Born and raised in Palo Alto, I attended DeAnza Elementary School, Wilbur Junior High and Palo Alto High School. My parents, both Stanford professors, were active in progressive politics at the local and national level. Their involvement instilled in me and my siblings a strong sense of civic duty.
After graduating with a Political Science degree from UC Berkeley in the 1980s, I returned to Palo Alto to work on the international Earth Day 1990 campaign. We revitalized the global environmental movement while creating a vibrant community of dedicated citizens right here at home. On Earth Day we founded Bay Area Action (now Acterra) with the mantra — “Think Globally, Act Locally.”
Since then I’ve worked hard for global change at the local level. My accomplishments as a community leader include:
- Co-founding several other non-profit organizations, including Stanford Open Space Alliance and Environmentalists Against War.
- Leading the successful effort to protect the San Mateo County Coast from the environmentally-destructive Devil’s Slide Bypass.
- Working to secure $4 billion in state park and water bonds.
- Leading efforts to protect San Francisquito Creek and the Stanford Foothills.
Leadership Experience
Executive Director, Earth Day Network
Co-Founder/Executive Director, Bay Area Action/Acterra
Founder/Director, Stanford Open Space Alliance
Statewide Field Coordinator, California Propositions 12 (Park Bond) and 13 (Water Bond)
Youth Education Coordinator, Acterra Schools Group
Campaign Coordinator, People for Land and Nature
Campaign Coordinator, Sierra Club Devil's Slide Campaign
Co-Founder/Coordinator, Environmentalists Against War
Issues Coordinator, Earth Day 1990
Academic Background
B.A. Political Science, University of California at Berkeley, 1987
Video Production
Who’s Taking Over? The World Trade Organization in Seattle, 2000.
Thinking Tunnel: The Devil’s Slide Story, 1996. (Western Area Video Excellence Award, Best Documentary.)
A Creek Runs Through It: The Story of San Francisquito, 1994. (Bay Area Cable Excellence Award, Best Documentary.)
The Battle for San Bruno Mountain, 1993. (Bay Area Cable Excellence Award, Best Documentary.)
Western Shoshone Land Rights: The Dann Case, 1992.