Cal State East Bay Concord

Fun fact: Our campus has its own protected nature area at our Galido Creek Field Station! It’s home to dozens of species of wildlife and serves as a biological research site dedicated for use by Cal State East Bay faculty, students and community partners. More info here: https://www.csueastbay.edu/galindocreek/

🌿 Meet hawwen 🌿
Manzanita 🍎 has a fragrant scent, flowers that taste like green apples, and small red berries that look like little red apples.

These drought-tolerant trees are exclusively found in California and support birds and insects, including monarch butterflies 🦋

The Ohlone use the branches for digging sticks, the berries to make cider, and the leaves to brew tea. The tea and cider are used to help with digestive problems. The leaves are also used for skin problems like rashes and itchiness from poison oak.

With their twisting branches and smooth red bark, hawwen are both beautiful and important for healthy ecosystems. They can help conserve water, create habitat, and support biodiversity! 🐦🐝🌎

Our Concord Center supports all efforts to preserve the Bay Area's nature.

Our campus is closed today in honor of Memorial Day.

No Mow May started as a way to help pollinators by letting lawns grow longer. However, experts now say the bigger picture involves creating healthier, more sustainable yards year-round. One simple change? Reduce or eliminate the use of leaf blowers.
Gas-powered leaf blowers contribute to noise, emissions, and air pollution while disturbing soil, insects, and pollinator habitats.
Using a gas-powered two-stroke leaf blower for just 30 minutes can produce pollution levels comparable to driving a pickup truck from Texas to Alaska. 🛻💨

Instead:
✅ Rake or sweep smaller areas
✅ Use electric leaf blowers, if necessary
✅ Leave fallen leaves/mulch for pollinators
✅ Plant native flowers
✅ Mow less often

A quieter, greener yard benefits everyone, including wildlife! 🐝🌻 Our Concord Center is always doing our part!

Congratulations to all our CSUEB graduates! Join us in celebrating the Class of 2026 at Cal State East Bay Commencement, happening May 15–17 at the Pioneer Amphitheatre on our Hayward campus!

It’s finals week! What are some studying tips that help you? Share them below in the comment area!

🌿 Meet hiišen 🌿
Mugwort 🐝, with its strong fragrance, not only reminds us that it is spring but also signals its vital role as a habitat and food source for pollinators in the Bay Area.
🌤️ Blooming summer through fall, this plant thrives in sunny to partially shady locations and becomes drought-tolerant once established, making it a perfect addition to native and low-watered gardens!
🫖 It is also believed that if you put a cutting under your pillow, you will have good dreams! 🌜

Today is the first day of National Nurses Week, and today is National Nurses Day! On this day, we raise awareness of all nurse contributions and acknowledge the vital role nurses play in society. Thank you to all our Nursing students and faculty!

Pizza, Pollinators, and Community 🌸🍕
In honor of Earth Day, we hosted a Community Workday: Pizza and Pollinators, bringing together staff, students, climate action fellows, and new community members for a hands-on afternoon of learning and care for our shared spaces 🌎

staff collected trash in the tuuštak Ecocultural Garden and weeded in the Xerces Pollinator Garden to prepare for the event. CCRCD staff kicked things off with a short educational session, then Lisa Damerel and Ivette Rivero led the group to complete a pollinator survey, helping us better understand the vital role these species play in our ecosystem. 🦋

We were excited to welcome a new community volunteer, 7 first-semester nursing students joining us for the first time, 3 climate action fellows, and 3 additional CCRCD staff members! 🙌 The team also spent time updating the plant inventory- checking tags and documenting plant health. 🍎

Thank you to everyone who contributed their time and energy! 🙏Together, we're supporting pollinators and growing a stronger, more connected community. 🌷Keep an eye out for our next workday!