Since 2019 I have supported the Grants Program for the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District. I feel lucky to work with brilliant and motivated colleagues to protect and conserve thousands of acres of greenbelt divided among more than two dozen open space preserves, from San Francisco Bay wetlands, to the rugged hills and valleys south of San Francisco, to the Pacific Ocean. Russian Ridge Preserve is one of my favorites. In addition to securing grants to support land acquisitions, wildlife conservation, trail building, educational programs and historical building preservation, the agency’s Grants Program also supports regional partnerships with a grantmaking program. The agency is also leading efforts to build wildlife and trail crossings for Highway 17 to offer safe passage for wildlife and people and connect over 30,000 acres of protected public lands.

My work with San Francisco Botanical Garden, which began in 2015, took an exciting turn in 2022 with the launch of the Gardens of Golden Gate Park. This new entity unites the three living museums in Golden Gate Park – Conservatory of Flowers, Japanese Tea Garden, and San Francisco Botanical Garden – under one public/private partnership. All three public gardens offer free entry to San Francisco residents and non-residents receiving food assistance benefits through the Museums for All program. My work has helped to fine tune project work plans and to develop content for grant materials in support of youth education programming, a new plant nursery, the annual Flower Piano music festival, and more. Former Development Director Lillian Archer said the following of my work: “Her writing is compelling and articulate – essential attributes when developing copy to create excitement and interest around a funding need.”

Petaluma River Park is a community-driven public park and environmental restoration project on the banks of the Petaluma River, which flows from downtown Petaluma to San Francisco Estuary. The project will restore tidal marsh and riparian habitat and stabilize the riverbanks to support fish, reduce erosion, and provide resiliency for sea level rise. The project will also enhance community resilience to climate hazards and provide public recreation and education. Centered on equity, this project is recognized as a model for engaging communities underrepresented in restoration and park planning. I joined the team in 2024 to support grant applications to pubic agencies.

Photo: Information Poster at the Petaluma River Park Concept Plan Reveal Event, March 2025

I partnered with Island Conservation, an international science-based nonprofit that prevents wildlife extinctions by working where the concentration of both biodiversity and species extinction is greatest: on islands. Island Conservation’s scientists and conservationists are working to protect rare and critically endangered birds and other wildlife like the Humboldt Penguin on Chile’s Choros Island, Red-footed Booby on Palmyra Atoll, Galápagos Petrel nests on Floreana Island, Ricord’s Iguana on Cabritos Island, Dominican Republic and the Critically Endangered San Nicolas Island Fox on the Channel Island archipelago off the coast of California.

Karen Poiani, the organizations former CEO, shared the following testimonial: “We were short staffed on our Philanthropy Team and needed several months of additional support. Christine came to our rescue! She was able to hit the ground running because of her extensive experience and was a joy for everyone to work with. Christine is the ultimate professional – delivering high quality products on time, and is a fantastic writer. She understands both philanthropy and fundraising but also our conservation mission. I enthusiastically recommend Christine and would hire her again in a minute!”

I am thankful for my first bicycle, a gift from my parents at the age of five that inspired a lifelong love for riding. In the years since I have biked to school, to work, to have fun and to run urban errands. Bicycles have given me an affordable way to get around and the freedom to move under my own power in the open air. For this reason, I was thrilled provide transitional support to the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition, an education and advocacy organization that works to promote safe streets and biking for transportation. I first joined the organization as a member in the 1990s and continue to admire their myriad accomplishments.

My work inspired the following testimonial from the former executive director, Brian Wiedenmeier: “Her wealth of experience, thoroughness and attention to detail, collegiality and professionalism helped us exceed budget targets for two large fundraising events. The organization and its mission benefited greatly from her talents, and I would enthusiastically recommend her to other nonprofits who are seeking resource development support.”

Mesa Refuge is a writer’s retreat in West Marin that offers scholarships to writers concerned with economics, environment and the creation of a just and sustainable world a unique place to be creative and focused on a book project. Past residents have included Michael Pollan, Terry Tempest Williams, Rebecca Solnit and hundreds more.

I worked with Mesa Refuge as they transitioned from a fiscally sponsored project to an independent nonprofit. That support inspired the following quote from the former executive director, Susan Tillett: “You came along at a critical time for the Mesa and helped us lay down some good foundation stones when we needed them most.”

I partnered with Point Blue Conservation Science, an organization that advances the conservation of birds, other wildlife, and ecosystems through science, partnerships, and outreach and is home to the award-winning Students and Teachers Restoring A Watershed (STRAW) program.

I provided Point Blue with interim grant program support and consulting inspiring the positive feedback from Susan Lee Vick, Former Chief Advancement Office: “Point Blue Conservation Science was fortunate to find Christine at a pivotal time in our advancement operations. Her interim support of our grants program afforded us the time and space to identify and orient top caliber staff to take Point Blue’s institutional philanthropy to the next level. Christine’s work consistently exceeded our expectations. As soon as she came on board, she established lines of communication with key Point Blue staff and set up systems for managing shared work flows. With minimal oversight, Christine helped Point Blue scientists and other organizational leaders develop high quality foundation reports and proposals, concurrently offering strategic guidance and enhancing the quality of our professional storytelling. In due time we hired two institutional philanthropy team leaders. Christine warmly welcomed these new colleagues, and effectively transitioned her work in progress and insights so they could hit the ground running. I highly recommend Christine to any organization seeking top quality grant production and management from a wonderful external team member!”

One of my first volunteer projects in college involved research for International Rivers. Since 1985, International Rivers has been at the heart of the global struggle to protect rivers and the rights of communities that depend on them. They work with an international network of dam-affected people, grassroots organizations, environmentalists, human rights advocates and others who are committed to stopping destructive river projects and promoting better options.

Many years later I returned to support an organizational transition. I worked with the organization’s leadership in Berkeley, California, and program staff on three different continents to assess and document relationships, strengths and funding opportunities to serve as an orienting body of knowledge for the organization’s next development director and to catalyze fresh thinking on institutional fundraising.

For more than 10 years I supported Outward Bound including the national organization and regional schools in California and the Pacific Northwest. The network of expedition schools and independent organizations provide experience-based outdoor learning and year-round leadership programs in urban environments and in the wilderness.

My work inspired the following testimonial from the former executive director of Outward Bound California, Josh Brankman: “First for the Outward Bound Bay Area Center and most recently for the newly established Outward Bound California, Christine has provided consistently great results working as a fundraising and communications consultant. Christine’s projects have included the advising and production of high quality grant proposals and reporting, newsletter and annual report creation, and annual end-of-year campaign support. Her expertise crosses over into database management and her work to help our organization transition from one fundraising database to another was top notch. Christine’s organization, attention to detail, creativity, and willingness to truly get to know an organization’s mission and core values have helped us move forward and extend our reach each and every year.”

For several years I volunteered with the Bay Area Puma Project monitoring camera traps for evidence of mountain lions. The project’s main goal is to promote better co-existence between humans and mountain lions. To support the project in Marin County, I maintained and monitored “camera traps,” which offer a window into a world we rarely see including the movements of pumas, bobcats, deer, coyotes, foxes, skunks, raccoons and other wildlife common to healthy Bay Area ecosystems.

Photo: Mountain lion captured on a trail camera in West Marin County