Eco-tourism may draw some visitors to the North Bay, but some forward-looking groups are betting that even more travelers can be enticed through the broader approach called Geo-tourism.

 

 Anyone wanting a broader understanding of Geotourism in general or the North Coast initiative specifically can find a wealth of background information here.

 

You can click here to access the online nomination form for places and other resources to be included in the region's geotourism map. Multiple nominations are encouraged.

 

Coastwalk is among the local and regional groups who are submitting their activities  to be included in the interactive geotourism map.  Click here to see what they've got planned  in the coming months, including the annual trek along the Mendocino County "lost coast" seen below.

Just about everyone agrees that preserving California's productive agricultural lands is a good idea, even if there have been some highly charged disagreements over the best means to accomplish that objective. Sidestepping these policy debates, California FarmLink is working directly with farming and ranching families to help them decide what they want to do with their lands from one generation to the next, as reported on today's North Bay Report:

Shrinking real estate values in California are prompting some ag families to re-evaluate their plans for their land. But Steve Schwartz, Executive Director of California FarmLink, says the shifting economic climate also holds some unexpected opportunities for new farmers to get established.

California Farmlink is hosting a series of regional conferences in Sonoma, Humboldt and San Luis Obispo counties titled Sowing the Seeds of Farm Succession:  Planning the Transition to the Next Generation of Family Farmers. the next session in Sonoma county will be held on Saturday, Feb. 21 at SRJC's Shone Farm, 6225 Eastside Road, Forestville. Click here for registration information.

 

People with developmental disabilities and physical handicaps will be among the first to feel the consequences if California's budget stalemate lasts much longer.

 

The North Bay Regional Center mains two local offices, in Santa Rosa and Napa:

Sonoma County:
2351 Mendocino Avenue
Santa Rosa, CA 95403
(707) 569-2000
TDD: (707) 525-1239


Napa/Solano Counties:
10 Executive Court
Napa, CA 94558
(707) 256-1100
TDD: (707) 252-0213
Solano County phone number
1-888-256-2555


 

The holidays are a peak travel time for the airlines, so knowing your rights as a passenger can help ensure a more satisfactory travel experience.

Former realtor Kate Hanni is the founder and president of the Napa-based Coalition for an Airline Passengers Bill of Rights. Her Organization maintains a tool-free telephone number for travelers to report standings and other problems, which she says are promptly verified and compiled into a national database.

Flyersrights Hotline: 877-FLYERS6 (877-359-3776)

The Coalition has also prepared a  Stranded Flyer's Survival Guide with a combination of practical and somewhat tongue-in-cheek items to use if you should happen to wind up on a grounded plane.

The New York state legislature was the first in the country to adopt a flyers bill of rights in August, 2007. But the measure was struck down by the U.S. Court of Appeals which ruled it interferred with federal regulatory authority over the airlines.

 

 

 

 

Northern California representative Mike Thompson has been a leader in the effort to win Congressional passage of a nationwide airline Passengers Bill of Rights. You can read the draft bill here.