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Conservation Creek Cleanup BACKGROUND In 2011 GreenTown officially “adopted” the Permanente Diversion Channel through the Santa Clara Valley Water District (currently Valley Water). The channel runs from Heritage Oaks Park at Portland and Miramonte to Stevens Creek at Highway 85. Look for the sign at the corner of Portland and Miramonte declaring this a GreenTown “baby”. Our commitment? To organize and gather volunteers for biannual creek cleanup events in coordination with Valley Water. Ours is one of 50 sites countywide that participate in National River Cleanup Day, the third Saturday in May, and National Coastal Cleanup Day, the third Saturday in September. THE PROBLEM People are the main source of litter in our waterways. Litter from streets goes into our creeks and flows into San Francisco Bay and then into the ocean. 80% of the trash on beaches starts in inland areas. HOW YOU CAN HELP GreenTown encourages volunteers of all ages to help support a healthy environment in our local creek through these educational and fun-filled experiences. Activities include education about watersheds and water pollution, removing debris from the creek bed and the creek banks, and sorting and weighing all that was removed. GreenTown reports back to Valley Water and the results are spectacular! You can check out the countywide numbers at cleanacreek.org, where you also can register to volunteer for the next cleanup event. RESOURCES National River Cleanup Day Community Kids Cleaned the Creek National River Cleanup Day Recap Another Successful Creek Cleanup CONTACT US For inquiries about Creek Cleanup program contact us at: info@greentownlosaltos.org

Contact Us We'd Love to hear thoughts! Send Suggestions | Comments | Questions info@greentownlosaltos.org P.O. Box 539, Los Altos, CA 94023-0539 650 - 383 - 7540 ANNUAL REPORTS Open 2024-25 Annual Report Open 2023-24 Annual Report Open 2022-23 Annual Report Open 2021-22 Annual Report Open 2020-21 Annual Report Reports

WHAT WE DO OUR PROGRAM AREAS Clean Transportation . Conservation . Clean Air . Zero Waste . Eating Green We engage the community around these objectives through specific projects, education, and advocacy. Read more below. CLEAN TRANSPORTATION Transportation is the largest source of local carbon emissions. Our objective is to encourage our community to make conscious choices about how we commute and travel - Choosing walking or biking first, eliminating single car drives and if driving at all - Go Electric! We strive to encourage and enable these options through various activities and events that we hope you'll enjoy. Learn More... CONSERVATION Sustainable use of our land and water is essential to our collective well-being. GreenTown supports urban development that encourages clean parks and open spaces, higher density development, and community hubs that promote friendly social interactions. We support policies that encourage wise use of our water resources and better management of storm water run-off. Learn More... CLEAN AIR Our clean air efforts are focused on reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions that trap heat and cause diseases like respiratory illnesses as a result. We target local level actions to minimize their global effect for both residences & businesses. We hope you'll find out more to do your part! Learn More... EATING GREEN When it comes to plant-based eating, what’s not to love? It’s good for our planet, good for our health and good for the animals! Our Eating Green team is here to support you and local restaurants in transitioning to more plant-based meals through education, recipes, and community! Learn More... ZERO WASTE Reducing waste in our community is WAY more than recycling! The original 3 R’s of sustainability: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle…have evolved to include: Rethink, Refuse, Reduce, Reuse, Refill, Repair, Repurpose, Regift, Recycle, Repeat. We seek to support our residents, schools and businesses in their efforts to reduce waste, especially single-use plastic, and we advocate for local and state policies that reduce plastic use and pollution and reduce contamination of our landfills, lands and waterways due to toxic waste materials. Learn More...

GET INVOLVED Internships for Students Application 2026 Summer Internships is now open! Apply Here MEET OUR 2025 Summer Interns MEET OUR 2024 Summer Interns MEET OUR 2023 Summer Interns MEET OUR 2022 Summer Interns MEET OUR 2021 Summer Interns MEET OUR 2020 Summer Interns Email Us internship@greentownlosaltos.org Email Us info@greentownlosaltos.org Volunteer Opportunities Abound... There are lots of opportunities to volunteer with GreenTown Los Altos, whether you just want to contribute to a single project, work with us for a few hours on a single day, or make a longer term commitment. Below are some of our current volunteer openings. To volunteer, email us. Email Us volunteer@greentownlosaltos.org Email Us info@greentownlosaltos.org JOIN US WE ARE LOOKING FOR ... Volunteer-Intern Openings VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES Schools WoW Program Coordinator GreenTown is looking for a new WoW! Project Lead! The Project Lead provides support to school leads in promoting alternative forms of transportation to school, including biking, walking and carpooling. These modes reduce greenhouse gases and toxic air emissions and help reduce traffic congestion around our schools. Plus, it’s a healthy and fun way for kids to bookend their school day! Check out our webpage at: https://www.greentownlosaltos.org/schoolswow The GreenTown WoW! Project Lead: Helps School WoW! Leads with Program Planning Encourages and Supports Bike/Ped Safety Instruction Provides Marketing Support Conducts Data Analysis and Supports Program Evaluation Please see here for a more detailed description Volunteer Development Leader Actively recruit volunteers from our local community to get involved in GreenTown’s projects and events. Mentor volunteers, and organize a Volunteer Appreciation event. EMAIL us if you are interested. Bike/Walk Events Biking you thing? Help organize community bike tours of historical sites, native landscapes, Hardy Jones artistic metal sculptures, and summer & winter solstice rides. Coordinate GreenTown’s Bike Valet service at community events. EMAIL us if you are interested. Help Plant Trees! Our 500 Trees project continues to plant trees throughout our local community. Help us plant trees! The hardest part is digging the hole. Someone with a truck would be helpful too. EMAIL us if you are interested. Researcher/Writer Love the written word? Research and write articles for our blog and for local news outlets to spread the word about green happenings in our community. EMAIL us if you are interested. Marketing Events Outreach and Social Media & Blog Poster Great at networking? Post events on local media datebooks and email schools and other organizations to promote GreenTown projects and events. Post to our Facebook page and Twitter account. Edit articles and post to the GreenTown blog and Los Altos Patch blog. EMAIL us if you are interested Photographer/Videographer Great with a camera? Like video editing? Take photos and videos at GreenTown events. Edit videos and upload to GreenTown’s YouTube channel. EMAIL us if you are interested. STUDENT INTERNSHIPS 2026 Summer Internships application is now open! For 2025, we are offering four paid internships in two project areas. Each internship is for 10 hours/week for 6 weeks at $18.20/hour. Promoting Responsible Use of the Batteries That Power Our Lives (2 Interns) Understanding the food waste pyramid (2 Interns) See this document for additional details. The internships are open to: Students attending the MVLA schools OR residents of Los Altos or Los Altos Hills attending other schools. 1: Promoting Responsible Use of the Batteries That Power Our Lives Mentors: Clari Nolet & Stan Scardino (Rotary Los Altos) and Laura Teksler (GreenTown Los Altos) Description: Our world is full of electronics and many of these devices are powered by lithium-ion batteries. But what happens to that hazardous battery when your electric toothbrush dies? Hopefully it is properly recycled through a program like Rotary Climate Action Committee’s Lithium-Ion recycling program. In this internship you will help promote this program to local residents by creating short-form videos and other media content demonstrating what items can be recycled through the program and what happens to the batteries when they are properly disposed of and the dangers when they are not. 2: Understanding the food waste pyramid (2 interns) Mentor: Madhuri Davidson, Glenda Chang, Margie Suozzo (GreenTown Los Altos) Description: Food waste is a big contributor to climate change. When food ends up in landfills, it creates powerful greenhouse gases like methane. If food waste were a country, it would be the third largest emitter in the world. This internship provides an opportunity to learn why food waste matters and how communities can reduce it. You’ll work with real data from local waste haulers; research solutions used in other cities and organizations, and explore how composting can cut emissions. By the end, you’ll build skills in research, data analysis, and communication, and share your findings with the GreenTown board and the community.

ZERO WASTE WHY WE NEED YOUR HELP OUR MISSION Inspire our community to learn more about the health and environmental impacts of unsustainable practices such as using plastic for items that can be made from more earth-friendly materials such glass, metal, wood and natural fibers Provide practical solutions for reducing waste to our residents, schools, and businesses Facilitate proper recycling when no other option is available to reuse items Educate families on the health and environmental effects from chemically-derived materials in packaging, furniture, clothing, toys, etc. and suggest ways to minimize such harms Share resources so we all can become better stewards of local natural resources Advocate for local and state policies and legislation that help us meet our goal of moving toward zero waste living THE PROBLEM About two thirds of all the plastic ever produced has been released into the environment and remains there as: ocean debris, micro- or nanoparticles in air and agricultural soils, microfibers in water supplies, or microparticles in human bodies There are affordable, reasonable changes we can make as individuals, families, and as a community that will improve our environment and reduce our health risks from the chemicals we are exposed to from plastic The majority of plastic waste (and essentially all single-use plastic) cannot be recycled, despite the “chasing arrows” imprint on the bottom In 2020, California became the first US state to enact a recycled content requirement for plastic beverage container! The first benchmark is to reach 15% recycled content by 2022, on the way to a 50% requirement by 2030 HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED Take Action with the 7 Rs! Zero Waste Brochure Reducing and reusing can reduce greenhouse gasses. Together, our individual steps in waste reduction make a big difference Download Brochure A Zero Waste Story How are WE ever going to DO THIS? by Anne Marie Bonneau Learn More Join the Zero Waste team! If you are passionate about eliminating single use plastics, reducing packaging or reducing waste in the community please join us! Email Us Borrow a Party Pack! Your next party can be ECO-FRIENDLY Zero-waste parties are gaining in popularity. Why not borrow the items you need (to serve up to 40) instead of buying single-use throwaways? Learn More Ocean Plastics: What Goes Around Comes Around; Now In A Better Way Learn More Plastic Free July Go plastic-free this month! Join Us during the month of July and beyond to eliminate single-use plastics from your life and your community. Learn More The Story of Plastic A Story of Injustice. Plastic pollution is truly an environmental injustice impacting all of us—some more than others... Learn More

CLEAN AIR WHY WE NEED YOUR HELP OUR MISSION We advocate for alternatives to using methane (natural gas) in and around your home. The Ambassador program helps you transition to electric appliances in your home. THE PROBLEM CO2 emissions from our homes is a big percentage of the total emissions pie. Using a gas leaf blower pollutes as bad as driving a big truck without any smog devices. Methane gas is hazardous to your health HOW YOU CAN GET INVOLVED Learn More or Get Involved ... If you would like to learn how you can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions in you home or business or would like to help in the efforts, please contact us! Email Us Don't Blow It! Gas-powered leaf blowers are illegal in over 170 cities across the country because they are highly polluting, unhealthy and noisy. What can you do about it? Learn More Electrifying Your Home Make the switch to clean energy in your home. Lean More Why I Cook With Induction! Hear why this chef cooks almost exclusively with induction these days - and why they won't be going back to gas in the home! Watch the Video Switch to Electric '23 Incentives Learn about tax credits, rebates and other incentives to help households switch out their fossil-fueled appliances to electric appliances Download PDF Reach Codes in Los Altos Electric homes save money, your health and the environment. Learn about why this is important and how the city is addressing it! Learn More

Building Community for Electrification Code Red Series March 18, 12 - 1 PM via Zoom Register Here Home: Welcome LATEST NEWS & ARTICLES GreenTown Blog | Subscribe to Newsletter My Accidental Dive Into Laundry‑to‑Landscape Graywater Glenda Chang Jun 22 Introducing Our 2026 Summer Interns! suresh56 Jun 22 Bike Month Brings the Community Together on Two Wheels! Margie Suozzo May 5 GreenTown Los Altos’ LASD WoW! Survey Analysis - Fall 2025 Margie Suozzo Apr 2 Green Gardeners - Use Electric Leaf Blowers! Linda Ziff Jan 29 Electrification Journey KJ Janowski Sep 12, 2025 UPCOMING EVENTS Event Calendar No events at the moment CONNECT WITH US SEARCH THE SITE

Conservation Stormwater RunOff BACKGROUND Runoff is rain that falls onto hardscape such as the asphalt and concrete of driveways, walkways, and streets. These impervious surfaces in our urban environment prevent stormwater from naturally soaking into the ground. Following 3 years of GreenTown advocacy, in November 2018 the Los Altos City Council voted to adopt eco-friendly solutions to capture dirty street runoff. The Shoulder Paving Policy, which applies to all new residential construction and major remodels, embraces permeable materials in the City Right of Way. Organic materials allow rain to sink into the ground, where toxins are captured and decompose. These “green streets” keep polluted water out of our waterways. The abundance of natural frontage in Los Altos, streets without curbs and gutters, offer tremendous opportunity to maximize stormwater capture. THE PROBLEM Believe it or not, the single largest source of pollution in the San Francisco Bay is stormwater runoff. Runoff flows through the system of curbs and gutters to storm drains that empty directly into our watershed. Along the way, beautiful rain transforms into a pollutant. Stormwater runoff picks up oil, grease and metals from cars, chemicals that leech from asphalt, fertilizer, herbicides and insecticides from our landscape, and pet waste laden with bacteria and viruses. These pollutants pose health risks to humans, wildlife, and plants. HOW YOU CAN HELP Minimize Hardscape. Maximize Greenscape. Be a part of the solution to stormwater pollution! Capturing rain where it falls helps to keep our waterways clean and healthy. Rain water is easily captured in rain gardens, vegetated swales, catch basins, dry creeks and other greenscapes. The water is purified as it gradually percolates through the soil and recharges our aquifers. To learn more watch the videos in the resources section: “Capture Rain Where It Falls” Permeable Surfaces Handbook The "Permeable Surfaces Handbook" is a comprehensive, innovative guide designed to educate readers on easy installation of permeable surfaces, aligning with the Los Altos city code for permeable surfaces for sidewalks, walkways, patios, driveways and/or uncovered parking lots. It provides practical advice on installation and maintenance, aiming to help both DIY enthusiasts and professionals implement these eco-friendly solutions. This handbook was developed by highschool student Aanya Dhruv and sought the help of with the city engineers to get it up to the Los Altos housing codes. She is also the founder of ejgrassroots.org that is focused on environmental justice and leveraging science to solve environmental issues. RESOURCES Email Us For inquiries about the SchoolWoW! program contact us at: info@greentownlosaltos.org

Events UPCOMING 500 Trees - Library Talk Register Come learn about our 500 Tree campaign. Why are we doing this? How can you get a Tree? Presented by Gary Hedden 500 Trees - Library Talk Register Come learn about our 500 Tree campaign. Why are we doing this? How can you get a Tree? Presented by Gary Hedden CALENDAR

About Us Mission OUR MISSION To protect and enhance the environment of Los Altos & Los Altos Hills through community engagement, education, and advocacy while contributing to and leveraging regional and global environmental efforts. OUR VALUES Leaving the environment a better place for the next generation Policy and decision-making based on data and scientific research Inclusion and partnership, and conducting our activities in a fair, ethical (and, when appropriate, fun) manner Education, mentorship and the inclusion of youth as much as possible in our activities Honesty and respect when presenting fact-based research and educating our community OUR BELIEFS A clean and healthy environment is vital to the health of our communities. Human activities impact the natural environment and contribute to climate change and pollution that directly affects human health Individual, community and governmental actions can mitigate the negative environmental impacts of human activities We can arrest human caused climate change and environmental degradation by individual, community and legislative action GreenTown is a project of the Los Altos Mountain View Community Foundation’s Local Impact Collective Team OUR TEAM Suresh Venkatraman President, Board Suresh’s daughters’ engagement in environmental causes were a major influence to join GreenTown. Youth all over the world are asking us, the current stewards, to do everything we can to reverse our effect on the planet’s environments and climate. Actions by individuals, communities, and governments must all come together to accomplish this monumental but achievable task. Suresh is passionate that we become acutely conscious of our consumption – from energy to products, from how they are manufactured, packaged to how they are disposed of – and make decisions and take actions to minimize our footprint. Connie Miller Clean Air Lead As a Bay Area native and Los Altos resident who has spent her entire life enjoying the abundance of nature our region offers, Connie sees the urgent need to act boldly to create a sustainable and thriving environment for our children. All actions start with one person and grow into a collective wave of change. Connie believes Los Altos and Los Altos Hills are perfectly poised, with their educated residents, affluence and regional influence, to be the leaders of change and leave a lasting positive legacy for our planet. Through GreenTown Los Altos programs, education and policy influence, Connie hopes to be a resource for and inspire positive environmental change in others. Don Weiden Treasurer Don’s career as a civil/environmental engineer and his personal enjoyment in wilderness camping since grade school have led to his interest in minimizing the impacts of our engineered and human activities on the natural environment. He became interested in GreenTown Los Altos when investigating residential solar panels for his home and is now a proponent of converting vehicles and equipment from using fossil fuels to clean electrical energy. Gary Hedden Past President, Board Member Conservation Lead Gary joined GreenTown in 2011 and now leads the effort to protect our natural resources. That means planting trees, cleaning creeks and advocating for sound conservation policies. He still likes to bike, and leads the Historic Homes Bike Ride, the Native Garden Bike Tour, the Hardy Jones Memorial Bike Ride, and the Summer & Winter Solstice night bike rides. Glenda Chang Board Member Water Lead, Woodland Library Garden Lead Glenda is a long-time reef and ocean conservation advocate, and pursues the Sustainable Development Goals, also known as the Global Goals. Change for a healthier planet can start at home, by young and old alike. As such, she is eager to learn, collaborate, and engage together as a community. Her interests include SCUBA diving, technological innovation, disaster relief, island nations and their people, discovering the outdoors, photography, and being foodies with her family. One of her recent projects is providing clean water to an indigenous mountain tribe. Laura Teksler Board Member Clean Air, Electrification Laura first became involved with GreenTown as the Almond parent lead for the Walk or Wheel (WoW) program over a decade ago. She is a life-long environmentalist and lover of the outdoors who has dedicated her paid and volunteer careers to sustainability efforts. Recently through her work on the Los Altos Environmental Commission and Acterra she has become an advocate for home electrification. Madhuri Davidson Board Member Schools WoW!, Zero Waste Madhuri has been a volunteer in many of GreenTown's conservation projects. Recently, she has taken on a pivotal role, working alongside Jana to maintain, update, and clean up our membership database. Madhuri is a Living Classroom Docent at Springer Elementary where her two children are students. She is also working with GreenTown and the City to revive the WoW program and Safe Routes to School education program at Springer Elementary! Cary Anderson Eating Green Lead Cary enjoys an active lifestyle as a retired CPA and as CFO in private equity and commercial real estate industries. Cary currently volunteers for the YMCA basketball programs, the LAHS Mentor/Tutor program and, recently, a vegan farm / animal sanctuary. Cary enjoys learning how things work, being hands-on and has a strange attraction to performing manual labor ("brawn over brains"). As the Eating- Green lead, he aims to have fun challenging himself and encouraging others to better understand how our food choices impact all forms of life. Kim Jelfs Adopt-A-Highway Lead Past Board Member, Kim first became involved with GreenTown through our "Skip the Straw' campaign and hasn't looked back! She loved our hands-on, "can do" approach and immediately felt at home. A former H.R. Manager, she has volunteered in schools and local communities and is passionate about waste reduction, eliminating single-use plastics, and living sustainably. When not growing food in her garden, you can find Kim hiking local trails and traveling. Kris Jensen Consulting Director, Development Kris is our quintessential perfect match. The living embodiment of an advocate, starting at age 13 by penning a note to Pres. Reagan protesting removing the White House’s solar panels. He lives sustainably, is a certified permaculture designer, gardens, cooks and does woodwork when he’s not guiding our community efforts. Michele Gerstel Marketing Lead Michele admits joining the GreenTown team was a no brainer. Why? Who wouldn’t want to be a part of a team of passionate, brilliant residents working to improve our community’s future? Marketing its programs are just plain fun. Not to mention rewarding. Enough to keep anyone smiling. Jana Schlanker Organization Lead Jana is our organizational go to. Her smiling face makes it easy to make any request and know it will be readily handled. From managing our growing database, organizing volunteers and coordinating events, she has an eye for details that we enjoy having on board.

500 TREES Conservation BACKGROUND Trees help you, our city and the planet. They look attractive, their shade will keep your home cooler in the summer and trees sequester carbon while producing oxygen. Trees can play a pivotal role in the response to climate change and you can make a difference. GreenTown's 500Trees program reaches its Goal! GreenTown Los Altos is happy to report that we planted tree #500 in December 2024 and the last tree, #538, in April 2025. We celebrated meeting our goal of 500 trees on Arbor Day, April 2025. Below are pictures of volunteers helping us along the journey! 500 Trees Planted! RESOURCES Tree List Resilient Trees

WHY EAT GREEN? Eating Green BACKGROUND When it comes to plant-based diets, what’s not to like? It’s good for our planet, good for our health and good for the animals! GreenTown Los Altos is here to support YOU and local restaurants in transitioning to more plant-based meals! Here’s why. Healthy Planet = Healthy People Plant-based eating is good for the planet A plant-based diet reduces greenhouse gas emissions (GHGs) – Raising animals for human consumption is a major cause of climate change, generating 18 percent of all GHGs globally. Eating green saves freshwater resources – Nearly 30 percent of freshwater is used for animal agriculture and animal agriculture is a large source of pollution of waterways, coastal areas and coral reefs. Plant-based eating results in more sustainable land use – Three-quarters of all agricultural land is used for animal agriculture. Increased land use for animal agriculture is a key factor in deforestation leading to species extinction and biodiversity loss. Seventy percent of previous forested land in the Amazon is now pasture and feed-crops cover a large part of the remainder. Healthy Bodies = Happy Bodies Eating green is good for your health A low-fat, plant-based diet, combined with regular exercise and a healthy overall lifestyle, can prevent, delay and even reverse heart disease and other cardiovascular events. Plant-based diets have been shown to control and reverse Type II diabetes. Large healthcare organizations, like Kaiser Permanente now advise all of their 17,000+ physicians to recommend a plant-based diet to all their patients. Happy Animals = Happy Planet Plant-based diets are compassionate Plant-based eating reduces animal death and enables animals to live out their full lives. For every person in the world, more than 10 animals are slaughtered each year. Animals are slaughtered at a fraction of their lifespan. Chickens naturally live for 10 years, but when bred for meat, they are typically killed at 6 weeks. Pigs, which live for 15 years, are typically killed at 6 months. Plant-based eating spares animal suffering. The vast majority of chickens, cows and pigs are raised on concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs) to maximize efficiency and profitability in living conditions that are not humane. Animals are denied their basic instincts, like roaming, nesting, and nurturing their young. Los Altos and Los Altos Hills residents want to eat more plants More than two-thirds of omnivores surveyed in Los Altos/Hills want to eat more plant-based foods. Nearly half of the omnivores surveyed are not happy with the number of plant-based options at local restaurants. This number jumps to two-third when vegans and vegetarians are included. Barriers to residents adopting more plant-based foods at home include a lack of recipes and concerns about nutrition. That’s where we come in. References Livestock’s long shadow (UN FAO 2006) The water footprint of poultry, pork and beef: A comparative study in different countries and production systems Sustaining Life: How Human Health Depends on Biodiversity Center for Biological Diversity Physicans Committee for Responsible Medicine on Heart Disease Physicans Committee for Responsible Medicine on Heart Disease A low-fat vegan diet improves glycemic control and cardiovascular risk factors in a randomized clinical trial in individuals with type 2 diabetes. Nutritional Update for Physicians: Plant-Based Diets Greenpeace “Less Is More” goal UN FAO statistics RESOURCES Greenpeace Less is More Campaign Food Revolution Network One Meal a Day for the Planet Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine Veghead, etc. VegNews Email Us For inquiries about the "Eating Green" program contact us at: info@greentownlosaltos.org