About
Youth Stewards includes outdoor activities such as exploring along the shoreline, maintaining and planting in marshland restoration projects, and leading volunteer workdays and nature walks. Participants support water retention and weed suppression by moving mulch onto restoration areas in local open space and work on removal of fennel, a challenging weed that outcompetes biodiversity in these areas.
• Ages: 12–13 years old
• Schedule: 5-week program with weekly Wednesday morning sessions and different outdoor activities each week
Grassroots Ecology’s first roots were formed in 1997 when Bay Area Action (which would later become Acterra) created the Arastradero Stewardship Program, and Grassroots Ecology became an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2016. Its mission is to engage and educate the public to restore local ecosystems. Grassroots Ecology works in collaboration with public landowners, governments, schools, corporations, and other nonprofits, and engages thousands of people each year in hands-on education and service that improves the local environment. It works with regional agencies and community volunteers to restore habitat for Western Burrowing Owls at the Alviso Bufferlands and partnered with the Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula to run a 5-week program for 7th graders. Grassroots Ecology states values of Stewardship, Hands-on Learning, Inclusion, and Community, and recognizes that restoring native biodiversity requires restoring Native relationships and is committed to leveraging its access to ancestral lands to support the sovereignty of local Native communities. It also recognizes that historical oppression and ongoing social injustice impact access to the outdoors and meaningful engagement with nature, and is committed to addressing barriers and inequities that exclude people from environmental activities. Feedback from 7th grade students from the Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula included comments such as “thank you!” and “this was very fun.”
Last updated June 17, 2026.
• Ages: 12–13 years old
• Schedule: 5-week program with weekly Wednesday morning sessions and different outdoor activities each week
Grassroots Ecology’s first roots were formed in 1997 when Bay Area Action (which would later become Acterra) created the Arastradero Stewardship Program, and Grassroots Ecology became an independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit in 2016. Its mission is to engage and educate the public to restore local ecosystems. Grassroots Ecology works in collaboration with public landowners, governments, schools, corporations, and other nonprofits, and engages thousands of people each year in hands-on education and service that improves the local environment. It works with regional agencies and community volunteers to restore habitat for Western Burrowing Owls at the Alviso Bufferlands and partnered with the Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula to run a 5-week program for 7th graders. Grassroots Ecology states values of Stewardship, Hands-on Learning, Inclusion, and Community, and recognizes that restoring native biodiversity requires restoring Native relationships and is committed to leveraging its access to ancestral lands to support the sovereignty of local Native communities. It also recognizes that historical oppression and ongoing social injustice impact access to the outdoors and meaningful engagement with nature, and is committed to addressing barriers and inequities that exclude people from environmental activities. Feedback from 7th grade students from the Boys & Girls Club of the Peninsula included comments such as “thank you!” and “this was very fun.”
Last updated June 17, 2026.
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