We’re excited to be reuniting with Pulitzer Prize winner Tom Philp when he joins us at our Annual Dinner on October 26 in Lafayette.
On April 21, 2001 (John Muir’s birthday), before authoring the editorial series that earned him the Pulitzer, Philp wrote “Bring Back Hetch Hetchy?” for the Sacramento Bee Forum. The Forum article introduced a newly-formed Restore Hetch Hetchy and our campaign for restoration to the larger public, stressing both our technical competence and our passion for and commitment to changing history as embodied within our visionary founder Ron Good.
Ron Good has moved on, but that passion and commitment has only grown within the board, staff and supporters of Restore Hetch Hetchy.
Meet Tom on October 26 in Lafayette.
The prescient Forum article is worth rereading. Yosemite is more crowded than ever. Dams are coming out. Water agencies are reforming. Some industry leaders from 2001 are open-minded about Hetch Hetchy (e.g. Lester Snow and BAWSCA‘s Art Jensen). Still, leadership in San Francisco and/or Washington D.C. is needed.
Philp moved on after winning the Pulitzer, then returned to the Bee in 2023. (Ironically, or perhaps not, Philp worked as an Executive Strategist for the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California for 16 years – impressively demonstrating that reliable water and environmental restoration are wholly compatible.)
We expect Tom to stay on message (it’s the politics, not the plumbing!). But he’s been watching statewide water trends and well understands San Francisco’s changing needs. We can expect Philp to provide us with some compelling approaches to slicing the Gordian (political) Knot from his unique perspective.
Please join us at our Annual Dinner featuring Pulitzer Prize Winner Tom Philp on October 25 in Lafayette. See details here.
