About the Ecology Center

We transform the ideals of sustainability into everyday practice.

Our mission

To inspire and build a sustainable, healthy, and just future for the East Bay, California, and beyond.

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Founded in 1969, the Ecology Center is a nonprofit organization based in Berkeley, California that works to improve the health and environmental well-being of urban communities. We address critical issues through a model of education, demonstration, replication, and advocacy.

We envision a world where human activity nurtures the ecosystems we all depend on — a world of sustainable cities, empowered and resilient communities, zero waste and zero toxics, equal access to healthy food, sustainable resource use, and a safe and stable climate.

We deliver information you can act on, infrastructure you can count on, and leadership for lasting change. Our services include farmers' markets, residential curbside recycling, classes and workshops, Youth Environmental Academy, a store for sustainable living, and a demonstration house and garden. We also convene the California Alliance of Farmers' Markets and lead Market Match, an innovative nutrition incentive program that doubles the value of CalFresh benefits at farmers' markets across California.

The Ecology Center was founded in 1969 as one of the first action-oriented environmental organizations in the country. In the early days, we were a meeting place where environmental thinkers and activists gathered and distributed information through a bookstore, newsletter, library, and printing press. Idealism was the mood of the day, and staff members worked around the clock for free.

In 1971, two tankers collided and spilled nearly a million gallons of crude oil into San Francisco Bay. The Ecology Center organized volunteer crews to clean oil from beaches and aquatic birds, and within days became a well-known institution. Today, people still turn to us in response to environmental crises.

Throughout the 1970s, the Ecology Center launched demonstration projects including environmental education programs for Berkeley schools, a primary grade curriculum guide, the Temescal Creek Committee, and various recycling projects — one of which spun off into a successful wine bottle recycling business still operating today.

We were instrumental in convening the first statewide recycling conference, a meeting that led to the founding of the California Resource Recovery Association. In 1988, we convened a task force with Berkeley officials to author the Styrofoam ban that became a model for ordinances across the country.

We have operated Berkeley's Curbside Recycling Program since 1973, when it launched as a demonstration project collecting newspapers. That program has since become a model for thousands of municipal recycling programs nationwide. Unlike for-profit haulers, our recycling program supports community education, maintains high standards, and keeps resources in our local community.

In 1987, we took on operation of the Berkeley Farmers' Market, and we now operate weekly markets across the East Bay. Our markets were the first in the country to ban methyl bromide, a toxic and ozone-depleting pesticide, and to ban the use and sale of GMO products.

In 2006, we subsumed the Berkeley EcoHouse — a demonstration house and garden that had been founded in 1999 — as one of our central programs. EcoHouse continues to serve as a place where community members learn about accessible and affordable ways to restore ecological systems and reduce environmental impact.

Most importantly, we're still here. The Ecology Center continues to be the place where people go for reliable information, practical alternatives, and to connect with others to solve problems — helping people take the next step toward a more sustainable and environmentally responsible life.