Spotlight Muir Awards On Nov. 5 At The Campbell Theater

A night of honoring those who have furthered the cause of conservation will take place at the Campbell Theater on Saturday, Nov. 5 as the John Muir Association’s Spotlight Muir! Award Celebration celebrates its 34^th year.

This year’s awardees include a teenager in Africa, a business that recycles coffee grounds to grow gourmet food, a group that promotes science to underserved kids, and a group that preserves birds and other wildlife in Arizona.

The keynote speaker will be David Loeb, the Founder, Executive Editor and Publisher of Bay Nature magazine.

Awardees are:

Conservationist of the Year: Clifford Dzidonu has been a leader for conservation projects—chiefly in reforestation—in his native Ghana for about eight years. He began by inspiring and organizing youth in various communities to plant 30,000 teak and other trees. Soon after, he mobilized youth into an organization called Kubiti, a forestation and farming society, and acquired a piece of land where he planted trees. In 2005, he led an effort to plant 30,000 trees of various species, bringing the number of trees planted to 60,000. And in 2006, he helped establish a nursery to grow 50,000 teak seedlings; 40,000 were planted nearby and he distributed the rest to other communities. Clifford’s efforts support the forest ecosystem, native wildlife and the local economy in numerous ways, and he has accomplished all of this at a young age. Clifford is only 16 years old.

Environmental Education Conservation Award: KIDS for the BAY (KftB) targets low income, underserved elementary schools in Alameda and Contra Costa Counties for action-oriented environmental education. Their program goals include turning students on to science, connecting students with nature and empowering them to take environmental action. Students select, plan and implement their own project, allowing them to apply themselves to the learning opportunity. Projects include adopting local urban creeks, where students clean up and restore the creek by removing trash and planting trees. Since 1992, KftB has provided environmental education to 52,000 students and more than 6,000 parents.

Nonprofit Conservation Award: Wild at Heart is an all-volunteer raptor rescue organization dedicated to the conservation and preservation of Arizona’s native wildlife. Their outdoor aviaries and a critical-care facility are always open to assist raptors needing short-term or ongoing medical treatment. Their projects include burrowing owl habitat restoration and active relocation of owls threatened by development. The organization was selected by the Arizona Fish and Game Department to develop a captive breeding program for the cactus ferruginous pygmy owl, which is very near extinction. Wild at Heart is a strong proponent of education by taking non-releasable raptors to schools and events, and by providing and a Junior Volunteer program.

Business Conservation Award: Back to the Roots developed a way to use one of the largest waste streams in America—the tons of coffee-ground waste generated daily—as a medium for a nutritious and popular food product: specialty  mushrooms. Founded by two UC Berkeley students, the business collects 20,000 lbs. of coffee grounds per week and produces 500 pounds of fresh mushrooms, sold through local farmers’ markets. The coffee medium replaces wood chips, saving trees and diverting methane-producing waste from the landfill. The Oakland-based business is active in the community, not only by creating much-needed jobs, but by spreading the message of sustainability. The company seeks to “rethink the standard way of doing business, and take action by directly contributing to the new green economy model.”

Keynote Speaker David Loeb moved to the Bay Area in 1973 from the east coast. He began to feel that the rich natural diversity of the Bay Area deserved a special venue. In February 1997, he contacted Malcolm Margolin, publisher of Heyday Books and News from Native California, with the idea of a magazine focused on nature in the Bay Area. Bay Nature magazine gradually took shape and was launched in January, 2001. Loeb was awarded the John Muir Association’s Environmental Education Conservation Award in 2009.

Since 1978, the John Muir Association has honored those who work to continue John Muir’s message of environmental preservation. John Muir is a preeminent figure in American history, whose wide-reaching legacy and life was most recently featured in this year’s PBS American Masters film, John Muir in the New World. The John Muir

Association is a nonprofit organization established in 1956 and works in  partnership with the National Park Service at the John Muir National Historic Site in Martinez, California.

Ticket purchases will support the John Muir Association, which was a vital partner in the first-ever renovation of the Visitor Center at the John Muir National Historic Site. The dedication for the new Visitor Center took place September 24th, which also highlighted the inauguration of free, seven-day admission to the park.

Tickets are $40. Visit our website for tickets or more information at www.johnmuirassociation.org.

Call JMA Board Member Mary Ann at (925) 228-1210, or e-mail

jma@johnmuirassociation.org. Reservations are required by October 31st; tickets will be held at the door. The Campbell Theatre is located at 636 Ward Street, Martinez 94553,and is a short walk from the Martinez Amtrak station.