On September 23, more than 200 people came together at Prescott Market in West Oakland for the 6th Annual Hidden Heroes of the Greenbelt Benefit and Awards, an evening celebrating the people working tirelessly behind the scenes to make our Bay Area communities more resilient to climate change.
A Celebration of Community
Hidden Heroes is about more than the people we honor. It’s a gathering for everyone who believes this work matters: neighbors, advocates, funders, and friends who show up year after year because they know the Bay Area’s future depends on people like this.
Throughout the evening, guests explored virtual reality experiences from Virtual Planet and connected with our tabling partners Hood Planning, Watershed Project, and REAP Climate Center. We’re proud to work alongside organizations like these to advance our shared mission across the region.
We’re also incredibly grateful to the 35 sponsors who helped make this celebration possible and raised funds to advance our mission-driven work.
Support goes far beyond one evening. It helps us continue the work of protecting our region’s open spaces, advancing climate resilience, and building a Bay Area where people and nature can thrive together. You can contribute today to accelerating our mission-driven work. Donate here.
To every sponsor, guest, partner, volunteer, and supporter who helped make the night happen: Thank you.
Championing Hope
Local government workers rarely receive public recognition, yet their work directly shapes how millions of Bay Area residents experience climate impacts and housing security. From county-wide plans to tackle flooding from sea level and groundwater rise to infrastructure conversion to provide housing for vulnerable populations, these leaders are spearheading the plans and initiatives that protect millions of people in the Bay Area from the impacts of the combined climate and housing crises.
This year, we celebrated three outstanding local government leaders for pioneering solutions at the intersection of climate resilience and land use:
Kate Hagemann
Climate Adaptation and Resilience Planner, City of San Rafael
Kate was honored for her work advancing climate change resilience and adaptation planning, helping communities prepare for the challenges of a changing climate.
Wayne Chen
Director of Housing Department,
City of Mountain View
Wayne was recognized for his work promoting climate-smart housing and demonstrating how housing and climate resilience can be part of the same conversation.
Ryan Hernandez
Assistant Deputy Director,
Contra Costa County
Ryan was honored for his work advancing nature-based climate adaptation, showing how nature itself can be an important part of how communities respond to a changing climate.
Some evenings stay with you. An evening with Kate, Wayne, and Rayne will do that you: leave you convinced that the Bay Area is in good hands, and those hands are busy.
The Power to Make a Difference Is Local
At a time when we’re seeing rollbacks on the federal level, Hidden Heroes reminds us that there is still so much we can do, right here at home.
That’s what Hidden Heroes is all about: we shine a light on the people making a difference in their communities, spark curiosity and action elsewhere, and prove that local action matters, especially when the work ahead is urgent.
Thank you for celebrating with us, supporting our mission, and being part of a community that believes we can make a difference right here at home.
The work continues. And we’re in it together.
THANKS TO OUR 2026 HIDDEN HEROES SPONSORS
Climate Advocate Sponsors
Land Steward Sponsors
Community Friend Sponsors
Alta Housing | Brookfield Properties | Eden Housing | Fairbank, Maslin, Maullin, Metz & Associates | Hanson Bridgett LLP | HOK | MidPen Housing | Nonprofit Housing Association of Northern California | PlaceWorks | Port of San Francisco | San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District – BART | Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority | Santa Clara Valley Water District | SCAPE Landscape Architecture | Second Nature Ecology + Design | Singer Associates Public Relations | Shute, Mihaly & Weinberger LLP | SOMO Village | Sonoma County Agricultural Preservation & Open Space District | Sonoma Land Trust | Team CivX | The Nature Conservancy | WRT
Greenbelt Ambassador Sponsor
Enterprise Community Partners | Mithun
