Fri, Sep 26 2025

Explore Our Latest Historical Ecology StoryMap!

The Resilient Landscapes Program at SFEI recently completed the first phase of the Sacramento Valley Historical Ecology Study. The study hopes to inform a pathway for creating more functional floodplains in the Sacramento Valley.

Tue, Aug 29 2023

Restoration Plan for the Laguna de Santa Rosa Completed!

SFEI completed a Restoration Plan for the Laguna de Santa Rosa in the Russian River watershed. SFEI, Sonoma Water, and the Laguna de Santa Rosa Foundation worked with technical advisors, stakeholders, tribal representatives, and local landowners to develop the Restoration Plan that provides a restoration planning framework and conceptual designs for multi-benefit habitat restoration projects that support people and wildlife.

Tue, Sep 21 - Fri, Dec 31 2021

Big updates from Hidden Nature SF, including new interactive content!

Hidden Nature SF seeks to uncover the natural history of San Francisco’s past landscape.

Wed, Feb 24 2021

Hidden Nature San Francisco: A conversation about the past, present, and future of nature in San Francisco

SFEI and our partners from the Exploratorium, the San Francisco Department of the Environment, and the Presidio Trust were joined live by over 400 participants for a conversation around the nature, both past and present, that is hidden in plain sight in San Francisco.

Sun, Oct 7 2018

Using native ecological practices to manage California’s fire-prone landscape

Current North Coast watershed steward and former SFEI staff scientist Chuck Striplen penned an article for Bay Nature that identifies a number of challenges California faces, while illustrating the lines of connection between the past and present.

Tue, Oct 10 - Wed, Oct 11 2017

Flood Control 2.0 Wins an Outstanding Environmental Project Award!

The Flood Control 2.0 project team was presented with an Outstanding Environmental Project Award at the 13^th Biennial State of the Estuary Conference in Oakland, CA.

Wed, Aug 2 2017

Announcing the release of Re-Oaking Silicon Valley: Building Vibrant Cities with Nature

Could restoring lost ecosystems to cities play a role in building ecological resilience across landscapes? In Re-oaking Silicon Valley, a new report by SFEI, we explore this opportunity in our region.

Thu, Jun 22 2017

Flood Control 2.0 Completed!

SFEI and several agency partners recently completed a multi-year, EPA funded project called Flood Control 2.0. The goal of the project was to develop information that is useful for integrating habitat restoration into flood management at the Bay edge. Project outputs are now available at floodcontrol.sfei.org.

Thu, Jun 22 2017

South Bay Landscape Vision Workshop

On June 7, SFEI, in partnership with the Santa Clara Valley Water District and South Bay Salt Ponds Restoration Project, hosted a landscape “visioning” workshop in San Jose.

Thu, Jun 15 2017

SFEI's Robin Grossinger helps to preserve San Jose's Coyote Valley using historical ecology

San Jose's Coyote Valley has come into focus as a key space to preserve as open space, even while faced with ever mounting pressures from land developers and local industry.

Mon, Mar 20 2017

Tijuana River Valley Histrical Ecology Investigation Published

The Tijuana River Valley Historical Ecology Investigation—completed in January 2017—synthesized hundreds of historical maps, photographs, and texts to reconstruct the ecological, hydrological, and geomorphic conditions of the Tijuana River valley

Mon, Mar 20 2017

Sycamore Alluvail Woodland Habitat Mapping and Regeneration Study Released

California sycamore (Platanus racemosa) is an iconic native tree species found in California and northern Baja California.

Mon, Dec 12 2016

Ventura County Historical Ecology Study Helping Save Santa Clara River Watershed

Peter Brand of the State Coastal Conservancy discusses the role of Historical Ecology and other research in bringing together stakeholders to help save the Santa Clara River.

Sun, Oct 30 2016

Robin Grossinger interviewed at Grace Cathedral for a discussion about adapting to climate change

On Sunday, October 30 from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., SFEI’s Robin Grossinger appeared on a weekly, hour-long discussion series called The Forum.

Mon, Apr 18 - Tue, Apr 19 2016

SFEI featured in LA Times about earthquake risk to San Francisco

A recent story in the LA Times by Ron Lin underscores the newly identified threat that earthquakes pose to the San Francisco Bay waterfront. Under certain circumstances, the sea wall that currently protects the Embarcadero and its surrounding infrastructure could be dramatically compromised during a strong enough seismic event. The results could be capastrophic to a key driver of San Francisco's economy. And the fix to the vulnerability would be expensive at $3 billion.

Thu, Feb 18 2016

KTVU consults SFEI about the role of historical ecology in advancing modern flood protection

KTVU's Steve Paulson interviewed Robin Grossinger and Erin Beller of SFEI to learn how their historical ecology work in Napa has shed light on ways that natural processes might help, rather than hinder, flood protection strategies.

Tue, Jan 26 2016

Institute's Historical Ecology featured in the New York Times

New York (January 25, 2016) – In today's New York Times, the San Francisco Estuary Institute and its scientists from the Resilient Landscapes program inspired the newspaper's broad readership to look back in time to see a clearer future.

Tue, Dec 1 2015

Historical Ecology for Lower Walnut Creek promises to deliver insights at an upcoming event

SFEI scientists Sean Baumgarten and Scott Dusterhoff will present findings from the Lower Walnut Creek Historical Ecology Study at the Quadrennial Contra Costa County Creek and Watershed Symposium, to be held on December 3, 2015, at the Pleasant Hill Community Center.

Sun, Aug 30 2015

RL journal publication on using historical ecology research to inform river restoration

SFEI scientists in the resilient landscapes program, in collaboration with Pete Downs of Plymouth University and Brice Orr of Stillwater Sciences, published an article on how historical ecology can infrom river restoration on the Santa Clara River. 

Sat, May 30 2015

Re-Oaking Featured in New York Times

The re-oaking concept developed by SFEI was featured in an article about Oakland and Silicon Valley.  First conceived in a paper in Restoration Ecology by SFEI an

Wed, May 27 2015

Novato Creek Baylands Historical Ecology Study report now available

SFEI recently completed an historical ecology study of lower Novato Creek in Marin County.