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Dear Friend,

As we embark on this new year, I want to acknowledge that, for many of us, the challenges we are grappling with at home and abroad can be unsettling and may bring up feelings of fear, frustration, and fatigue. I also want to recognize that for some in our community — whether due to identity, appearance, location, or some other factor — the threats and associated impacts are more acute. And in this moment, I want to assure you that Earth Island remains committed to its purpose and the community we’ve built together. Our response is collective. Our mission, to create a more just and equitable world where all life may thrive, continues to guide us. We will keep showing up and meet this moment with resilience and courage.

In solidarity,

Sumona Majumdar

The Trump administration is proposing a new Five-Year Offshore Oil and Gas Leasing Program that includes drilling off the coast of California, in the Gulf of Mexico, and in previously protected coastal waters off the Florida and Alaska coasts. The program proposes drilling in the Alaska wilderness, where drilling has never been attempted because of high risk to sensitive marine wildlife. These coastal waters are home to some of the richest marine biodiversity in the United States, and include critical habitats for endangered marine animals. Now is the time to speak directly to the officials shaping this plan. Learn more about the proposal on Shark Stewards’ website and tell the feds NO to any new offshore drilling leases. Public comment on the proposal closes on January 23!

Join New Leaders Initiative on January 29 at 5:30 p.m. Pacific Time for Emotional Responses to the Climate Crisis: BYA Youth Perspectives, a virtual conversation with two 2025 Brower Youth Award (BYA) alums, Inaam Chattha and Kyle Trefny. Facilitated by 2005 BYA alum Jess Rimington, founder of One World Youth Project, the conversation will include discussions on how Chattha created a safe space for youth struggling with climate anxiety, and how Trefny transformed his fear of fire into a relationship of adaptation and coexistence working as a firefighter. Please register in advance for the event.

Register

On the anniversary of the devastating January 2025 wildfires in Los Angeles, California, Plastic Pollution Coalition and Habitable released a new report, How Plastics Fuel Wildfires & How to Rebuild Better, which stresses the need to reduce plastics in buildings to minimize future health and fire risks. The report explores the links between plastics and wildfires and shows how communities impacted by wildfires can build and rebuild better with safer, plastic-free materials. Habitable CEO Gina Ciganik’s November 2025 TEDx Talk, “The Plastic Problem Hidden in Plain Sight,” further describes the harms from plastic building materials and related chemicals, and proposes solutions. Learn more.

Ready, set, summer camp! KIDS for the BAY Summer Camp registration will open on Wednesday, January 21 at 9:30 a.m. Your camper will enjoy a summer full of hands-on science, nature exploration, and fun in the outdoors. Campers will explore bay shorelines and ocean beaches, hike in redwood groves, discover creek life, play nature games, and become inspired environmentalists! Weekly camp activities include a boat ride on the bay, a field trip to the California Academy of Sciences, a visit to Blake Garden, and many more adventures in the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area. Learn more.

Bioneers 2026 — scheduled for March 26 to 28 in Berkeley, California — will reignite our shared energy, creativity, and commitment to change. Connect with visionary activists, scientists, artists, educators, Indigenous leaders, and community organizers who are shaping solutions to the most critical issues of our time. Secure your spot: Register today. IslandWire subscribers can enter the following code for a 20-percent discount: 360b20. Earth Island will have a booth set up in the David Brower Center lobby during the conference. Swing by and say hi!

Register

Over the past year, the Mississippi Farm to School Network piloted Mississippi Sprouts, a farm-to-early-care-and-education (ECE) initiative supporting young children’s health through local food, gardening, and nutrition education. Launched in April 2025 — with support from Nemours Children’s Healthy Kids, Healthy Future — the pilot provided funding, training, and technical assistance to early childhood programs across North Mississippi and the Delta. What began with five sites has grown to reach 3,100 children at 31 ECE centers through trusted community partnerships and strengthening connections among educators, families, farmers, and communities statewide. Read more about the initiative.

Project Coyote has developed and produced three new educational videos to support advocates working toward coyote-friendly communities. Developed as part of the Championing Coyote-Friendly Communities advocacy guide, the videos cover key coexistence topics: living with backyard chickens, deadly rodenticides, and how to talk to communities about coexisting with coyotes. Together, these resources provide practical, accessible tools for reducing conflict, protecting wildlife, and building informed, compassionate community conversations.