In partnership with California State Parks and the Nevada County Library, the monthly Sierra Speaker Series connects folks to the rich cultural and natural history of the area. Join us at Donner Memorial State Park Visitor Center to learn and engage! Doors open at 5 pm, and the presentation is to follow at 5:30 pm. Admission is a suggested $5 donation. Light refreshments will be available. Parking is free after 5 pm. No registration required.

Sugar pine is known as the King of Pines for its size and the beauty of its giant pine cones. Sugar pines used to be about 25% of the local forests but are less than 5% now. This is due to historic logging, fire suppression which favors other species, and a non-native invasive fungus called White Pine Blister Rust. Come learn about the effort to bring back sugar pines to Tahoe!

Maria Mircheva first volunteered to climb trees for the Sugar Pine Foundation in 2006. In 2007 after the Angora Fire, Maria took over the daily operation and became the Executive Director. For the past 18 years, she organized the planting of over 250,000 trees. Maria holds a BA in Business Economics and a Master's in Environmental Science from UC Santa Barbara.