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Verna Jigour Lecture
by
Mari Strain
Growing up in San Francisco, I never thought about the
presence of streams, or what happens to them when a city
gets built in their path. My notions of such things were
limited to the man-made waterfall at Portals of the Past in
Golden Gate Park where my family went to feed the ducks.
When I first moved to Berkeley, I was puzzled, then excited
by the frog symbol on a storm drain announcing the presence
of Derby Creek under my street. Eventually I came to accept
that there was a real creek down there hidden away from view
by the asphalt, houses, and lawns of Derby Street. And it
was kind of thrilling to think of that bit of nature
literally under my backyard. Now that I live in Oakland, I
see curb messages stating "drains to Lake Merritt". They
make me think about where my clean water comes from, and
where my waste water goes when I'm done with it.
In a recent conversation with Verna Jigour, a conservation
ecologist, I brought up the frog and fish storm drain
stencils, a project from the 70's and 80's by several
community groups including the Urban Creek Council (UCC).
Verna considers UCC exemplary for their success in restoring
creeks and in raising awareness of natural processes in our
neighborhoods. She emphasized the importance of bringing
these processes back into view within cities. This applies
not just to buried creeks, she says, but also to nutrient
cycles. She would like urbanites to become more aware of
the role of decomposition, to extend the trend from backyard
composting to the recognition of soil as an ecosystem.
lthough most of Verna's current projects focus on
California's wildlands, she has a strong conviction that
ecological restoration can be a reality even in "the heart
of the concrete city". Like myself, she is a native of San
Francisco, and she believes that we can narrow the gap
between natural forces and the built landscape in that city.
She pointed out that even in Los Angeles, that icon of
artificiality, there is an effort to return the LA River to
a more natural state.
On April 4th, Verna will be speaking at the Pacific Energy
Center in San Francisco on these and related ideas at the
monthly Green Forum lecture. She will gear her presentation
towards architects, planners, designers, and builders who
share her interests and would like to know more. She feels
that those of us who shape the urban landscape play an
important role in appropriately greening the cities: first
by having the foresight and vision to imagine what could be;
then by devising ways of reconnecting urban residents with
their indigenous ecosystems.
There are many creative ways to approach these goals. Verna
illustrated this with the example of a Forest Service
Visitors Center in the Tahoe area that brings humans down
below water level to see a cut away view of a salmon run.
It seems to me that people like to understand how things
work, and that better understanding of our society's
relationships with natural cycles leads to more responsible
interaction with them. I am reminded of a recent NY Times
editorial about dwindling salmon populations in the
Northwest. It states that "a majority of Northwesterners is
willing to pay increased taxes and electrical rates to save
the salmon." ("The Last Salmon Run", Katherine P. Ransel,
Feb. 18, 1995). We could design analogous "story windows"
in urban environments to demystify the relationship of the
city and its residents to the natural systems in their
midst.
Verna mentioned another way we can help nature regain some
ground. Although people cannot create ecosystems, we can
provide opportunities for them to develop. And if we favor
native plants in our designs, other local wildlife will
follow. I enjoyed reading in The Terrain about "Jungle
Hill" in an Oakland neighborhood where this came about of
its own accord: "In developed East Oakland, any unclaimed
open space is immediately colonized. Wildlife - mammal,
bird, or teenager - moves in to claim the area as its
own."("The Slippery Slope to Sustainability", Chris Clarke,
February 1995).
Verna makes a clear distinction between urban wildlife that
is specific to a given geographical locale and that which we
usually associate with cities, such as pigeons and European
starlings. The latter she refers to as a "weedy" sort of
wildlife common to cities the world around. Their presence
contributes to "the homogenization of landscapes". On the
other hand, the presence of indigenous wildlife in a city
helps to restore a bioregional "spirit of place".
Clearly, there is a connection between the health of urban
wildlife habitats and the quality of life for human city
dwellers. Verna feels strongly about the need for "play in
relationship with nature", especially for children, and
within one's everyday surroundings rather than hours away by
car. In the case of "Jungle Hill", community involvement is
the factor that is transforming a left-over piece of land
from a haven for drug dealers and trash dumpers into a
neighborhood asset, a place where such play is becoming
possible. In our troubled cities, community-building is
crucial for improvement in many areas beyond ecological
restoration. It's as if urbanites need to affirm their
interdependence with each other, as well as with nature.
As the contact for community-based projects for Society for
Ecological Restoration - California Chapter (SERCAL), Verna
is in touch with many community efforts going on around the
state. In fact, her current doctoral internship includes
community-based conservation planning, as well as ecological
restoration. Although she did not elaborate on the
community aspect of her work during our brief exchange, I am
hoping she will do so at the Green Forum lecture.
In our conversation, Verna Jigour touched on many exciting
and inspiring ideas. I look forward to her more extended
talk in April, as does she. As a botanist/ landscape
architect/ conservation ecologist, she has a firm basis for
exploring concepts of cities + nature. Her interest in
community involvement completes the picture.
Verna's current efforts include teaching ecological
restoration for UCSC Extension, developing an endangered
species recovery plan for the US Fish and Wildlife Service,
and doctoral internship with the Ventana Wildlands Group and
Santa Lucia Watershed Council. Her doctoral program focuses
on chaotic systems modeling of human/ fire ecology
interface. She also continues to work with SERCAL, of which
she is a founding member.
Board Member Mari Strain is the coordinator for our monthly
lecture series. Call [510] 273-2428 for information
about the lecture series, or for suggestions for future
lecturers and topics.
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