2026 BaY-DELTA SCIENCE conference
CREATIVE ENVIRONMENTAL AWARDS
Three creative projects that share knowledge, expand the conversation, and motivate action to improve the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta will be recognized by the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary board.
Call for Nominations The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary announces a call for artists to submit work for the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference, to showcase the science, collaborations, and need for action to protect the Estuary. The Creative Environmental Award reflects the goal of the conferences to promote art that can inspire, share knowledge, and encourage action to protect and enhance the Estuary. For the first time, Friends of the San Francisco Estuary will celebrate creative and original projects at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference. As seen at the biennial State of the Estuary conference, creative projects that share knowledge, expand the conversation, and motivate action to improve the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Estuary) will now be recognized on an annual basis.
Criteria for Eligibility
Selection will be based on originality, creativity, and the effectiveness of the message to protect the Estuary (Delta-
focused projects encouraged).
To be considered, eligible projects must:
Be nominated (self-nominations welcomed and encouraged)
Be completed by the submission deadline of August 14
Nominate via this Google Form.
Awards will be presented at the Bay-Delta Science Conference on September 28-30, 2026, at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, CA. In addition to recognition, the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary will provide first, second, and third place awardees a check for $300, $200, and $100, respectively. All artists accepted will be expected to display or present their work at the conference. If the work is performance-based, its presentation will be limited to five minutes. Conference registration is not required, but artists are encouraged to attend the reception on September 28 from 5-7pm.
Those who are interested in sharing art at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference, but unable to meet the award deadline, are encouraged to submit an abstract for the conference’s regular art session.
How to Submit a Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations welcomed and encouraged) will be submitted via Google Form.
Creative Environmental Awards submissions may include 2D works including graphic design, drawings, painting, photographs, collage, and mixed media; films (both shorts and commercial length); sculptures; and performative works including dance, theatre, poetry, and music. For 2D work, please submit a photograph of the artwork, and for other media, please submit a video in an easy-to-access format as to file size and appropriate length for a video.
For nominations of others, please also include your own name and contact information (email and phone). The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary Selection Committee will make its decision in September, and nominees will be notified of the results prior to the conference.
For questions, or if you are unable to submit a nomination via Google Form, please e-mail nominations to Friends of the San Francisco Estuary, c/o Rachael Klopfenstein at [email protected].
Nominations must be received by 11:59 pm, Friday, August 14, 2026.
OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENTAL
PROJECT AWARDS
Three completed environmental projects that significantly benefit the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay will be recognized by the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary board.
Call for Nominations – Outstanding Environmental Project Award
For the first time, Friends of the San Francisco Estuary will celebrate the most outstanding environmental projects of the region at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference. As seen at the biennial State of the San Francisco Estuary conference, outstanding environmental projects within the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Estuary) will now be recognized on an annual basis.
Outstanding Environmental Project Award
The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary announces a call for projects that significantly benefit the Estuary. The award will be presented at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference, September 28-30, 2026, at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, CA.
Criteria for Eligibility
Entries should showcase completed projects or show measurable results (as of nomination date), have not been externally mandated (for example, to resolve an enforcement action), and further the goals and objectives of the 2022 Estuary Blueprint (Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan) related to both the Bay and the Delta.
Previously nominated projects include restoration of creeks, wetlands, and dunes; experimental
natural infrastructure; collaborative volunteer efforts; and recycled water projects.
How to Submit a Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations welcomed) shall be submitted via Google Form and should include:
project name and location(s), project representative and contact information partners, project description and status connection to the Estuary Blueprint goals and objectives
For nomination of others, please also include your own name and contact information. The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary Selection Committee will make its decision in September, and nominees will be notified of the results prior to the conference.
For questions, or if you are unable to submit a nomination via Google Form, please e-mail nominations to Friends of the San Francisco Estuary, c/o Rachael Klopfenstein at [email protected].
Nominations must be received by 11:59 pm, Friday, August 14, 2026.
Three creative projects that share knowledge, expand the conversation, and motivate action to improve the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta will be recognized by the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary board.
Call for Nominations The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary announces a call for artists to submit work for the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference, to showcase the science, collaborations, and need for action to protect the Estuary. The Creative Environmental Award reflects the goal of the conferences to promote art that can inspire, share knowledge, and encourage action to protect and enhance the Estuary. For the first time, Friends of the San Francisco Estuary will celebrate creative and original projects at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference. As seen at the biennial State of the Estuary conference, creative projects that share knowledge, expand the conversation, and motivate action to improve the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Estuary) will now be recognized on an annual basis.
Criteria for Eligibility
Selection will be based on originality, creativity, and the effectiveness of the message to protect the Estuary (Delta-
focused projects encouraged).
To be considered, eligible projects must:
Be nominated (self-nominations welcomed and encouraged)
Be completed by the submission deadline of August 14
Nominate via this Google Form.
Awards will be presented at the Bay-Delta Science Conference on September 28-30, 2026, at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, CA. In addition to recognition, the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary will provide first, second, and third place awardees a check for $300, $200, and $100, respectively. All artists accepted will be expected to display or present their work at the conference. If the work is performance-based, its presentation will be limited to five minutes. Conference registration is not required, but artists are encouraged to attend the reception on September 28 from 5-7pm.
Those who are interested in sharing art at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference, but unable to meet the award deadline, are encouraged to submit an abstract for the conference’s regular art session.
How to Submit a Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations welcomed and encouraged) will be submitted via Google Form.
Creative Environmental Awards submissions may include 2D works including graphic design, drawings, painting, photographs, collage, and mixed media; films (both shorts and commercial length); sculptures; and performative works including dance, theatre, poetry, and music. For 2D work, please submit a photograph of the artwork, and for other media, please submit a video in an easy-to-access format as to file size and appropriate length for a video.
For nominations of others, please also include your own name and contact information (email and phone). The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary Selection Committee will make its decision in September, and nominees will be notified of the results prior to the conference.
For questions, or if you are unable to submit a nomination via Google Form, please e-mail nominations to Friends of the San Francisco Estuary, c/o Rachael Klopfenstein at [email protected].
Nominations must be received by 11:59 pm, Friday, August 14, 2026.
OUTSTANDING ENVIRONMENTAL
PROJECT AWARDS
Three completed environmental projects that significantly benefit the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and San Francisco Bay will be recognized by the Friends of the San Francisco Estuary board.
Call for Nominations – Outstanding Environmental Project Award
For the first time, Friends of the San Francisco Estuary will celebrate the most outstanding environmental projects of the region at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference. As seen at the biennial State of the San Francisco Estuary conference, outstanding environmental projects within the San Francisco Bay and Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (Estuary) will now be recognized on an annual basis.
Outstanding Environmental Project Award
The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary announces a call for projects that significantly benefit the Estuary. The award will be presented at the 2026 Bay-Delta Science Conference, September 28-30, 2026, at the SAFE Credit Union Convention Center in Sacramento, CA.
Criteria for Eligibility
Entries should showcase completed projects or show measurable results (as of nomination date), have not been externally mandated (for example, to resolve an enforcement action), and further the goals and objectives of the 2022 Estuary Blueprint (Comprehensive Conservation and Management Plan) related to both the Bay and the Delta.
Previously nominated projects include restoration of creeks, wetlands, and dunes; experimental
natural infrastructure; collaborative volunteer efforts; and recycled water projects.
How to Submit a Nomination
Nominations (self-nominations welcomed) shall be submitted via Google Form and should include:
project name and location(s), project representative and contact information partners, project description and status connection to the Estuary Blueprint goals and objectives
For nomination of others, please also include your own name and contact information. The Friends of the San Francisco Estuary Selection Committee will make its decision in September, and nominees will be notified of the results prior to the conference.
For questions, or if you are unable to submit a nomination via Google Form, please e-mail nominations to Friends of the San Francisco Estuary, c/o Rachael Klopfenstein at [email protected].
Nominations must be received by 11:59 pm, Friday, August 14, 2026.
PAST Awardees
First Place Awardee:
Linda Gass for Artworks about Water, Land Use, and Climate Change in the Watersheds of the San Francisco Bay
Second Place Awardee: Jane Ingram Allen & Jami Taback for "In Deep Water"
Third Place Awardee: Vincent Casalaina for "Wind in Their Sails: Death and Resurrection"
