The inaugural SBECO Rotary Bioblitz took place on an unusually cloudy, wet Sunday morning at San Dieguito County Park. Like us, the bugs and lizards seemed to be hiding from the rain, making it a challenge—but still fun—to find and photograph garden life. Community members, including families, professors, nature enthusiasts, and club members, gathered to try the iNaturalist app to document biodiversity in the SMRT Garden and compare it with a nearby butterfly garden and lawn. The uploaded photographs in the iNaturalist app get verified by naturalists and contribute to scientific data about wildlife. Ultimately, this information may lead to better understanding of biodiversity loss and solutions.
The event was held in conjunction with California Biodiversity Day on September 7 and a week of activities highlighting biodiversity in local communities. The goals of the SBECO Bioblitz were to educate the public about biodiversity loss, iNaturalist, the benefits of large natural parks like San Dieguito, and the role of SBECO Rotary. Despite the shy wildlife, the event successfully met all its goals. We found that the butterfly garden had by far the greatest biodiversity, likely because it has been established for more than a decade, while the native plants in the SMRT Garden have been in place for less than a year. The lawn had expectantly very little animal life aside from the usual snails and ants.
At the end of the event, participants received small prizes and learned more about our club, the park, and iNaturalist. Everyone seemed to enjoy the event to spite the rain, and we plan to host more bioblitzes in the future.
SEP 8 – ECO DRINKS AT PURE PROJECT
Our September social took place on a warm, muggy evening in Vista, but the venue, food, drinks, and company provided a welcome distraction. Our location was at the Vista Pure Project Brewing, an eco-minded company that gives back to their community through Pure Project and 1% For The Planet. They use local organic products and leave out chemicals and fining agents. Ten of us gathered for a talk by Mark O’Connor of Surfrider. He is also an environmental commissioner for the City of Encinitas and a longtime friend of the club.
Mark began organizing his own beach cleanups years ago before discovering Surfrider, a well-run organization that answered his questions and connected him with like-minded people. Around the same time, he became a grandfather. Wanting a better future and cleaner oceans for his grandsons, he is committing his time to Surfrider.
One of the most pressing environmental threats to our beaches is plastic debris. Mark now co-leads Surfrider’s Rise Above Plastic program with Janis Jones. The program partners with cities on solutions such as policies that reduce single-use plastics. Using beach-cleanup data from Surfrider and NOAA, the team identifies products to target, including plastic straws, utensils, takeout containers, polystyrene foam, balloons, and cigarette filters. Its work has helped many local cities adopt single-use plastic reduction ordinances.
Mark explained that cigarette filters are the world’s most commonly discarded item, with about 4.5 trillion thrown away each year. Although the tobacco residue harms wildlife, the filters themselves are a major environmental concern. Made from cellulose acetate, a non-biodegradable plastic, they provide no proven health benefit to smokers. Each filter can contain tens of thousands of plastic microfibers and release heavy metals—including lead, cadmium, and arsenic—into the environment. This pollution affects an estimated 70% of seabirds and harms marine life.
Mark belongs to a coalition working to eliminate tobacco-product waste, with a focus on the environmental impact of cigarette butts in the ocean. As an environmental commissioner for the City of Encinitas, he helped advance a ban on smoking cigarettes and vaping on all public property. He hopes the data will show that the ordinance reduces cigarette waste on local beaches. Although proud of this progress, Mark remains focused on upstream solutions and is now working toward a statewide ban on the sale of filtered cigarettes.
We are deeply impressed by the impact Mark has made through Surfrider and wish him continued success in his campaigns.
We are advocates for the pollinators, essential for human food security and thriving ecosystems. Unfortunately, their populations have fallen catastrophically. In partnership with the California Pollinator Collaborative, our goal is to establish a California Pollinator License Plate Program by replicating the Whale-Tail License Plate program that provides millions in grants annually. If approved, funds generated from the purchase of the pollinator plates would pay for the protection and restoration of habitat for pollinators, enable more community action and support the work of many non-profit organizations (like SBECO!) in the pollinator protection effort. We welcome volunteers willing to champion the initiative through legislature. More information here.
Our club began volunteering at the 125-acre San Dieguito County Park10 years ago. Since then, we have removed invasive plants, improved the native garden, grown vegetables, maintained the Butterfly Garden, SMRT Garden, and other areas, beautified the entrance, and planted many trees. Ranger Alejandro Santos warmly thanks the club for helping make the park one of the best in the county.
SMRT (Stormwater Makes Retained Treasure) Gardens are multi-tasking rain gardens that grow native plants, support our local wildlife and cool our community. SMRT Garden #1 was created by SBECO at the San Dieguito County Park and it is thriving! Hopefully, this is one of many to come.
SBECO would like to help your next event be zero waste. Our Zero Waste Committee has great ideas and dinnerware sets to use free of charge. The kits include plates, utensils, cups, glasses, mugs. We also have bins to sort recycling, composting and landfill waste. Use SBECO dinnerware kits for your next event. To borrow the kit, fill out this form:
If you are a seasoned birdwatcher, just enjoy watching birds in your yard, want to learn more about birds or want to support bird conservation, join us! We are forming a new group: BROS - Birder Rotarians Of San Diego. BROS is open to all Rotarians, Rotaractors, Interactors in D5340 who are interested in birds. We plan fellowship, field trips and fun projects. Jenny Parker and Leah Bissonette are collecting names and organizing. Contact Jenny for more information or if you would like to join us. jenny@jparkermd.net
Amelie (chair) and Carter (co-chair). DES connects interested Rotarians from all district clubs and introduces great speakers. DES is looking for speakers on environmental topics for an ambassador program. Please let Amelie know if you are interested in participating.
Jenny and Alisa would like our club to reach EREY recognition this year so please donate to the Rotary Foundation Annual Fund. EREY status is achieved by clubs when, during the Rotary year:
EVERY member of that club personally contributes at least $25 to the Rotary Foundation’s Annual Fund
The club’s total TRF Annual Fund contribution averages at least $100 per capita
Birding for Beginners returns this fall! Registration opens September 1 at 9:00 a.m. The five-week course runs September 17–October 25 and combines Thursday evening online classes with weekend field trips on either Saturdays or Sundays (you choose). Designed for new and aspiring birders, the course helps participants build confidence in bird identification while learning to recognize birds by their appearance, sounds, behaviors, and natural history.
Online sessions prepare you for each field outing by covering birding techniques, field trip locations, and the species you'll be looking for. We welcome participants of all backgrounds and experience levels and strive to create an inclusive learning environment.
Join San Diego Environmental Film Festival 2026fundraiser to help raise funds for our annual environmental film festival and storytelling that makes an impact!
This will be a night of interactive activities, food, drinks, short films, silent auction, and more on the beautiful San Diego Waterfront!
California has seen some of its largest and most destructive wildfires in recent years. According to CAL FIRE, “fire-smart” landscaping can help prevent the spread of wildfires while conserving water.
Instructor Greg Rubin is an author and landscape designer with California’s Own Native Landscape Design, Inc. Greg has nearly 30 years of experience with San Diego County landscapes that have survived wildfires and has not lost a home.
I Love a Clean SD sponsors a major cleanup event each September and thousands of volunteers from all over San Diego County come together for Coastal Cleanup Day, eager to help out. At every site, a Site Captain is there early to set up, greet volunteers, and make sure everything goes smoothly from beginning to end. Volunteer to be a site captain this year. Site Captains make each site feel organized, welcoming, and meaningful. They help build the community spirit that makes this event unique. Sign up now!
Registration for regular volunteers starts Sept 1.
Join Sierra Club San Diego on Sept. 26 for Hands Across the Sand, a statewide day of action opposing expanded offshore oil drilling. Bring a friend, wear blue or ocean colors, and help create a powerful visual message: protect our ocean, protect our future. Two locations:
WildCoast is teaming up with the Natural History Museum to screen Guardians of the Wild at the Nat. This is a beautifully photographed documentary about conservation efforts around the world. The film will be followed by a panel discussion from experts from the Nat, SD Zoo Alliance, Wildcoast.
Tickets just $12 for members of SDNHM and $15 for non-members
Latino Conservation Week is an annual celebration presented by San Diego Bird Alliance in collaboration with the Hispanic Access Foundation. It features a week of conservation-oriented events that encourage the Latinx community to enjoy the outdoors and be inspired to protect and cherish our natural resources.
Join I Love A Clean San Diego for a free clothing and costume swap at the Encinitas Oktoberfest! Enjoy a day of sustainable fashion and celebrate alongside the Encinitas community. Drop by for some pre-loved Halloween costumes to help reduce our textile waste.
Event date: Sunday, September 27th Location: Mountain Vista Drive (off El Camino Real between Wandering & Rambling Roads) Event time: 10 AM - 6 PM
SDCAN is a non-profit organization focused on strengthening and accelerating climate advocacy in San Diego County. The non-partisan network facilitates resource sharing, focusing on coalition building and public relations, in order to amplify the efforts of member organizations. Check out their calendar below for environmental seminars and events around town.
NCCCA is a non-profit organization working to empower people and organizations to take action on climate disruption through education, collaboration and mobilization. The goal is to inspire, unite and educate individuals, empowering them to seek out and act on solutions to the climate crisis. Our members and active volunteers provide education throughmonthly presentations in cities throughout North San Diego County and across the planet via Zoom. Check out the calendar below.
The Escondido Creek watershed links inland preserves, urban communities, coastal habitats reminding us that what happens upstream flows directly to the beaches and ocean. The have regular education, hiking and yoga events. Check link below.
The San Dieguito River Valley Conservancy preserves, protects and shares the natural and cultural resources of the San Dieguito River Valley (92,000 acres) through efforts to acquire lands, complete trails, restore habitats, establish educational programs, create interpretive centers, encourage recreation and mobilize public support. Watch this 3 min video showing the great work being done right now:https://youtu.be/vbJ9FzRllQ0.
The San Diego River Park Foundation is dedicated to improving the health of the San Diego River and to creating a better quality of life for our community through the creation of a park system the length of the 52-mile river. Our programs, projects, and events are designed to connect people to our historic San Diego River and empower the community to steward and celebrate it.
The San Diego LEARN Program offers free energy efficiency & electrification courses through live webinars, on demand training, microlearning, and more! Whether you’re a seasoned pro or just starting out, our short courses are designed to support you with upskilling and gaining new knowledge from content provided by industry leaders. Check out the courses at sandiegolearn.com or contact Jasmeet Singh, Marketing and Outreach Manager at 619-878-3811 or jsingh@rhainc.com.
Co-Presidents Elect – Chris Chase and Steve Jewett
SBECO Club Foundation Board
President – Dick Stevens
Treasurer – Lynn Stevens
Secretary – Andi Kosnar
SBECO Rotary Club Committees 2025-26
Membership Committee – Niels Lund, Chris Chase and Mark D'Andrea
Foundation Committee – Lynn Stevens
Communications Committee – Jenny (bi-monthly newsletter and weekly reminders). Amelie – point of contact for calendar.
Program Committee (speakers) – Niels Lund - nlund@sbeco.org
Service Committee – Amelie (chair) We will continue our every 3rd Sunday, 9am service work at San Dieguito County Park. SD Park also hosts environmental festivals three times a year. We sponsor an educational booth and zero waste stations.
Events Committee – Members needed. SBECO partners in several events every year including several Eco Festivals and the Encinitas Wine and Food Festival.
Zero Waste Committee – Julie (chair), Amelie, Carter. There is a virtual meeting every first Thursday at 5-6 pm.
Fundraising Committee – Alisa Morrison and Dick Stevens
Rotary Climate Action Team. Carter (chair) Amelie, Niels. A group of Rotarians passionate about the environment and interested in doing some public speaking on various climate related topics.
