Save The Bay’s Annual Report FY2023-2024
October 1, 2023 through September 30, 2024
The Bay Brings Us Together
This year, your support empowered Save The Bay to achieve significant milestones in our mission to protect and restore San Francisco Bay for people and wildlife. From legislative victories to hands-on restoration, your contributions have been the driving force behind our collective success. This annual report showcases the impact of our work to protect and restore San Francisco Bay.
Advocate
Championing Policies for a Resilient Bay
At This year, thanks to your support, Save The Bay drove landmark policy wins that will shape our region for decades to come. From securing billions in statewide climate funding, to closing loopholes in California’s plastic bag ban, to expanding nature-based infrastructure in communities facing flood risk, your voice helped us lead the way.
Securing Historic Climate Funding
In 2024, we celebrated a monumental victory with the passage of Proposition 4, California’s $10 billion Climate Resilience Bond, Save The Bay’s top legislative priority for the November 2024 ballot. Thanks to your advocacy and support, $1 billion is now earmarked for coastal climate resilience, with a mandate that 40% of the funds benefit vulnerable and lower-income communities.
With your support, Save The Bay led the Bay Area campaign, partnering with elected officials and community leaders to build momentum. A highlight was our shoreline press conference with Assemblymember Diane Papan, which drew significant media attention and elevated the voices of those most impacted by climate change.
Eliminating Single-Use Plastic Bags
After years of persistent advocacy, Save The Bay and our partners celebrated a major environmental victory with the passage of Senate Bill 1053, which officially bans all single-use plastic bags at checkout across California. This long-overdue legislation closes a loophole in the original 2014 ban—also championed by Save The Bay—that allowed thicker plastic bags to replace the originals, leading to a 50% surge in plastic bag waste statewide.
Your support was instrumental in this victory, helping us mobilize communities and influence policy for a cleaner, healthier Bay.
Expanding Infrastructure Where it’s Needed Most
Stormwater flooding, extreme heat, and pollution are growing challenges throughout the Bay Area—but their impacts are most severe in neighborhoods that face both high flood risk and historic underinvestment. That’s why Save The Bay champions green stormwater infrastructure through our Sea Level Rise and Flood Resilience Strategy. These nature-based solutions integrate trees, soil, and native plants into the urban landscape, while helping protect communities from flooding.
With your support, we met rising demand from cities and counties seeking guidance on how to implement these strategies effectively and equitably. We deepened our leadership in key policy and funding conversations and led green infrastructure tours with community members and elected representatives. Our work remained focused on high-priority areas including East San Jose, East Oakland, and San Mateo County.
Explore our Sea Level Rise and Flood Resilience Strategy to see how we’re shaping a climate-resilient Bay Area →
Restore
Revitalizing the Bay’s Natural Habitats
Every native plant grown, every invasive species removed, and every hour spent along the shoreline adds up to something much bigger: a thriving, resilient San Francisco Bay. With your support, Save The Bay restored vital habitats across the region, advancing nature-based solutions that protect wildlife, reduce flood risk, and bring people together.
Restoration: By The Numbers
-
6 Sites
under active restoration
-
80 Acres
stewarded across four counties:
Alameda, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Marin -
20,000 Native Plants
grown from hand-collected seeds
-
35,000 Pounds
of invasive plants cleared
-
3,000 Pounds
of trash removed along the shorelines
-
2,200 Volunteers
engaged in shoreline restoration
-
7,227 Hours
contributed by volunteers
-
$279,034
value of volunteer time
Transforming Ravenswood
At Ravenswood, we witnessed nature’s comeback firsthand. As part of the South Bay Salt Pond Restoration Project, we facilitated a pivotal levee breach that reconnected 300 acres of former industrial salt pond to the tides for the first time in over a century.
Within hours, wildlife returned, and tidal marsh began its slow, steady rebirth. This transformation reduces flood risk in East Palo Alto and Menlo Park while creating crucial habitat.
Ravenswood reconnects to the Bay and transforms from barren salt pond to future wetland
Learn More about our Restoration Initiatives
Educate
Inspiring Future Environmental Stewards
Our environmental education programs continued to connect students and families to the Bay through meaningful field experiences. We guided classroom learning into salt marshes, showed students how restoration works, and encouraged young people to imagine themselves as environmental changemakers. These are some of our favorite moments from our fieldtrips last year.
Financials 2023-2024
Stewarding your Generosity
Your contributions are the backbone of our work. We are committed to transparency and fiscal responsibility, ensuring that every dollar is used effectively to protect and restore the Bay.
For detailed financial information, please refer to our financial statements.
Thank You
None of this is possible without you. Every dollar, every hour volunteered, every story shared—fuels this work. Together, we are restoring the Bay, defending communities, and creating a climate-resilient future for all.
