Friends of Sausal Creek (FOSC) was formed in 1996 when some neighbors decided to take care of their local creek, Sausal Creek. The group is, according to Mark Rauzon, a "grassroots, volunteer-based nonprofit organization. [Their] mission is to promote awareness and protection of the Sausal Creek watershed, both as a community and natural resource." The idea is that even though this is Oakland, a city, there are wild areas worth "visiting, restoring and preserving." (See Rauzon's chapter in Mailman, Erika. Oakland's Neighborhoods. Oakland: Mailman Press, 2005.)
There are 22 sites from the hills to the bay where the group leads community volunteer workdays; some workdays are led by volunteers and some by staff. The group also operates a native plant nursery in Joaquin Miller Park where volunteers propagate all of the native plants used at the restoration sites from seeds and cuttings collected within the watershed. Information on all workdays can be found at www.sausalcreek.org > Programs > Event Calendar. The group also hosts bi-monthly environmental education presentations at Dimond Branch Library on the third Wednesday of odd-numbered months from 7-9 p.m. (except July when the annual meet and greet potluck is held outdoors in the watershed).
External Link: http://www.sausalcreek.org/
Contact Information:
Anna Marie Schmidt, Executive Director[email protected] | (510) 501-3672
for general inquiries and for information about our restoration, nursery, and education programs
Jay Cassianni, Restoration and Nursery Manager
[email protected]| (510) 325-9006
for information about restoration and nursery work days and environmental education field trips *
Friends of Sausal Creek
P.O. Box 2737
Oakland, CA 94602
