We are fortunate to have a number of excellent local and regional organizations working in sustainability. All of the listings below very useful web sites as well.

Local Organizations (in alphabetical order)

Bike Sonoma!: SCBC encourages cycling in the county by working for road improvements and offering information, rides, classes and valet parking at public events for cyclists.

Leadership Institute for Ecology and the Economy: Offers an extensive Leadership Training course that looks at key public policy issues and opportunities facing Sonoma County from a sustainability perspective. Based in Santa Rosa

New College of California: The North Bay campus located in Santa Rosa offers BA and MA degrees in Culture, Ecology and Sustainable Community. In addition, they sponsor a wide range of related events for the public.

Occidental Arts and Ecology Center: OAEC is a non-profit educational center and biodiversity-focused farm offering a wide variety of educational programs about sustainable living practices. In addition OAEC works to develop grassroots activist strategies and campaigns for positive social change.

Peace and Justice Center: The Center envisions a world of peace, justice and freedom and sponsors numerous events and workshops to that end. They have a calendar of events on their website and a book and videotape library at their office in Santa Rosa.

Sonoma County Conservation Council: A federation of local environmental groups which operates the Environmental Center of Sonoma County. Their storefront facility near downtown Santa Rosa hosts meetings and small conferences, and has on hand an array of information on issues. Their web site is linked to many ad hoc and traditional local groups, and has an archive easy to search for background on many local concerns.

Sonoma Ecology Center: SEC is working toward a condition of sustainable ecological health in the Sonoma Valley through research and community involvement.

Sustainable Fairfax: SF is a very active community-based sustainability group particularly focusing on energy issues.

Sustainable Mill Valley: SMV works locally to protect the well being of the environment and population, and connects with other groups to improve the quality of life globally.

Sustainable Petaluma Network: SPN is a network of individuals dedicated to making Petaluma more sustainable. Website includes schedule for on-going sustainability film series.

Organizations in the Region

The Institute of Noetic Sciences: Ions conducts and sponsors research into the potentials and powers of consciousness and offers a number of educational forums. They are located in Southern Sonoma County.

North West Environment Watch: NEW is a research and communication center that promotes a sustainable economy and way of life in the Pacific Northwest--a bioregion encompassing the watersheds of rives flowing through North America's temperate rainforest zone and including Sonoma County. Based in Seattle

Planet Drum: Through its projects, publications, speakers, workshops and on-line international bioregion calendar, Planet Drum helps start new bioregional groups and encourages us to find ways to live within the natural confines of bioregions.

Redefining Progress: This is primarily a research organization that seeks to shift the prevailing definition of progress from one based on growth to one that incorporates quality of life factors. This is also where you will find
Mathis Wackernagel, co-creator of the Ecological Footprint. Based in Oakland.

Resource Renewal Institute: Their mission is to catalyze the development and implementation of "Green Plans" which are working models of sustainability developed in the Netherlands and New Zealand. Based in San Francisco.

Regional News Sources

Tidepool: Tidepool is a green daily clipping service for Pacific Coast Rainforest bioregion from San Francisco to Alaska.

High Country News: Described as the mother ship of information about the American west, HCN offers in depth stories twice monthly.

National Organizations

The Center for the New American Dream: The Center helps Americans consume responsibly to protect the environment, enhance quality of life and promote social justice. They work to conserve natural resources, counter the commercialization of our culture and promote positive changes in the way goods are produced and consumed.

Rocky Mountain Institute: RMI is a premier think tank and research organization applying systems thinking to resource issues. Solution oriented policy development that looks to market and corporate restructuring.

Sustainability Institute: A think-do tank dedicated to sustainable resource use, sustainable economics, and sustainable community.

SustainLane: SustainLane provides fast & easy access to best-of-class information and resources for enjoying a healthier more sustainable life within your community.

The Worldwatch Institute: This research organization conducts inter-disciplinary non-partisan research on emerging global environmental issues, the results of which are widely disseminated throughout the world.

International Organizations

GreenFacts: GreenFacts is an independent, multi-stakeholder non-profit organization based in Brussels. Its mission is to provide non-specialists with unbiased scientific information on environment and health matters through the Internet.

Millenium Ecosystem Assessment, 2005: The Millennium Ecosystem Assessment (MA) is an international work program designed to meet the needs of decision makers and the public for scientific information concerning the consequences of ecosystem change for human well-being and options for responding to those changes.