As Head of the San Francisco Park Stewardship Program in the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy, YAKUTA POONAWALLA combines habitat restoration and storytelling to connect urban community members in the San Francisco Bay Area to the natural world. In San Francisco's newest park, Tunnel Tops, she uses habitat restoration to connect urban community members to the natural world. Yakuta's story includes how she discovered and cultivated her love of nature after running away from her conservative religious community in the crowded city of Pune, India.
—Nancy Kelly