedburn #firefighter #lakecounty #tribalecorestorationalliance

OAEC and our partners are hosting a Zoom webinar o

OAEC and our partners are hosting a Zoom webinar on ~July 27th from 6-8pm PST~ to wrap up our "Beyond Defensible Space" workshop series, an exploration of wildfire mitigation strategies that promote wildlife habitat and restore healthy ecosystems! ⁠
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The webinar will feature ⚡️lightning consultations⚡️ where we'll choose a number of land owners and managers to share the unique conditions of their land, ask question, and receive management recommendations from a panel of experts from: ⁠
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~ Sonoma Ecology Center⁠
~ Occidental Arts & Ecology Center⁠
~ Santa Rosa Junior College⁠
~ UC Cooperative Extension⁠
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Join us to learn practical tools to steward your land in an ecologically beneficial way! Link in bio to sign up for a FREE consultation or to simply watch & listen. ⁠
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Sponsored by: FireSafe Sonoma⁠
Hosted by: Safer West County⁠
📸 by: Brock Dolman & Jim Coleman⁠
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#vegetation #goodfire #wildfire #habitat #adaptation #wildlife

The film "Where There Once Was Water" is now avail

The film "Where There Once Was Water" is now available on Vimeo! It features a short piece by OAEC WATER Institute Co-Director Kate Lundquist talking about the role of beaver. If you haven't seen this thought provoking documentary about water scarcity in CA, now is your chance! ⁠
⁠visit director @brittanyapp for the link

Breaking News: CA State Leaders Enact Historic Bea

Breaking News: CA State Leaders Enact Historic Beaver Restoration Program! (read the full press release on our homepage - link in bio)⁠
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“We couldn’t be more thrilled that this day is finally here,” said the OAEC WATER Institute’s Kate Lundquist, who hailed the legislature’s passage of AB/SB 154 earlier this month. “After decades of missing out on opportunities that beavers provide to create healthier ecosystems, we agree that ‘the Department must take a proactive leap towards bringing beavers back onto the landscape.'" ⁠
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As illustrated in this poster, the CA Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) used to have an active beaver relocation program that ran from 1923-1950. Today, 72 years later, the WATER Institute is excited to work with CDFW as they develop their new Beaver Restoration Program! Check out the WATER Institute's publication "Beaver in California: Cultivating a Culture of Stewardship" which is now featured on CDFW's website.⁠
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A huge thank you to all the co-signers on our advocacy letter and representatives who helped to pass this legislation!

The Martinez Beaver Festival is back! This Saturda

The Martinez Beaver Festival is back! This Saturday, June 25th from 11am to 4pm in Susanna Park in Martinez, CA there will be beaver experts, activities for kids, mural art by the talented Amy Gallaher Hall (art featured here) and more. Stop by the OAEC table and tune in to WATER Institute Director Kate Lundquist's presentation at 2pm where she'll give an update on some amazing developments in beaver policy at the state level. See you there!

North Bay Area, have you ever seen a real live bea

North Bay Area, have you ever seen a real live beaver? ⁠
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The best urban beaver viewing in the state is in downtown Napa on Napa Creek around Heritage Park & the Pearl Street bridge! Since the completion of the Napa Flood Protection plan, the American Beaver - once plentiful throughout California but hunted and trapped to near-extinction - have begun to return to Napa River tributaries. ⁠
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The Napa Creek colony is unique in that it is thriving right in the middle of downtown. New interpretive signs designed by the P4 Practicum Group of this year’s Leadership Napa Valley class will help locals and visitors alike to understand and appreciate this special animal and its habitat in the restored Napa Creek corridor. At the Urban Beaver Colony Celebration in Napa last month, the mayor of Napa even read this Proclamation in the beavers' honor! ⁠
#beaverbeliever #bringbackthebeaver #beaver #napa

The 2022 Spotted Owlets have been spotted! For 5 s

The 2022 Spotted Owlets have been spotted! For 5 seasons in a row, we've been amazed to watch this 'near threatened' species breed here in the OAEC backcountry, getting strong and fat on a nice supply of wood rats! We're honored that they've chosen our lovingly tended forest to call home.⁠
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📷 by: Brock Dolman ⁠
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#spottedowl #birdsofinstagram #birdwatching #owllove

**Part 1 RESCHEDULED from June 18th to July 16th**

**Part 1 RESCHEDULED from June 18th to July 16th**

West County residents: join Natural Resources professor and Wildfire Resilience Program Coordinator Briana Boaz for PART 1 of a *FREE* wildland fuel mitigation workshop at SRJC's Shone Farm on Saturday July 16th from 9am-1pm. ⁠
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Then come to OAEC for PART 2 with Program Director and wildlife biologist Brock Dolman on Saturday July 9th from 9am-1pm to explore our 70-acre Wildlands Preserve! ⁠
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We'll take a long stroll through the backcountry and learn about:⁠
🌲 California plant communities like coastal prairie and mixed hardwood and conifer forest⁠
🌲 OAEC's approach to fire mitigation and stewardship strategies⁠
🌲 25+ year-old models of restoration application ⁠
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Participants are welcome to bring a bagged lunch and enjoy at our beautiful pond after the workshop! ⁠
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✨ Link in bio for more info + register for "Beyond Defensible Space Workshops" ⁠
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This workshop series is part of an ongoing collaboration with @sonomaecologycenter, @srjcshonefarm, and UC Cooperative Extension. ⁠Funded by ⁠@firesafesonoma + hosted by Safer West County. ⁠
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📸 by: Jim Coleman and Hannah Wilton⁠
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#restoration #goodfire #stewardship #wildfire #habitat⁠

In 2009, when the Russian River Coho Partnership b

In 2009, when the Russian River Coho Partnership began, only about 20 adult coho salmon had returned to the Russian River to spawn. ⁠
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Today, the Russian River is a success story in West Coast salmon conservation, with hundreds of adult coho returning annually. There is a consensus among experts that comprehensive and multi-faceted action helped restore a viable population to the Russian River, particularly by addressing lack of stream flow in strategic spawning and rearing streams. ⁠
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The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation (NFWF) funded this highly coordinated, multi-pronged collaboration between the Gold Ridge and Sonoma Resource Conservation Districts, Sea Grant California, Trout Unlimited, Sonoma Water, and the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center WATER Institute. This May, the Russian River Coho Water Resources Partnership held their final meeting at the OAEC pond to commemorate their accomplishments after 10+ years in restoring Coho Salmon to the Russian River watershed. ⁠
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Read the amazing final reports from this decade long project in our new blog post. Link in bio.⁠
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@sonoma_water @nfwf @troutunlimitedca @russianriversalmon @godridgercd @sonomarcd ⁠
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Baby coho photo by: Brock Dolman⁠
Coho partnership meeting at OAEC pond photo by: Sara Nossaman

Big Wins in Sacramento for the Bring Back the Beav

Come join Jon Kanagy (Sonoma Ecology Center), Bria

Come join Jon Kanagy (Sonoma Ecology Center), Briana Boaz (Santa Rosa Junior College), Sashi Sabaratnam (UC Cooperative Extension) and OAEC's very own Brock Dolman on Wednesday, June 1, 2022 from 6-8pm for a Zoom webinar on strategies for holistic wildland fuel management. ⁠
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SIGN UP HERE: https://tinyurl.com/48kx6t7e (link in bio)⁠
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On the agenda:⁠
🌿 How to think about fire resiliency at the landscape-scale ⁠
🌿 Fuel load mitigation strategies that support wildlife habitat and biodiversity ⁠
🌿 Case studies from OAEC's wildlands preserve and Santa Rosa Junior College's 120-acre Shone Farm ⁠
🌿 A rundown of regulatory compliance and planning tools for landowners and managers ⁠
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This is the first in a workshop series. More info to come!⁠
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Sponsored by Safer West County, Funded by FireSafe Sonoma, Presented by Sonoma Ecology Center, OAEC, Santa Rosa Junior College, and University of California Cooperative Extension⁠
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@sonomaecologycenter @firesafesonoma @srjcshonefarm⁠
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📷 by: Brock Dolman⁠
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#defensiblespace #goodfire #wildfire #restoration #landstewardship #forestry

As the scope and scale of vegetation management in

As the scope and scale of vegetation management increases in the years ahead around the essential need for fire adaptation and mitigation, the demand for a skilled ecological restoration workforce will only continue to grow. Funding opportunities in wildfire preparedness and prevention can and should invest in the true cost of ecologically-literate vegetation management and well-paid jobs, to do right by the environment and the workers. Read our new blog post on a collaboration between OAEC and @nbjwj North Bay Jobs with Justice to train and organize vegetation management workers on the front lines.⁠
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#workerownedcoops #jobswithjustice #ecoliteracy #wildfire #wildfireready #wildfirepreparedness #goodfire

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© 2019 by the Occidental Arts & Ecology Center. All Rights Reserved.
Site photography by Jim Coleman, Tali Aiona, Doug Gosling, Brock Dolman and Sashwa Burrous.