Sustainable Marin

The group has received funding from left-of-center organizations and other foundations including the Marin Community Foundation and the Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment. ³

Background

Sustainable Marin is an advocacy group that promotes left-of-center environmentalist policies and programs within Marin County, California. The organization was initially created in 1999 as “Sustainable North Bay” before adopting “Sustainable Marin” as of 2026. The group was involved with grassroots efforts in Marin County to advance environmentalist goals such as lobbying for the creation of Marin Clean Energy, a public agency that was opened in 2010 to provide weather-dependent energy production for the county. In addition, Sustainable Marin oversees local chapters in areas such as Mill Valley, San Rafael, and Novato while acting as a fiscal sponsor for local startup projects including the Resilient Neighborhoods program. ^{4 5 1}

Activities

Sustainable Marin has sponsored local projects and public outreach programs towards reducing greenhouse gas emissions as well as decrease plastic usage. It has operated the Resilient Neighborhoods Initiative, which encourages individuals to adopt low-carbon lifestyles and prepare for climate impacts through workshops and activist training. The group has also fiscally sponsored Plastic Free Marin, which advocates for alternatives to “single-use waste” while promoting behavioral changes and policy reform. ²

Other programs and fiscally sponsored projects include the Green Home Tours, which promotes low-carbon and energy-efficient residential designs; and Painted Bins, which has schools promote composting and waste reduction through art designs. Sustainable Marin has also backed the “Dark Sky West Marin” collaboration to reduce light pollution as well as “Walk Bike Tamalpais” to promote non-motorized infrastructure. ²

Sustainable Marin also operates the Climate Rapid Response Network (CRRN), an activist network that coordinates climate activism and local lobbying for communities in the County. The network’s activity is described to participants as “writing an email to your elected representative, showing up at a hearing, coordinating communications with your team or introducing policy experts to your town staff and elected officials.” ²

Funding

Sustainable Marin has received funding from left-of-center organizations and other foundations including the Marin Community Foundation, the Texas Instruments Foundation, MarinSpace Inc, the Dean Witter Foundation, the McNabb Foundation, and the Rose Foundation for Communities and the Environment. ³