Robyn Purchia

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A view of the Outer Richmond District from Grandview Park in the Sunset District on Friday, March 15, 2019. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

Cities are failing to protect their urban canopies

Earlier this month, general contractor Webcor Builders was brought before the San Francisco Board of Appeals for illegally removing two sidewalk Sycamore trees.

A view of the Outer Richmond District from Grandview Park in the Sunset District on Friday, March 15, 2019. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)
A Lord Voldemort look-a-like. (Courtesy photo)

Youth activists are reminiscent of the young heroes in the Harry Potter stories

Last Friday, about 2,000 San Francisco Bay Area students left school and marched down Market Street.

A Lord Voldemort look-a-like. (Courtesy photo)
Wells Fargo and Company CEO Timothy Sloan testifies before the House Financial Services Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill March 12, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/TNS)

Historic march against Wells Fargo planned for this week

Last weekend, reports of unethical business practices at Wells Fargo surfaced again.…

Wells Fargo and Company CEO Timothy Sloan testifies before the House Financial Services Committee in the Rayburn House Office Building on Capitol Hill March 12, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images/TNS)
Last year, California

Gas cars may soon become as obsolete as horse-drawn buggies

Years ago, horse-drawn carriages shuttled San Franciscans up and down our hilly…

Last year, California
A rendering of the proposed Mission Rock development near AT&T Park. (Courtesy San Francisco Giants via Planning Commission)

San Francisco Giants ahead of the game in leaving fossil fuels behind

The San Francisco Giants are in the lead; at least, when it…

A rendering of the proposed Mission Rock development near AT&T Park. (Courtesy San Francisco Giants via Planning Commission)
San Francisco Fire fighters work to extinguish a gas line-related fire in the Richmond District on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (Ellie Doyen/Special to S.F. Examiner)

There’s nothing natural about natural gas

Two weeks ago, contractors working at the corner of Geary Boulevard and…

San Francisco Fire fighters work to extinguish a gas line-related fire in the Richmond District on Wednesday, Feb. 6, 2019. (Ellie Doyen/Special to S.F. Examiner)
Peter Fiekowsky and Erica Dodds, (left) leaders of Healthy Climate Alliance, presented their work to a packed room at the Commonwealth Club last week. (Courtesy Healthy Climate Alliance)

Finding high-tech solutions to the Arctic ice meltdown

Despite cold temperatures and even snow in the Bay Area, climate change…

Peter Fiekowsky and Erica Dodds, (left) leaders of Healthy Climate Alliance, presented their work to a packed room at the Commonwealth Club last week. (Courtesy Healthy Climate Alliance)
Before working on Sea Ranch, architect George Homsey, built his Dolores Heights home according to the same principles as the groundbreaking development. Natural light pours into windows and skylights, and the home is built almost entirely of wood. (Special to S.F. Examiner/Robyn Purchia)

Breaking out of the single-family house mold

In 1964, a group of Bay Area architects decided to reject the…

Before working on Sea Ranch, architect George Homsey, built his Dolores Heights home according to the same principles as the groundbreaking development. Natural light pours into windows and skylights, and the home is built almost entirely of wood. (Special to S.F. Examiner/Robyn Purchia)
Plastic shotgun wads, used to separate the shot from powder, litter beaches. (Courtesy photo)

It’s too early to ban environmentally-damaging shotgun shell components

On Baker Beach last week, Anna Kauffman picked up 23 pieces of…

Plastic shotgun wads, used to separate the shot from powder, litter beaches. (Courtesy photo)
One household's 10,000 pounds of belongings were redistributed among charities and others. (Courtesy photo)

A couple’s lifetime of possessions find new homes

Refusing plastic straws and carrying a reusable water bottle is good for…

One household's 10,000 pounds of belongings were redistributed among charities and others. (Courtesy photo)
Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks during the 116th Congress on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 3, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/TNS)

It’s time for Pelosi to endorse the Green New Deal

On a sunny, but wet morning, activists gathered recently in San Francisco’s…

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi speaks during the 116th Congress on the floor of the U.S. House of Representatives at the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 3, 2019 in Washington, D.C. (Olivier Douliery/Abaca Press/TNS)
Uber and Lyft rides represent a growing portion of The City and state’s transportation network. To electrify this network, it’s necessary to increase access to charging stations. (Courtesy photo)

Why electric cars make sense for Uber, Lyft drivers in San Francisco

On a recent cold, San Francisco day, Marcel Espia picked me up…

Uber and Lyft rides represent a growing portion of The City and state’s transportation network. To electrify this network, it’s necessary to increase access to charging stations. (Courtesy photo)
Do the right thing with your post-Christmas waste. (Courtesy photo)

‘Twas the day after Christmas and oh, what a mess

‘Twas the day after Christmas, when all through the flat Not a…

Do the right thing with your post-Christmas waste. (Courtesy photo)
In 1969, native Americans occupied Alcatraz for 19 months over a failed proposal to build a cultural center there. They still await a center in The City. (Getty Images)

Will native Americans finally get a cultural center in San Francisco?

Last week, the sound of beating drums echoed within City Hall as…

In 1969, native Americans occupied Alcatraz for 19 months over a failed proposal to build a cultural center there. They still await a center in The City. (Getty Images)
More than 100 volunteers took part in the 13th annual Presidio Planting Day, planting more than 2,800 native plants in the Tennessee Hollow Watershed. (Courtesy Dan Friedman)

Presidio habitat restoration effort plants seeds of hope

El Polin Spring was bubbling last Saturday with 133 volunteers ready to…

More than 100 volunteers took part in the 13th annual Presidio Planting Day, planting more than 2,800 native plants in the Tennessee Hollow Watershed. (Courtesy Dan Friedman)
A fisherman sells live Dungeness crab in Half Moon Bay during the 2016 season. (Courtesy photo)

The news is not all good when it comes to this year’s Dungeness crab season

Joy to the world! San Francisco’s markets and menus are stocked with…

A fisherman sells live Dungeness crab in Half Moon Bay during the 2016 season. (Courtesy photo)
Too many holiday presents hurt the environment. Saturday’s zero waste holiday market will provide more eco-friendly gift ideas. (Courtesy photo)

Consider the environment when you buy gifts this holiday season

Many San Francisco parents were grateful for the rain last week and…

Too many holiday presents hurt the environment. Saturday’s zero waste holiday market will provide more eco-friendly gift ideas. (Courtesy photo)
For months, members of the Episcopal Diocese of California, which covers the San Francisco Bay Area, have grappled with how to lower their environmental “foodprint.” (Courtesy photo)

Struggling with the responsibility to reduce our ‘foodprint’

Tomorrow is a chance for San Franciscans to express gratitude, not only…

For months, members of the Episcopal Diocese of California, which covers the San Francisco Bay Area, have grappled with how to lower their environmental “foodprint.” (Courtesy photo)
The outline of a mobile homes is all that remains in the Ridgewood Mobile Home Park in Paradise, Calif., where a team recovered one victim on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018 as the search continues for victims of the Camp Fire. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times/TNS)

Wildfires underline need to diversify California’s water supply

Fast burning fires, aided by strong, east winds and low humidity, devastated…

The outline of a mobile homes is all that remains in the Ridgewood Mobile Home Park in Paradise, Calif., where a team recovered one victim on Monday, Nov. 12, 2018 as the search continues for victims of the Camp Fire. (Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times/TNS)
In Copenhagen, more than half of the bike commuters are women, but in San Francisco, female riders face challenges to being green. (Courtesy photos)

New S.F. study opens door to exploring gender differences in environmental policies

Some San Franciscans remember a life in the 1950s before our “throwaway…

In Copenhagen, more than half of the bike commuters are women, but in San Francisco, female riders face challenges to being green. (Courtesy photos)