Event Description:
The Salinas River Day Celebration is an invitation to connect intimately with the Salinas River through sensorial experience, close observation, and learning through experiences shared by local organizations, artists, and land stewards who advocate for the Salinas River and its surrounding landscape through their ongoing work.
The intention of the event is to invite the community to relate with the Salinas River, immersing themselves in the river’s nature. This event has been held for the past three years during Latino Conservation Week in the Salinas town area. The goal is to spend the day on a field trip that includes different locations along the river. During the field trip participants will have the opportunity to enjoy a day of recreation, art, exploration and reflection on their public lands. They will also learn from experts (from the different organizations that are part of this partnership) about the history, hydrology, ecology, conservation of the Salinas River and alternative forms of river management focused on nature-based solutions, climate adaptation and environmental justice. Participants will also have a chance to connect with others, building alliances and networks for conservation. Through facilitating these connections we hope to support them as partners and community members by offering a meaningful experience.
The events look to showcase the Salinas River as a biological and cultural landscape. We will invite participants to embrace their role as stewards of public lands, protecting and caring for the river. We want to promote connection and stewardship by highlighting the importance of the river as refuge and corridor for wildlife, and also as refuge for people. We would like to foster in the community stewardship of public lands by reconnecting with nature, learning the language of the river, nurturing the land and the culture, and cultivating a sense of belonging, rootedness, sacredness, and reciprocity with the lands along the river.
The field trip is free. All materials, supplies, and food will be covered for participants to eliminate any financial barriers. We will offer a variety of activities that the public will enjoy, including river diaries, water quality tests, bird watching, plant identification, and scientific illustration. We will highlight the history of the river, endangered and charismatic species, and the ongoing work on protection, conservation and restoration of the Salinas River. We will invite participants to partake in ongoing conservation efforts and become river advocates.
These events promote equity and inclusion by ceding intrinsic value to the Salinas River during our session, taking time to listen to what the landscape needs and desires, and advocating for multi species justice. Prior background knowledge of the Salinas river is not a prerequisite to participate meaningfully in these field trips. We hope to encourage the community to cultivate deep and personal relationships with the Salinas River and landscape, reclaiming the right to belong in and envisioning emerging social systems - communities - around the river. These field trips are an invitation for a diversity of cultures, perspectives, and worldviews to take space in the landscape, surrounding dialogue, and narratives.
RSVP https://www.eventbrite.com/e/salinas-river-day-celebration-salinas-tickets-1993969860529
The Salinas River Day Celebration is a partnership among BASE Landscape Architecture, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Pacific Southwest Regional Office - Salinas River National Wildlife Refuge, Visionary Arts Studio, Monterey Waterkeeper, San Luis Obispo Beaver Brigade, Atascadero Mutual Water Company and the Resource Conservation District (RCD) Of Monterey County.
Date & time:
September 26, 2026
Location:
Salinas
Yes
free
