Climate One At The Commonwealth Club

The documentary “Rebels with a Cause” follows “ordinary citizens who did extraordinary things” in the second half of the 20th century to preserve the natural landscape of Point Reyes, California from urbanization. Point Reyes National Seashore in the San Francisco Bay Area was the first national park of major size that was created from private land, says the round table. Over the course of the 1960s and 70s activists brokered an agreement between ranchers and environmentalists that created a model to preserve the land and the ranches on it. The importance of having nature close to home became a topic of national conversation and sparked the creation of parks in numerous states. Today smart urban growth is increasingly important with rapidly expanding populations putting increased pressure on natural resources. Climate change means sea level rise, changing habitats, and extreme weather are straining the ecosystems of the parks. “Activism still matters a lot,” say panelists. A Climate One Cinema post-screening