What your City Council Candidates' Opinion is on Saving Our Owls

California 501c3 nonprofits cannot endorse candidates, but we can ask and relay information from the candidates about their opinion on issues they can influence that affect us, so here is the email I sent all of Mountain View's City Council 2026 candidates:

"I'm Aisha, the organizer of The Guardian Project, which is our community-led, grass-roots effort to save the burrowing owls in Shoreline Park through habitat enhancement in collaboration with the City of Mountain View.

If you don't already know, the burrowing owl is the only species of owl who lives underground, worldwide. It's become endangered primarily due to habitat loss from human land development. While I was employed by Google in 2016, I started helping Phil Higgins, who was employed as a full-time biologist for the City, by doing "habitat enhancement" for Google's annual "Google Serve" month. This is where we weed invasive non-native plants that can outcompete our native plants, which are better at increasing the prey-base the burrowing owls need to consume to survive. Together, over 8 years, we increased the population of burrowing owls in Shoreline Park until it was the highest population in all of Santa Clara County, but then the City removed Phil the summer of 2024, and the part-time biologist he'd hired quit. The owls' numbers dropped dramatically because, even though my habitat enhancement project continues, the biologists were doing many other projects alongside our collaboration, including supplemental feeding and juvenile overwintering programs. After organizing for us to speak at multiple City Council and Commission meetings over the last 2 years, Parks & Rec has finally agreed to hire 1 full-time biologist back by the end of the year.

As you can see from this table, when Phil was removed (July 2024), there is a sharp drop in the number of owls compared to previous years, but then, after we spoke at City Council in April of this year, when the contract biologists who've been providing this count got approved for a HUGE pay increase despite the plummeting number of owls, those numbers have MYSTERIOUSLY stabilized. HMM.

I summarize our issues with getting support from the City for saving our owls because the community wants to save our owls and City Council could be an ally in helping us do so.

As such, I would like to supply our community with additional information about the candidates they'll be voting on, so do you mind sharing your answer to this one question?"

It is:

Do you support prioritizing increasing the number of burrowing owls in Shoreline Park?

Here are their answers, relayed for you in a clear and clean table like the Mountain View Voice did:

Alexander Amoroso

The Guardian Project represents not just the social values of our community with protecting wildlife, but they also stand parallel with local, state, national, and international groups and agencies when it comes to bringing back our endangered species and further protecting their population growth. 

In my capacity, I have worked with US Fish and Wildlife, the Army Corps of Engineers, CalEPA and the Mountain View Fire and Environmental Protection Division on projects that shore us up against the affects of climate change, combat poachers that specifically go after our endangered bird species in the area, and overall protection and growth of our important biodiversity, and how the community around can better interact with it. 

I have already served, and will continue to serve, and protect the endangered species of our area, the Burrowing Owl, the California Ridgeway Rail, Least Bell's Virelo and Tricolored Blackbird (all subject to poaching), as well as the Salt Marsh Harvest Mouse, the San Joaquin Kit Fox, The California Red-legged Frog and Tiger Salamander, who are all at risk due to drastic climate change and habitat displacement. I support, and look forward to collaborating, with the Guardian Project on protections of our environment and wildlife.

I hope you find this helpful in choosing who to vote for, and please do vote!