Record drought decimated the Midwestern food harvest last summer. Superstorm Sandy caught New York and New Jersey off-guard. Climate change isn’t just an abstract, future possibility. It’s our current reality, and we need to be prepared.

Here in the Bay Area, we’ve rejected the gloom and doom mentality. Instead, we’re taking proactive steps now to make our communities more resilient in the face of climate instability. San Francisco is often regarded as a food mecca, yet many in the city cannot eat healthy, local food purchased near home. Known as food deserts, instead of healthy local food, there are liquor stores and fast food.

In recent years, city leaders like Gavin Newsom and David Chiu led a steady drumbeat of policy change to advance San Francisco’s role in providing land and resources for urban agriculture. With this in mind, The San Francisco Foundation updated our Environment Program funding guidelines last summer to reflect a climate resilience framework, with a focus on food access for low-income people and communities of color. On the heels of this, The San Francisco Foundation applied for and received three-year matching funds from the Convergence Innovation Fund to launch the Healthy Food for All initiative.

Through this effort, we will partner with the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, which will offer up two 6,000-square-foot sites for food growing in the Bayview and the Excelsior. People’s Grocery will ensure a community-driven process to determine how to use the sites. Greenbelt Alliance, SAGE, and American Farmland Trust will then develop a regional business plan and investment strategy for local food that elevates the economic development opportunities for vulnerable communities. We will train and invest in neighborhood leaders. Over the years, we will tap into the expertise and know-how of 27 other current and former Innovation Fund grantees, craft policy solutions, and share what we learn on a national stage.

These days, First Lady Michelle Obama isn’t the only one talking about healthy, local food. Unfortunately, climate change makes the issue urgent. Now is the time to take bold risks to promote a more resilient region.

Through Healthy Food for All, underutilized sites will be transformed into food hubs for low-income communities and communities of color. This is what community resilience looks like.

Water. Ubiquitous for so many of us. We don’t think twice about it until it’s not there. Bay Area residents are fortunate to receive the majority of our drinking water from the Hetch Hetchy reservoir. A proposition to shut down the dam signaled far-reaching implications and detrimental effects for all Bay Area residents, especially those most vulnerable. Staggering costs anticipated in closing the dam and developing alternative sources of water would have forced redirecting millions of dollars in funding from essential health and human services.

The San Francisco Foundation felt compelled to take a position, and joined a coalition of organizations and government in opposing the proposition. Our $100,000 grant to Save Hetch Hetchy was instrumental in the No campaign. Our lead investment meant the campaign was able to carry out a winning strategy that targeted ethnic media and engaged constituents of color, a move that ultimately tipped the scales in November. Voters struck down the measure by a large margin of 76.9%, preserving this source of pristine water and clean energy, protecting city funding of critical services.

IMPACT: The $100,000 investment to Save Hetch Hetchy opened a diverse civic dialogue about the issue. The proposition was defeated, thereby protecting city and county funding for critical services.

On Monday’s Presidential Inauguration, Obama devoted a large portion of his speech to climate change—more than one minute out of approximately twenty—longer than any other topic. He said failure to respond to the threat “would betray our children and future generations,” and he pledged to lead the fight against climate change and toward sustainable energy solutions.

Obama’s pledge for a greener path forward fell on the same day as millions around the country and globe honored the great legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.  Dr. King could just as well have been speaking about the urgency of addressing climate change when he said, “we have been forced to a point where we’re going to have to grapple with the problems that men have been trying to grapple with through history, but the demand didn’t force them to do it. Survival demands that we grapple with them.”

Fast forward to Tuesday, when we brought together over forty organizations and individuals at The San Francisco Foundation, to talk about building community resilience in a time of climate change. We believe that climate change is the most pressing issue of our time and that climate change will disproportionately affect California’s most disadvantaged and isolated communities. Addressing social vulnerability and building community resilience in climate policies and response strategies will be critical to California’s future.

Representatives from government, community-based organizations, non-profits and philanthropy learned about the regional climate landscape, and steps that are being taken to adapt to the coming changes.

Our goals were clear: to not only address the issues of climate change, but to ensure that we were in it, together. That we build a strong, collective will to ensure that all of us protect and support one another in a time of crisis. And that it is vital for community members to be part of the decision making. Ideas, strategies and inspiration were flowing, and the desire to do something tangible, and immediate, were palpable. The collective wisdom in the room held the promise of deep impact and positive change.

As Dr. King said, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere.”  If we can work together to build the resilience of the most vulnerable communities, we may be able to turn the rising tide and create a more equitable future for us all.

MEDIA TOUR:
When: Tuesday, January 29, 2013
10am to Noon

Where:  Star Route Farms
95 Olema Bolinas Road
Bolinas, California, 94924

Contact:
Helge Hellberg
Organic Consultant
h2@helgehellberg.com

Sara Ying Rounsaville
The San Francisco Foundation
syk@sff.org

(SAN FRANCISCO) – Thursday, January 24, 2013 –Veteran assistance group Farmer Veteran Coalition (FVC), has been awarded a $105,000 grant from The San Francisco Foundation specifically for Veteran placement on organic farms in Marin County. The award to Farmer Veteran Coalition reflects the ongoing commitment of The San Francisco Foundation to support the health and well-being of Veterans in the Bay Area.

Four Veterans will receive paid internships with food and farm businesses in Marin County. This experience provides job skills and offers employment opportunities for returning U.S. soldiers. At the same time, the project helps participants heal from the trauma of war by working with the land and growing food.

Army Veteran Mike Walgrave is the first intern for the Marin Veteran Project. He has been placed at Warren Weber’s Star Route Farms, the oldest certified organic row crop farm in California, and Mr. Walgrave plans on becoming an organic farmer after completing the internship.

Organic Consultant and the Executive Producer of the national radio show “An Organic Conversation”, Helge Hellberg (formerly the Executive Director of Marin Organic) directs the project and serves as mentor for Mr. Walgrave.

“This is an unprecedented opportunity – Veterans can tend to the land, be surrounded by life, contribute in the production of organic food, learn job skills, and become a part of the West Marin community. It is healing for the Veterans, for the land, and for us as eaters. What a beautiful way to take care of and re-integrate our Veterans,” says Hellberg.

“The young men and women that FVC serves – many of them Veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – are driven by a sense of purpose and a profound desire to nurture, whether it is with plants or animals. Sustainable agriculture gives them both,” adds Michael O’Gorman, Founder and Executive Director FVC.

“The San Francisco Foundation brings together donors and nonprofits to serve populations most in need. There is a growing number of veterans in the Bay Area looking for jobs – and many of them seek a new start through careers in farming, agriculture, and food production,” says Francesca Vietor, Environment Program Officer at The San Francisco Foundation. “Fortunately, this region is a hub for organic, sustainable, rich agriculture, and this is an emerging area of interest at The San Francisco Foundation. We are pleased to partner with The Marin Farmer Veteran project and showcase this wonderful example of how to strengthen the environment while we strengthen our communities.”

About Farmer Veteran Coalition
Farmer Veteran Coalition is a not-for-profit organization that connects military Veterans with opportunities for employment, training, and places to heal on America’s farms. Started in 2008, Farmer Veteran Coalition’s mission is to Mobilize Veterans to Feed America. By connecting Veterans with sustainable farming resources and education to assist them in building their farm and ranch businesses, Farmer Veteran Coalition helps Veterans become successful farmers. For more information about Veteran farming and Farmer Veteran Coalition’s mission to mobilize Veterans to feed America, call them at (530) 564-1226 or visit them at www.farmvetco.org

About Star Route Farms
Star Route Farms has been an organic farm in Marin County since 1974. Weber began on five acres using horse-drawn sulky plows and cultivators and a lot of long haired ambition. As pioneers in the then fledgling organic industry, Weber adopted production and post-harvest technologies–such as precision planters and hydrocooling equipment–in order to insure top quality produce for the consumer. Star Route Farms is the oldest continuously certified organic grower in California. The farm is presently certified by Marin Organic Certified Agriculture (MOCA). www.starroutefarms.com

About The San Francisco Foundation
The San Francisco Foundation (TSFF) is the community foundation serving the Bay Area since 1948, granting more than $800 million over the past ten years. Through the generosity and vision of our donors, both past and present, TSFF granted $89 million in fiscal year 2012. TSFF brings together donors and builds on community assets through grantmaking, leveraging, public policy, advocacy, and leadership development to make a greater impact in our community. By focusing on people, organizations, neighborhoods, and policy, advocacy and organizing, the Foundation addresses community needs in the areas of community health, education, arts and culture, community development, and the environment. In response to the economic downturn, TSFF is also focusing funding on safety net partners, job creation and training, and mortgage foreclosure relief and neighborhood preservation. The San Francisco Foundation serves San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, and San Mateo Counties. www.sff.org

So many times, reaching for the phone, we went to get your view, your story, your joke of the day.

We have had moments in the mountains, in meetings,  on a hike, on a bike, on a horse, at a concert or rehearsal and you and your joy have been in full color.

In the office, I have wondered what guidance you would offer but more now wonder what I should offer others.

We have danced, we have given thoughtfully, we have made sure the table seats everyone.

We are in a big community who holds you and all  your memories close.

We miss you every day; today we send a message your way: you left this world a year ago but remain forever in the forefront of the love and joy that is our work.

In Memory of F. Warren Hellman, beloved friend, Bay Area civic and business leader, philanthropist, and our Former Trustee, who passed away one year ago today, on December 18, 2011.

2.6 million people in the Bay Area depend on the Hetch Hetchy system for their drinking water. Water from the Hetch Hetchy reservoir is so pure and clean that it does not need filtration. The reservoir provides critical water storage during a time of climate uncertainty and projected water shortages. Projected costs to dismantle the system and find replacement water range from $3 billion to $8 billion. The social, financial and environmental implications were staggering.

Now that our water is safe, we need to recommit ourselves to diversifying our water system. As Hurricane Sandy unfortunately taught us, climate change is here and we need to prepare with all due haste. We need to explore and implement any and all policies and programs to store, conserve, reuse, reduce, recycle and reclaim water. No stone can be left unturned—especially if there is water underneath.

Thank you Prop F, for prompting us to redouble our water conservation efforts and thank you San Francisco voters, for saving our precious water.

We’re happy to announce that our Open Applications Cycle Grant Program for Arts and Culture, Community Development, Community Health, Education, and Environment will be opening  online Monday, November 12. These applications are open to nonprofit organizations serving residents of San Francisco, Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin and San Mateo. This application process allows us to hear from our longstanding partners and learn about new organizations. It helps us keep an ear to the ground, where we learn about what’s working, as well innovative approaches nonprofits are implementing, as they try to solve the problems Bay Area residents are facing.

For organizations interested in applying, I encourage you to review the goals and objectives on our Program pages, attend a How to Apply Workshop, review the guidelines, and after November 12, visit the Grantee Center to submit your application.

The Open Cycle is an important time for us to hear from the nonprofits that are helping to build a better, more vibrant and healthy Bay Area.

This fall, San Francisco voters will be asked to make a choice about their local water and power source that could impact not just the City of San Francisco, but the entire Bay Area region for decades to come. “The Water Sustainability and Environmental Restoration Act,” or Proposition F, is headed for the November 6, 2012, ballot in San Francisco.

We encourage a balanced discourse and dialogue on this very important civic issue that affects everyone in the region. The San Francisco Foundation invites you to join us on Monday, October 15th at the Commonwealth Club for a discussion with community leaders. If you weren’t able to join us, you can hear an audio recording of the forum discussion.

Hetch Hetchy reservoir is a source of pristine water for 2.6 million Bay Area residents who turn on their taps and drink water that requires no chemical filtration. This system cleverly delivers this water via gravity while providing San Francisco with 1.6 billion kilowatts of green power fueling San Francisco General Hospital, Police, Fire, SFO, Muni, the SF Unified School District, Hunters Point Shipyard, and Treasure Island.

Prop F calls for the creation of a taskforce, whose end goal would be to create a pathway to remove the O’Shaughnessy Dam, drain the Hetch Hetchy Reservoir, and a return of the land to the National Park Service. The Proposition has been put forward by Restore Hetch Hetchy, a small but well-funded group of individual proponents. Five studies have already been completed, including a comprehensive study by the State’s own Department of Water Resources, which determined that it would cost $65 million just to confirm the costs and continue the investigations into the dam removal. Based on these prior studies, the cost to the City, to tax payers, and to rate payers for removal of the dam is currently estimated between $3 billion and $10 billion.

The vast and costly economic and social impacts of taking away the main water and municipal energy source for San Francisco and its neighboring cities form the basis of our opposition to this initiative. As CEO Sandra R. Hernández, M.D. stated in this week’s San Francisco Business Times, “We want people to understand that water is an important public policy issue, and we think that Proposition F will have a disproportionate negative impact on low-income people to get access to something as simple as clean water.”

Taking down and replacing Hetch Hetchy would cost taxpayers billions of dollars, aggravate California’s already severe water crisis, and end this source of clean hydroelectric public power. It would also re-direct billions of public funds from education, health, and economic development, thereby impeding our hard earned progress as an environmental leader in energy efficiency, waste reduction, and in the advancement of health.

The San Francisco Foundation is granting $100,000 to Save Hetch Hetchy to educate the public about this critical upcoming ballot initiative.

TSFF actively supports water conservation efforts and renewable energy sources. Because we care about these issues, and because of the far-reaching financial and environmental implications of removing the Hetch Hetchy dam, we are opposing Proposition F.