February 11, 2025 at 5:08 pm by Sophia Benito
The Isla Vista Recreation and & Park District, in collaboration with the UC Santa Barbara Environmental Affairs Board, held a ‘Stewardship Saturday’ event on Feb. 1 at Sueño “Bark” Park, a dog park.
Stewardship Saturday is a three or four-year-old program where volunteers help restore and maintain local parks in Isla Vista Saturday. Sophia Benito / Daily Nexus
Stewardship Saturday is a three-year-old program where volunteers help restore and maintain local parks in Isla Vista every Saturday. With around 25 different parks in Isla Vista, every quarter, the Isla Vista Recreation & Park District (IVRPD) schedules seven events, each hosted at a different park.
IVRPD gave volunteers information about their quarter schedule with a QR code for volunteers to sign up. C.A.R.E. 4 Paws, an organization that offers affordable pet services to those in need, gave out information at the event. They handed out flyers and shared their resources for pet families.
Volunteers participated in painting new signs and filling in holes that were dug by dogs at Sueño Park. They also interacted with dogs visiting the park.
“It keeps the parks nice for the people in the community. It’s really important to have outdoor space, especially because a lot of us live in very cramped environments,” fourth-year anthropology major and IVRPD Stewardship Assistant Thea Winterich said.
Part of the mission of the Environmental Affairs Board (EAB) is to improve the community through restoration and community service projects, according to Executive Chair and second-year environmental studies major Rebecca Williams.
“We’re out here today, we’re passionate about improving the natural elements for Isla Vista and giving back,” she said.
EAB and IVRPD started occasionally collaborating on Stewardship Saturday events last quarter.
“EAB likes to partner with local organizations who are already coming together so that we can have the most impact. Plus, it’s exciting to work with volunteers outside of EAB,” Event Chair and third-year environmental studies major Kaili Mikami said.
The first collaborative Stewardship Saturday between EAB and IVRPD was a renovation and clean-up of the Lathhouse (greenhouse) at the Estero Community Gardens last quarter. Volunteers worked on tasks like removing vines and starting vegetable seeds.
“We have very similar goals of maintaining the environment and being sustainable with our practices,” Winterich said.
