We Help Oakland Play in Parks!
Earth Day 2025
Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation (OPRF) is thrilled to see Earth Day workdays happening all over Oakland, enhancing our parks and neighborhoods! Below we are recognizing the groups hosting terrific workdays and the areas they are stewarding, spotlighting their efforts. Please take a moment to learn more about these incredible groups and join in if you can. Event details are included below.
Spotlight: Mosswood Park Earth Day Beautification
When: April 19, 2025 10AM
Where: 3612 Webster Street
How to Join: Click Here to Register
Mosswood Park, Keep Oakland Beautiful, Mosswood Community Gardens, YouthAlive, Youth Empowerment Through Horses, Urban Compassion Project, Trees for Oakland, Oakland Parks, Recreation and Youth Development, Oakland Public Works, Mosswood Meltdown, Sidewalk Trees & Gardens, the United Nations Association of the East Bay, Oakland Ballers, Blue Shield of California, Ava Energy, The Port of Oakland, Whole Foods, Noah’s Bagels, Rossmoor of Walnut Creek, and YouthAlive.
Community Kitchens will be catering.
Blue Shield of California and Whole Foods will be bringing employee volunteer teams.
Photo Credit: Hope Avenue
Join volunteers on Hope Avenue this Earth Day for an Earth Day volunteer day focused on tree planting, garden beautification, and neighborhood clean-up.
Come get your hands in the soil, meet your neighbors, and help create a greener, more vibrant neighborhood everyone. All ages and experience levels welcome, tools and guidance will be provided!
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 10am-3pm
Where: 1940 23rd Ave, Oakland
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Allendale Community Garden
Celebrate Earth Day with hands-on community care at Allendale Community Garden! Join volunteers for planting, weeding, pruning, trash cleanup, sign-making, garden art! Plus a free compost giveaway.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 10am-3pm
Where: Allendale Park, 3711 Suter St, Oakland
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Friends-Stewards of the African American Museum & Library at Oakland
Join the Friends-Stewards of the African American Museum & Library at Oakland (FSAAMLO) for a day of weeding, sweeping, pruning, and trash pickup. Snacks and water provided; lunch served from 1:30–2:00 PM. Volunteers under 18 must have parent/guardian permission.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 10:30 AM - 1:30 PM
Where: African American Museum & Library at Oakland (AAMLO), 659 14th Street, Oakland, CA 94612
Sign Up Here or contact Claudia Noble-Levingston Claudia.fsaamlo@gmail.com the African American Museum & Library at Oakland (AAMLO) 510-637-0200 to volunteer or with any questions.
Spotlight: Courtland Creek
Photo Credit: Friends of Courtland Creek
Join the Friends of Courtland Creek for a community Earth Day! We'll be tackling trash pickup, graffiti abatement, and weed removal to help keep the creek and neighborhood clean and beautiful.
Date: Saturday, April 19
Time: 9:30 AM - 12 PM
Where: Meet at the corner of Congress and Courtland Ave in the Melrose Neighborhood
Sign Up Here!
Spotlight: Black Earth Day
Join EB PREC and LISC Bay Area for for BLACK EARTH DAY, a day of community care, celebration, and connection on 7th Street! Enjoy live DJs, art, food, and so much more as we celebrate Black arts, Black-led organizations and businesses, and Black neighborhoods.
Ways to Join:
Volunteer to help clean up 7th Street (equipment provided).
Passionate about community cleanups and encouraging others? Sign up to be a group captain.
Have a pickup truck or van? Lend a hand by helping collect full trash bags and dropping them at an on-site dumpster with one of our event partners.
Schedule:
10am -11am: Sign-in, breakfast, and welcome
11am-1pm: Community cleanup
1pm-3pm: Celebration + party time!
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Gardens of Lake Merritt
Join Earth Day at the Gardens of Lake Merritt, a civic gem, situated in Oakland’s Lakeside Park. We have a number of projects centered around garden beautification.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9am to 12 pm
Where: The Gardens at Lake Merritt, North Gate (adjacent to 666 Bellevue Ave)
Sign Up Here!
Check in at the North Gate (adjacent to 666 Bellevue Ave) at 9am to be assigned a project.
Photo Credit: Oakland Wiki
Join Rotary Nature Center and Wildlife Refuge for an Earth Day workday! They are looking for volunteers to help weed, prepare the yard for spring planting, seed bomb, and chalk-it-up activities, and trash pick up.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Where: Rotary Nature Center, 600 Bellevue Avenue, Oakland
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Butters Canyon Conservancy
For the Earth Day Work Day, Butters Canyon Conservancy will be clearing the creekbed and removing dead brush, clearing property of invasive plants (Scotch Broom, German Ivy, non-native berry). There may be poison oak, volunteers should dress in long sleeves and pants an bring a water bottle!
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9:30 AM - 1:00 PM
Where: 3514 Butters Dr., Oakland
Volunteers can RSVP here. Any questions, please contact Dolores at dapton1@gmail.com
Photo Credit: Friends of Frog Park
Join Friends of Frog Park for a Frog Park & Greenbelt cleanup! Volunteer tasks will include weeding, pruning, trash pickup, raking, sweeping, and gardening. Everyone is welcome! Snacks and tools will be provided.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9am to 12 pm
Where: Meet at the Big Frog Park
Sign Up Here!
Join an Earth Day service learning event focused on pollinator habitats and native plantings at the Prescott Elementary School Garden!
Volunteers will have the opportunity to learn and take part in garden plantings, soil conservation, and hands-on educational activities. Come help us cultivate a thriving habitat for birds, bees, butterflies - and our community!
Date: Saturday, April 19
Time: 10AM - 2 PM
Where: Prescott Elementary, 920 Campbell St
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Rotary Nature Center Friends
Join Rotary Nature Center Friends for an Earth Day of stewardship and science! Volunteers are invited to participate in hands-on activities including weeding, planting native species, water testing, plankton viewing, trash removal, and repairing wire enclosures.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Where: Lake Merritt Sail Boat House Beach, 568 Bellevue Ave, Oakland
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Lake Merritt Institute
Join Lake Merritt Institute for an Earth Day litter cleanup along the shoreline and in the waters of Lake Merritt. Volunteers will help remove trash from the lake and surrounding areas to protect wildlife, improve water quality, and support a healthier environment for all who enjoy this beloved urban refuge.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9:30 AM - 1:00 PM
Where: Lake Merritt Sail Boat House Beach, 568 Bellevue Ave, Oakland
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Garber Park Stewards
Spotlight: Garber Park Stewards
Join Garber Park Stewards for an Earth Day volunteer event focused on debris cleanup, weeding, and filling a dumpster with green waste. Light snacks will be provided. Volunteer days help restore Garber Park’s natural habitat for native species and support a more fire-safe environment for all.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9am to 12 pm
Where: Garber Park (meeting at the Evergreen Lane entrance)
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: Friends of Joaquin Miller
Join Friends of Joaquin Miller Park for an Earth Day Work Day! Volunteer tasks tasks will include Weeding and cleaning the Woodminster Cascade and gardens.
This is part of the part of the Friends of Joaquin Miller Park's effort to maintain this 1937 Works Progress Administration (WPA) project, which is a jewel in Oakland's crown nestled in the redwoods.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 9am to 12 pm
Where: Meet at the Woodminster Cascade, Joaquin Miller Park
Sign Up Here!
Photo Credit: California Writers Club
Join the California Writers Club for a drop-in outdoor Write-In at Joaquin Miller Park! Bring a notebook or laptop - or just sign a postcard- and enjoy a quiet, generative writing session between 10 AM and 1 PM. Writing is encouraged as a form of activism, expression, and joy. (Bring a picnic!)
Writers will share their work at 12 PM. Stay after to connect with others and hear poet Nazelah Jameson speak from 1:00–3:00 PM.
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Time: 10 AM and 1 PM
Where: Joaquin Miller Park
Photo Credit: Splash Pad Grand Crew
Join the Splash Pad Grand Crew to clean up Splash Pad Park! Volunteer tasks will include weeding, pruning, planting and litter removal. As has become a tradition, the annual Earth Day celebration is co-hosted by the Beatie Street Preschool. Children are welcome but under 12 years of age must be under adult supervision.
Date: Sunday, April 20th
Time: 9 am to 12 pm
Where: Splash Pad Plaza
Frontline Catalysts invites you to a Community Action and Wellness Celebration at UFSA/Life Academy and Peralta Hacienda Park!
Come help restore our neighborhoods, connect with others, and celebrate our collective commitment to a just and sustainable future. At Frontline Catalysts, we see Earth Day as a time to honor the deep connection our communities have with the land, water, and one another. For generations, communities of color have cared for the earth in ways that reflect resilience, creativity, and love.
Volunteers can participate in a park clean up, weeding, gardening, planting of creek vegetation, and creek beautification.
This Earth Day Celebration is Wednesday, April 23rd and has two locations:
UFSA/Life Academy
Date: Wednesday, April 23rd
Time: 12:30 - 2 pm
Where: UFSA/Life Academy, 2101 35th Ave, Oakland
Sign up Here!
Peralta Hacienda Park
Date: Wednesday, April 23rd
Time: 1:30 - 5 pm
Where: Peralta Hacienda Park, 2465 34th Ave, Oakland
Sign up Here!
Photo Credit: High Street Coalition
Join High Street Coalition to help clean the area around High Street and 580 clean and support hyper-local beautification projects. There will be a brief volunteer orientation first so volunteers and neighbors can meet each other, then we clean! Garbage bags and sanitized vests, gloves and trash pickers are provided.
Date: Saturday, April 26th
Time: 8:30 am to 10:30 pm
Where: High Street and Redding, Oakland 400 Perkins St, Oakland
(Walgreens Parking Lot)
Want to volunteer? Please email highstreetcoalition@gmail.com
Photo Credit: Friends of Sausal Creek
Spotlight: Friends of Sausal Creek
Friends of Sausal Creek (FOSC) is dedicated to conserving, restoring, and enhancing the Sausal Creek Watershed through education, community involvement in environmental stewardship, and collaboration with agencies and nonprofits. FOSC actively supports Oakland's biodiversity and strives towards a climate-resilient future
Volunteer with Friends of Sausal Creek and partners for an Earth Day restoration weekend to ensure the health and vitality of Sausal Creek and Oakland parks for future generations. There are a variety of service opportunities for all skill levels that span locations across the watershed:
Dimond Park/Canyon - Saturday, April 19, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Wood Park - Saturday, April 19, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Beaconsfield Canyon- Saturday, April 19, 9 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Bridgeview Trailhead- Sunday, April 20, 9 - 11 a.m.
Monterey Redwoods - Sunday, April 20, 2 - 5 p.m.
More details and and sign up here.
Photo Credit: Trash Falcons
Join Trash Falcons for an Earth Day Cleanup! Trash Falcons help clean up Adams Point, Lakeside Park, and Lake Merritt. All are welcome - kids, families, dogs, solo volunteers, or groups. All clean up gear provided. Stay for 10 minutes or the full 90-minute mission!
Date: Sunday, April 20th
Time: 9am to 10:30 pm
Where: 400 Perkins St, Oakland
Photo Credit: Oakland Zoo
Join Oakland Zoo for a Hands-On Earth Day Volunteer Event!
Celebrate Earth Day by giving back to nature at Oakland Zoo’s Arroyo Viejo Creek restoration site. This hands-on volunteer event is a great way to make a real impact right in your community!
Volunteers will help restore wildlife habitat by removing invasive plants, picking up litter, spreading mulch, planting native species, and more. All tools and guidance will be provided, and no experience is necessary.
Spots may fill quickly, so sign up soon to lend a hand for the planet!
Date: Saturday, April 19th
Times:
Where: Oakland Zoo’s Arroyo Viejo Creek
About Us
Our Mission & History
OPRF champions environmental equity, community access, and public investment in Oakland’s parks. Learn about our origins, milestones, and impact.
Our Leadership
Meet the dedicated staff and board members behind OPRF’s work.
Our Pillars
Environmental Equity
Education, Sports, and Culture
Community Stewardship
Advocacy
