Join us at the 2009 Summer Lunada! Pro Peninsula Featured on TV! Eco Race Results Seasonal Spotlight: Summer 2009 A Farewell to Dr. Norm Roberts

We cordially invite you to... Pro Peninsula’s 3rd Annual Summer Lunada Saturday, July 25th La Jolla, CA 6:00pm - 10:00pm VIP & Funders Reception begins at 5pm $125 per person To purchase tickets, visit www.propeninsula.org/Lunada

The 3rd Annual Summer Lunada will once again take place at a beautiful private residence atop Mt. Soledad in La Jolla, CA. Join us for a delightful evening of friends, fun and giving, celebrating Pro Peninsula’s community conservation efforts throughout San Diego and the Baja California peninsula! This year’s benefit will include live music, cocktails, dinner, silent and live auctions, and much more!

Proceeds generated from this event will help to further Pro Peninsula’s mission of strengthening individual and community efforts to protect the natural environment of San Diego and the Baja California peninsula.

We are currently seeking sponsors for the Lunada! Your participation will increase exposure for your organization or business and help to make this event a great success for the San Diego community!

Sponsorship Levels
Brisa (breeze): $500
Ola (wave): $1,000
Estrella (star): $2,500
Luna (moon): $5,000

Support environmental conservation in San Diego and the Baja California peninsula; mail in your contribution or visit www.propeninsula.org to donate online today!

Contact Pro Peninsula at (619) 574-6643 for Lunada sponsorship details!

Kama Dean, Pro Peninsula’s Executive Director, was recently honored with the 10News Leadership Award for her environmental work with Pro Peninsula! Kama has worked diligently in support of environmental conservation throughout her lifetime, but her efforts to protect earth’s natural resources culminated in 2001, when she and Chris Pesenti co-founded Pro Peninsula. As the 10News Leadership Award recognizes, Kama serves as an environmental role-model for other businesses, organizations, and individuals.

Kama has always maintained a unique understanding of both political and environmental issues, which is a rare and increasingly important perspective in an ever-globalizing world. Throughout her education, Kama focused on Latin American studies and international environmental policy. Since Kama came to apply her sense of global and environmental awareness to the Baja California peninsula, the region has benefitted in countless ways. Communities and individuals throughout the entire peninsula credit Kama with inspiring them to adopt sustainable environmental choices as a part of their day to day lives.

It is Kama’s unique ability to “see the bigger picture” that really distinguishes her—and Pro Peninsula—as some of the world’s most forward-thinking environmental ambassadors. Kama’s passion for the environment is truly contagious—in fact, what began as a vision that she and Chris shared has evolved into one of the leading, and most innovative, conservation movements in the entire region.

Last month, 12 supporters of environmental conservation came together to form Pro Peninsula’s first-ever Race Team! On May 17th, our Race Team Members competed in both the 5 and 10k versions of the Mission Driven Eco Run, which was hosted by Sun Strides, a local group that works to create sustainable solar projects. Our Race Team Members spent a beautiful Sunday morning in San Diego’s Mission Gorge Trails area where they ran and walked to support nature on a global scale! A portion of the proceeds generated from the Pro Peninsula Race Team will support environmental conservation efforts extending all the way from the Baja California peninsula to Eastern Africa. The Race Team was a great success and Pro Peninsula plans to host more athletic events like this in the future—so stay tuned for information on the next opportunity to join a Pro Peninsula Race Team!

Pro Peninsula extends a heartfelt thanks & congratulations to each of our Race Team Members:
Jeannel King, Adam Westmoreland, Karen Quiros, Cesar Quiros, David Lang, Sakura Lang, Cindy Ruhe, Veasna Frank, Jessica Felkins, Katherine Honovich, Frances Kinney, & Brandon Himmel!

July 31st – August 2nd: San Carlos Sea Turtle Festival Each year, Vigilantes de Bahía Magdalena, together with the School for Field Studies and other members of the Grupo Tortuguero, host a sea turtle Festival in San Carlos, Baja California Sur. The Festival features different environmentally-themed booths, a fishing contest, children’s activities such as face painting and coloring, culinary events, a variety of different artistic expressions including dances by local school groups, and the crowning of the Sea Turtle Festival King and Queen!

August 15th – 16th: Lopez Mateos Loggerhead Sea Turtle Festival
The community of Puerto Adolfo Lopez Mateos hosts a Festival marking the conclusion of the field season for the loggerhead conservation program, ProCaguama. The Festival includes community outreach, working with local fishermen to test sustainable fishing techniques that limit incidental bycatch, beach surveys studying loggerhead mortality rates, and in-water loggerhead monitoring efforts. During the Festival, the community will elect a Sea Turtle Queen who has demonstrated a strong level of dedication to sea turtle conservation through her own individual efforts. The Festival serves to remind the surrounding community that the future of the loggerhead sea turtle truly lies in the hands of local community members.

August 21st – 23rd: Grupo Tortuguero Monitoring Meeting
The Grupo Tortuguero de Las Californias, AC will host their 8th annual Monitoring Meeting in Guasave, Sinaloa, Mexico this year. This is a very special occasion, as it is the first time in history that this meeting will be held on mainland Mexico. During the Meeting, participants will review the results of the GT’s sea turtle monitoring efforts during the previous year. The Meeting will examine sustainable fishing methods and the potential for the GT to incorporate ecotourism activities that will serve to benefit local conservation efforts. Please contact aaron@grupotortuguero.org for more information about the GT Monitoring Meeting.

*July-August: Special Research Opportunity
Pro Peninsula is looking for a limited number of enthusiastic individuals to join the ProCaguama research team for 3 weeks this summer! Beginning in late July, YOU could join the conservation scientists of ProCaguama as they gather valuable data on loggerhead sea turtle populations! This research adventure will conclude following the Sea Turtle Festival in Lopez Mateos on August 16th. Don’t delay…if this opportunity interests you, please contact chris@propeninsula.org today!

Norm Roberts loved the Baja California peninsula and dedicated much of his life to conservation of the natural environment on the peninsula and beyond. Norm served organizations such as the International Whaling Commission, the Center for Marine Conservation, the Environmental Defense Fund, the San Diego Natural History Museum, the Wild Animal Park and many, many more. He was one of Pro Peninsula’s original members, and has been an integral part of the Pro Peninsula family for the past eight years. Norm was also the author of the book “Baja California Plant Field Guide”, originally printed in the 1970’s with a second edition released in 1987. He was working on a third edition of the Guide at the time of his death. Although Norm passed away on April 23rd, 2009, his passion for the region and dedication to the organizations working there will be felt for many years to come.