HIGHWATER MARKS
news & updates
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March 2021 | Issue 2
Action Center
Sign the Petition: Tell Washington State to say YES to Southern Resident Killer Whales & NO to industries that could cause oil spills! Join Friends and 19 other organizations in asking the Washington State Department of Ecology to require oil spill contingency plans to include the required wildlife response protections for the critically endangered Southern Residents.

Plastic Free Salish Sea: Adopt a Beach. Join the Plastic Free Salish Sea Coalition and sign-up for regular beach clean-ups in the San Juan Islands! This is a great opportunity for groups and organizations.

Legislative Alert: Ask Your WA Legislators to Support HB1099 and HB1220 - Ask your legislators to be climate, housing, and environmental justice champions by voting YES on HB’s1099 and 1220. Click here for more information about the week of action starting March 15.
Friends’ New Immersive Virtual Reality Education Program
We have successfully launched our exciting new youth program! 

Over the past month, Friends staff have been online and in person with Lopez High School’s Marine Science class and Spring Street International School’s Environmental Systems class, taking students underwater along our shorelines and up the Skagit River with spawning salmon — using virtual reality!
Friends of Friends: Bob Porter 

Bob Porter called Lopez Island his weekend retreat in 1966. By 1989 he and his wife Barbara called it home.  

Bob has been a member of Friends for more than 30 years. As a member of Friends and a life-long biochemistry educator, Bob takes intentional action to restore shorelines and protect habitats. For Bob, island stewardship is vitally important: 

I have supported the mission of the Friends of the San Juans through the years for many reasons but primarily because it is a citizen-advocacy organization devoted to protecting, preserving and restoring the natural shorelines and native habitats in the San Juans and surrounding waters through science and education. One of the main reasons I came to Lopez Island was because of its natural beauty, and Friends is committed to preserving that beauty for generations to come. - Bob Porter
Origin Stories: Winter 1981 Newsletter
What was Friends of the San Juans up to back in 1982? Click here to find out! You’ll learn about the Carefree Lawsuit, which challenged a development on San Juan Island next to Lime Kiln State Park, promotion of a water study in San Juan County, and more…
The Future is Up to Us by Michel Vekved, Director of Philanthropy
Imagine your role in the legacy of the Salish Sea and San Juan Islands...
Words from the Next Generation: Hindsight’s 2020 - Shifting Baselines in Addressing Environmental Concerns by Kaia Olson (high school sophomore)
Shifting baselines have serious implications in our fight against global environmental issues. Can we expect ourselves to “wake up” from our inaction if the alarm never rings loud enough? What will it take for us to understand the impact of our present actions?
Welcome Maddie!
We are excited to welcome Maddie, our graduate student intern, to Friends. She is assisting with the regulatory review component of our armor mapping and change analysis project, as well as gaining skills in the field with our forage fish habitat assessment surveys. Maddie is studying environmental policy at Pace University, and says, “I have been passionate about killer whales my whole life; to have the opportunity to learn from and work with individuals so dedicated and experienced in the protection and recovery of Southern Resident Killer Whales, their food, and habitat is a dream come true."
What We're Reading
All We Can Save: Truth, Courage, and Solutions for the Climate Crisis, Edited by Ayana Elizabeth Johnson, and Katharine K. Wilkinson
 
This book is an inspirational collection of essays from women at the forefront of the climate movement who are harnessing truth, courage, and solutions to lead humanity forward. 

Washington Can’t Wait, Cascadia Weekly, Mar. 3, 2021

This article, co-written with RE Sources and Evergreen Alliance, focuses on HB 1099,
an excellent piece of legislation currently moving through the WA state legislature, which will help local communities plan for climate change. Click here to take action on this bill today.

Oil Tanker Traffic Could Endanger Indigenous Way of Life, Investigate West, Mar. 10, 2021

This article talks about the impacts from the Trans Mountain Pipeline Expansion’s increase in tanker traffic and increase in the transport of Canadian Tar Sands crude oil (also known as diluted bitumen).
Friends of the San Juans respectfully honors the fact that this beautiful place we strive to protect and restore with our mission-centered work is comprised of the ancestral lands, waters, and natural resources of the Coast Salish peoples. These Tribes have cared for and stewarded the San Juan Islands and the Salish Sea since time immemorial — and continue to do so — and we honor their inherent, aboriginal, and treaty rights that have been passed down from generation to generation.
Friends of the San Juans | www.sanjuans.org