The EcoCenter began as a project of the nonprofit organization Literacy for Environmental Justice (LEJ) headquartered in the Bayview Hunter’s Point. The organization was founded in 1998 by a coalition of youth, educators, and community leaders to address the environmental health concerns of Bayview Hunter’s Point and the surrounding communities and has emerged as an education and youth-empowerment organization with the mission of fostering an understanding of the principles of environmental justice and sustainability for urban youth.
LEJ began plans for the EcoCenter soon after becoming engaged in the creation and stewardship of Heron’s Head Park. Recognizing the opportunity to create the first environmental education center in the southeast part of the city, the San Francisco Department of the Environment provided major funding to launch the project in 2001. Joined by the State Coastal Conservancy in 2005 and together with the Port of San Francisco, these partners provided substantial technical and financial support to bring the project to fruition.
LEJ overcame many challenges to bring the EcoCenter to completion. It took two architects, three geotechnical engineers, multiple contractors, many meetings with regulators, and hundreds of hours of design and engineering work over a ten-year period to make the center a reality. Ironically or perhaps poignantly, the neighboring power plant was decommissioned at about the same time that the construction began. The EcoCenter first opened its doors to the public on Earth Day in 2010.
In January 2012, LEJ established a collaboration with City College of San Francisco’s Engineering and Technology Department to assist with stewardship of the EcoCenter. It was at that time that Environmental Science and Sustainability instructor, Peggy Lopipero-Langmo and students enrolled in the Department’s Applied Research in Sustainability work experience class began their work at the EcoCenter. During this transition, LEJ turned its focus to the creation of the Candlestick Point Eco-Stewards Program where it continues to provide environmental justice education and stewardship opportunities in the community.
The project was a community-designed initiative, having integrated the voices of hundreds of community members over the course of a decade of planning. Our parent organization, bay.org, along with City College of San Francisco and the A. Philip Randolph Institute (APRI), honors the original intent of this unique facility, and its mission to fill an essential niche for the communities of southeast San Francisco within the environmental education field.
These three institutions actively work together to develop the EcoCenter as a thriving hub for all facets of the Bayview Hunter’s Point and surrounding neighborhoods by providing high quality educational programming and developing an expansive network of educational, community, government and business partners to support these efforts. We draw on our institutions’ combined 95 years’ experience in education; the community outreach and coordination experience of APRI; our highly effective outreach infrastructure; and the guidance from EcoCenter staff, representatives from Bayview Hunter’s Point community groups, environmental educators, working professionals, volunteers and students of all ages.
References:
Mann, L. and Schoeman, L., (January 2011). LEJ Program Profile. Literacy for Environmental Justice (LEJ).
USEPA, (2012). Case Study: The EcoCenter at Heron’s Head Park in San Francisco Demonstrating Community Sustainability and Revitalization. Clean Water State Revolving Fund Green Project Reserve. EPA-832-F-12-018