It’s the human condition to operate with one foot in the future and one in the past, right? Here at the Mono Lake Committee we are certainly human—building on the past, with eyes trained on the future.
This year—our 40th anniversary—invites a nod to the past. It’s a chance to look back at the organization’s strong foundation laid by good humans like Sally Gaines, the late Genny Smith, and so many others who set us on the course that led to landmark successes that continue to protect the Mono Basin today.
This Newsletter is a snapshot of what we’re doing right now for Mono Lake. We’re squeezing a record number of groups into this year’s Outdoor Education Center season. We’re determining the kind of restoration flows the streams should receive based on snowpack and runoff data. We’re bringing 11 seasonal staff to the basin for a summer of hard work and great fun teaching visitors about this amazing place. We’re clearing up mysterious cables and a washed-out trail along Lee Vining Creek. We’re pulling invasive plants to help Mill Creek. We’re checking and rechecking DWP’s exports as that water leaves the basin.
The whole point? The future. Geoff’s discussion with Dr. Alex Hall is about envisioning the future, and how we can shape the best one possible. We know this summer’s OEC students will be the next water leaders in Los Angeles. We see Mill Creek’s future healthy bottomlands full of native plants. We will work for 41 years and rising, 45 years and rising, 60 years, more…
With all this reflection, work, and planning for the future, it’s a good thing we have Mono Lake just outside the office door. All it takes is a few minutes down at the lakeshore with the sound of lapping waves, the wind in the grasses, and the distant cries of gulls to pull you here—right here—into the present. This wild and vast inland sea helps us to reach the ideal human condition—present, grounded, recharged—so we can keep on working for that future.
Top photo by Arya Harp.