On an otherwise idle Tuesday in the spring of 2015, Daily Acts partnered with the City of Petaluma, the Leadership Institute for Ecology and the Economy, Cagwin&Dorward, AmeriCorps and Xandex Inc. to host a turf conversion event at Redwood Business Park in Petaluma. This event represented an extraordinary case of effective collaboration between the non-profit sector, government entities, and local businesses. Daily Acts served as project managers, coordinators, and educators, working with 50 enthusiastic AmeriCorps volunteers from around the state to sheet mulch 10,000 square feet of formerly irrigated turf.
This project provided more than just water savings; it helped to power the next generation of leaders! Four members of the Leadership Institute’s ‘Leadership for a Sustainable Future’ program served as team leads and gained hands-on experience working on a large scale, commercial sheet mulching project. In addition, 1360 Redwood Way became a model site for other property managers in Redwood Business Park to follow suit, successfully garnering momentum throughout the year for what would become Mulchstock, the largest turf conversion held on record.
When it comes to conservation, it is all about collaboration. David Royall, one of the four project team leads from the Leadership Institute, couldn’t agree more:
“…An amazing action took place at a commercial property in Petaluma. A turf conversion project transformed an unsustainable lawn area into beautiful brown mulch magnificence. Collaboration like this is a rare and special gift.”
