Thank you for 20 years of Daily Acts!
Read on for the report of some of the highlights.
“It’s because of the passion that Trathen and the entire team demonstrates that I actually have hope – I have hope that we can tackle this climate crisis. Daily Acts, you are the real deal. We are so grateful that you are helping lead the way to a more sustainable future.” – Senator Mike McGuire
Happy Anniversary Daily Actors!
What a long, inspiring trip it’s been. Whether you’ve been with us a month, or since Daily Acts was just a few volunteers and a stack of Ripples Journals, we invite you to pause and celebrate the small steps that have led to big change.
20 years ago, the sudden loss of my mom and tragedy of 9/11 acted as a catalyst to do something about a people and planet in crisis. Out of this, Daily Acts was founded on the belief that by reclaiming the power of our daily actions, we could transform ourselves, our homes, gardens, neighborhoods, communities and beyond.
In a dark and stormy world of large problems, what if the power of small could change it all? It’s small acts of courage and conviction, small groups of committed world-changers, and even small gardens of regenerative delight.
This is how we’ve gone from planting one garden to mobilizing hundreds, to tens of thousands of resilience-building actions. With you at our side, Daily Acts has grown from educational events to installing gardens, fostering coalitions, training leaders and helping our community become national leaders in responding to the climate emergency.
In response to drought, fire, flood, pandemic and the climate crisis, together we rise.
There has never been a time when our small efforts and groups have mattered more. Now, it’s time to get Daily Acts’ solutions and models in many more hearts, hands and communities. Thank you for your vital support!
Take heart, take part, take action,
Trathen Heckman
Daily Acts Founder & Executive Director
SPREADING SOLUTIONS AND MODELS: We create inexpensive, simple-to-implement solutions that empower people to take climate action and improve the environment while providing models that are accessible and replicable beyond our local community.
STRENGTHENING COMMUNITY LEADERSHIP: We develop tomorrow’s environmental champions that understand that change occurs at the intersection of environment, economy, and equity.
BUILDING PUBLIC WILL & CIVIC ENGAGEMENT We grow support for science-aligned climate policy and adoption of low-tech solutions on local, state, and national scales by working with our networks and alliances.
Talks, tours, hands-on workshops, & community gatherings to inspire change:
ACTION: Growing skills, relationships, and resilience drives bigger community changes. We’ve installed 37 demonstration gardens, educated and engaged over 70,000 people and mobilized over 100,000 actions and projects to grow food, save resources, reduce climate change, and build local self-reliance.
LEADERSHIP: To build community leadership, Daily Acts has helped launch and lead over 2 dozen diverse coalitions at the local, regional, state and national scale in addition to adopting and strengthening the Leadership Institute and ECO2school youth climate leadership programs.
COMMUNITY TRANSFORMATION: By pairing community driven action and leadership development with local governmental partners, we design innovative programs and policies to address the climate emergency. We work with over 100 organizations and businesses each year to host programs and collaborate with regional networks.
Thank you for being a part of this journey!
2002
First Sustainability TourHosted first Sustainability Tour, sharing an inspiring vision of resiliency.
2008
First Permitted Graywater SystemInstalled the first permitted laundry-to-landscape graywater system in Sonoma County, leading to a streamlined process for the permit needed to install a system today.
2009
First Public Food ForestFirst thirsty lawn transformation at the Cavanaugh Food Forest in Petaluma which ignited our continued alliance with city partners.
2010
First Community Action CampaignMobilized 628 garden installations in a weekend in first community action campaign, demonstrating that individual actions add up to have a big impact.
2015
30 Lawns in 30 DaysCo-led collaboration to transform 30 lawns in 30 days, helping young adults overcome barriers and reach their greatest potential.
2015
MulchstockBiggest commercial lawn transformation ever was “Mulchstock”, saving 1.6 million of gallons of water each year. This collaboration demonstrated the power of community when we come together.
2017
Saved the Leadership InstituteSaved the Leadership Institute from closing in order to empower climate and community leaders with tools for personal leadership, civic engagement and collective power.
2017
Fire RecoveryWithin days of the Tubbs Fire disaster, helped convene emergency coalitions to address land and watershed damage and establish a fund to provide immediate recovery assistance for the most vulnerable populations.
2018
Landscape Design TemplatesHelped create Landscape Design Templates utilized by 40% of fire survivors rebuilding by the summer of 2019
2019
Climate Action PetalumaCo-founded Climate Action Petaluma to help the city declare a climate emergency and create a new climate commission, and eventually all of Sonoma County to declare a climate emergency
2020
Garden Kit DistributionCollaborated to give out 1,200 food container gardens in Covid-19 response.
2020
Climate Emergency FrameworkHelped create a community-powered Climate Emergency Framework to achieve vital goals of zero carbon emissions, carbon drawdown and climate adaptation.
“Daily Acts is the premier model and organization in the country doing this transformative community-based work.”
“It’s because of the passion that Trathen and the entire team demonstrates that I actually have hope – I have hope that we can tackle this climate crisis. Daily Acts, you are the real deal. We are so grateful that you are helping lead the way to a more sustainable future.”
“Participating in this program and working with Daily Acts has emboldened me to live my values and embody the change I want to see in the world.”
“Everything I have done with Daily Acts has been life shifting.”
“Daily Acts involvement links us together as a community and empowers us with hope for a sustainable future.”
“This education is vital to the success of emerging green and sustainable initiatives.”
