Volunteering is Back in Season

Volunteers are back with a bang! Since reopening our community workdays earlier this fall for the first time since March 2020, we have hosted more than a dozen volunteer events that turned out over 500 people of all ages, ready to make up for lost time.

We were floored by the enthusiasm and sheer number (276!) of volunteers who showed up at our Coastal Cleanup Day sites along San Francisquito Creek in Menlo Park and Cooley Landing in East Palo Alto. These individuals made a huge impact on our local waterways and baylands, from painstaking removal of microplastics to hauling out mattresses, shopping carts, and office chairs from creek banks—just in time before our early October rains carried these pollutants into the bay.

Eastside College Prep had a strong showing at our Coastal Cleanup Day event at Cooley Landing. Photo by Christian Tensuan.

We have also hosted numerous smaller yet hyper-productive groups of volunteers at our various park and open space sites, who have helped us knock back invasive weeds and prepare restoration areas for winter planting.

The best is yet to come! Registration is now open for workdays that will enlist volunteers from the public to install plants that are ready to depart from our Native Plant Nursery for their new homes in the wild, from baby bunch grasses to shrubs and trees that will feed and house hundreds of local wildlife species.

Volunteers planting native plants at Byrne Preserve

Want in on the action? Sign up for an upcoming workday to reconnect with our staff, other volunteers, and the nature around you. No experience necessary; we’ll equip you with all the tools and information you need to help the next generation of native plants take root.

By Valerie Lee, Community Engagement Manager