Today and every day, the legacy of our Founders reminds us to honor all women and those who identify as a woman.
Save The Bay was founded by three Courageous Women. In 1960, Sylvia McLaughlin, Kay Kerr and Esther Gulick met over tea to discuss their concerns about an Army Corps of Engineers’ map that had been printed in the Oakland Tribune. It showed that San Francisco Bay could end up being a narrow shipping channel by the year 2020 because of planned Bay fill.
It’s 2020, and today, “the Bay’s shoreline is approximately half the length of the California coastline, and nine counties and over 40 cities touch Bay waters.”*
Our Founders’ vision to stop Bay fill and ensure a clean and healthy Bay for future generations was not lost, but today our region faces new challenges. Bay fill is still at large and climate change not only threatens our shorelines but air quality, atmospheric warming and more.
“According to the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission, more than 20,000 households and 13 miles of highway are at risk of permanent inundation with two feet of sea-level rise.”
Save The Bay’s mission has not wavered and our work to protect and restore San Francisco Bay, for people and wildlife is at the heart of what we do. Every day we work to carry on our Founders’ legacy and at the same time, we must create a new one that advances our work to address the known and unforeseen threats to our region.
Our Founders mobilized Bay Area communities. They gave the Bay a voice and started the first modern grassroots environmental movement in the Bay Area.
The Bay’s voice is growing thanks to our courageous, persistent and diligent donors, volunteers, corporate supporters, staff and Board.
San Francisco Bay would not be what it is today without the work of Sylvia McLaughlin, Kay Kerr and Esther Gulick. Their legacy inspires us all and continues to spark an insurmountable determination to build Bay and climate-smart solutions that will reshape our work and build a healthy and resilient Bay for future generations.
To ALL the women out there working to save the Bay, we thank you! ______________________________________________________________________
Tremendous thanks to Stasher! In celebration of Women’s History Month and our Courageous Women Founders, they will match all donations in March, dollar-for-dollar, up to $10,000. Founded by Kat Nouri, Stasher is the radically functional and endlessly reusable alternative to single-use plastics. Made entirely from silicone, Stasher can revolutionize the way you cook, store, and travel with one simple bag. 
Sources: *BCDC / ** New York Times, “What Rising Seas Mean for San Francisco”
