Bay Day would not be possible without key partnerships. This year we are celebrating our first title sponsor: IBM Bay Area!

Last week, we took our restoration work on the road, bringing thousands of seedlings to IBM’s Silicon Valley Lab for transplanting. More than 150 IBM engineers, designers and software developers volunteered to transplant 5,400 Marsh Gumplant and Alkali Heath seedlings that will be planted into the marsh this winter.

IBMers, proudly dressed in bright yellow Bay Day tees, gathered in the Lab’s plaza ready to get their hands dirty. They hauled buckets, packed soil and meticulously transferred tiny seedlings into individual containers to continue growing throughout the summer. Save The Bay restoration specialists led workshops to teach IBM staff about the state of environmental preservation in San Francisco Bay and the value of wetlands in our region.

IBMers have a long history of caring for the environment that surrounds their campuses. From employee-run annual nest monitoring and bird counting activities to bioblitzes that help identify and record the variety of species around the Lab, IBM employees have remained passionate and committed caretakers of the natural world that frames their campus in the South Bay.

Save The Bay is proud to work with regional leaders like IBM to deliver positive solutions that help the Bay adapt and thrive in the face of climate change.

We are excited to continue our partnership with IBM this year as the official Bay Champion title sponsor for Bay Day 2019. Together, we’ll work toward our shared goal: to preserve and protect the beautiful San Francisco Bay.

The Bay Area’s annual Bay Day celebration is a relatively new holiday bringing together our Bay Area communities to celebrate the heart of our home – the San Francisco Bay. Coming up on its 4th year, Bay Day, organized by Oakland based non-profit Save The Bay, takes place on the first Saturday of October each year. This year’s celebration will be on October 5th.

Since 1961, Save The Bay’s founding year, staff has been working hard to educate, protect, and restore our Bay. Bay Day, which started in 2016 occured just months following the victory of Measure AA, a $12 per year parcel tax measure with revenue set aside for the restoration of wetlands surrounding the San Francisco Bay. Bay Day aims to motivate the people of the Bay Area to celebrate, restore, and explore the Bay. Bay Day gives us the opportunity to gather with our community, engage in educational activities, and become inspired by the beauty of our Bay, the place we have pledged to protect. Today community groups have organized bike rides along the Bay, group paddles or even planned a family walk along the Bay Trail for Bay Day, simple activities that connect us with the Bay.

Beginning with 7 counties officially declaring Bay Day as an annual holiday in, the festivity now encompases all 9 counties of the Bay Area. Throughout these counties, various organizations and businesses have planned different recreational, educational, and restoration events. These events bring awareness to the threats posed by pollution and climate change while also creating an engaging environment focused on celebrating our bay. At this year’s Bay Day, we will have a variety of family friendly events and activities including RestFest at the Palo Alto Baylands, PortFest at Redwood City, and ShoreFest at MLK Shoreline. RestFest and PortFest will both have live music, speakers, food trucks and much more, while ShoreFest will host a coastal cleanup. This upcoming Bay Day will bring the community together on an exciting day to connect with the San Francisco Bay.