News From Our Neighbors:
Native Plant Activism and Conservation in
Baja California
Michael and native plant activists/advocates will bring us the latest news on ongoing efforts to conserve endangered plants and habitat south of the border. Learn about the blossoming of local initiatives and possibilities for binational collaboration. This program will also feature four speakers from Baja California presenting short talks related to native plants of the northern peninsula:
Monica E. Martínez: “Ecourbe Nursery: Native Plants of Baja California, Activities and Challenges”
Cesar Garcia Valderrama of the CNPS Baja California Chapter / Nativ@s de las Californias A.C.: “Native Plant Poaching in Baja California, Hopes and Perils”
Manuel Saddan Nevarez Flores, Forest Ranger, Constitution of 1857 National Park: “Rare and Endemic Plants of the Sierra Juarez.”
Paula Pijoan: “From Desmonte to Viva el Monte: Rampant Tourist Developments in Baja California and a nascent effort to raise awareness”
Anthropologist Michael Wilken Robertson has developed lifelong collaborative relationships with native artists and traditional authorities to foster cultural revitalization and sustainable community development. His fascination with native plants and the natural landscapes of the Californias has inspired him to explore the many ways that humans have interacted with their environments, from the ancient past into the present.
He is the author of Kumeyaay Ethnobotany: Shared Heritage of the Californias and the recent article “In Baja California, Seeking Solutions for Sage Poaching” in Flora magazine, Spring 2022. His research and advocacy work with Native Baja Californians has explored ethnobotany, traditional arts (pottery, basketry, oral narratives and song), history, languages and cultural landscapes of the indigenous peoples of the northern Baja California region.
You may also be interested in reading: CONSERVATION AT CALIFORNIA’S EDGE by Evan Meyer, Jorge Simancas, and Nick Jensen published in the January 2016 issue of Fremontia.
