CEI Creeks in Common Project Wins Grant from North Bay Watershed Association
The Sonoma State Center for Environmental Inquiry (CEI) is advancing a new project in its innovative Creeks in Common initiative that has the potential to provide benefits across Northern California, thanks to a grant from the North Bay Watershed Association (NBWA). The project focuses on improving connections throughout our regional watershed to benefit watershed health, cultivate cross-watershed collaboration, and provide practical tools to make stewardship easier.
The NBWA grant funds “Sonoma Mountain Greenlinks: An Enabling Framework for Greenway and Trail Connectivity across Sonoma Mountain Drainages.” Funding enables study of the Copeland Creek Watershed, situated between the Santa Rosa Plain and Petaluma Valley and running from Sonoma Mountain through the SSU Campus and onto the Laguna de Santa Rosa and the Pacific Ocean.
When presenting the award, the NBWA wrote, “Your project represents a significant contribution to the stewardship and enhancement of our regional watershed, and we are excited to support your efforts.”
CEI Director Kerry Wininger looks forward to applying CEI’s successful Education Into Action Model, which underpins Creeks in Common. Education Into Action is a community-engaged research process that focuses on implementing collaborative, applied solutions to environmental challenges.
“We are thrilled to accept this award that will have direct impacts on students, community, and the environment,” Wininger said. “Through this grant, CEI and its partners will enhance riparian connectivity for people and ecosystems across urban watershed boundaries, as well as train future watershed stewards.”
Through Education Into Action, CEI will engage stakeholders – such as city planners, non-profits, and other community leaders – to work with faculty-student teams. The outcome will be a Greenlinks toolkit, detailing innovative ways to implement regional plans and projects – for example, approaches to green infrastructure, trail design, zoning, and training.
The Greenlinks Toolkit will help planners, engineers, and community leaders engaged with Sonoma Mountain’s triple watershed to apply science to land-use decisions. It will include:
- Maps showing alignment of riparian corridors and recharge areas
- Design examples e.g., green streets, trail connectors, and creek buffers
- Policy/zoning templates adaptable to local needs
Researchers hope this project will advance climate resilience, habitat connectivity, and groundwater recharge across the Russian River and San Pablo Bay watersheds. Results from the project, including the toolkit in progress, will be presented at the Sonoma State Research & Creative Works Symposium in April 2027.
SSU’s Center for Environmental Inquiry is dedicated to environmental research, creative inquiry, and education that directly address environmental challenges of the North Bay. Since its founding in 2007, CEI has worked with regional partners to preserve the planet through outdoor learning at its three preserves, and multidisciplinary real-world projects throughout Sonoma and Mendocino Counties.
Creeks in Common is a CEI-run initiative for watershed research & planning that uses Copeland Creek as a collaborative demonstration site for the wider region. It harnesses the power of students and universities to catalyze regional resilience. Partners include the City of Rohnert Park, Russian River Watershed Association, Sonoma Water, Russian River Confluence, North Coast Regional Water Quality Control Board, Sonoma Mountain Preservation, and many others.