Community events: Four park programs making a difference in the GGNRA

A ranger and park program participants examine interactive items on the Tam Van.

Devin Ariel / Parks Conservancy

No matter the season, our Community Stewardship and Engagement (CSE) Team stays busy connecting people to parks! Whether they're trucking a mobile trailhead out to the parks, creating bilingual forest walks, hosting cultural events, or restoring historic gardens—the CSE team is devoted to developing programming that removes historic and systemic barriers and offers a space for safe engagement through park experiences.  

Check out the four activations below to get a glimpse into the wonderful world of park programs: 

Activation of the Golden Gate Greenway  

Our CSE team brought our mobile trailhead, the Roving Ranger, to the Golden Gate Greenway – a slow street and green space for community recreation in the Tenderloin. Alongside many partner organizations, the Parks Conservancy offered hands-on learning about plants and animals in our local park-sites to the participating youth cohort, bringing the joy of nature and parks to the city center. 

Ayudando Latinos A Soñar  

The CSE team worked with Ayudando Latinos A Soñar (ALAS), meeting farmworkers where they live and bridging the gap between parks and community. Their programming focused on the medicinal properties of native plants through smelling and tea tasting. The grand finale was connecting Ohlone Acorn grinding and traditional corn grinding from Central America to show the cultural connection.  

Rafiki Coalition in Muir Woods 

Over the summer, our CSE team brought the Rafiki Coalition, an organization that provides health education, housing, advocacy, and essential services to San Francisco’s Black community and other marginalized groups, to Muir Woods National Monument. Most participants were visiting for the first time! Groups took hikes of varying lengths, got to see salmon in the creek, and enjoy the woods in community. One participant even shared that they felt they got the “Red Carpet Treatment,” from our staff! 

Queer and Trans Belonging in Nature 

Our CSE team facilitated an incredible event as part of the Queer and Trans Belonging in Nature program. They hosted a special guest from Shelterwood Collective, a queer, trans, BIPOC/Indigenous and disabled led land collective, and prepared the marshland for planting and talked about caring for land, Indigenous leadership and collaboration, and disability justice. One participant attended on their birthday and shared, “I feel so grounded and grateful for this space.”  

To learn more about upcoming Parks Conservancy Community Stewardship and Engagement Programming, visit parksconservancy.org/events.