Hernandez’s family originally immigrated to Los Angeles from Mexico, settling in the San Fernando Valley. The natural world was always one that fascinated him. “As a kid, I watched a lot of the National Geographic and Discovery Channels. I’d see these famous environmentalists, conservationists, and biologists exploring the world and talking about environmental issues." Hernandez studied environmental science at UC Berkeley and fell in love with environmentalism. Here, he shares his favorite parts of the Valley—plus a few spots outside it—most with a connection to nature.
Southern California, California
- Favorite place to eat in SoCal: Follow Your Heart Market and Cafe. It was established back in the 1970s by three young friends and they had this vision to provide foods that were organic, nutritious, and delicious to the larger community. They were also environmentalists. I love going there for their vegan Alfredo pasta with kale. It's really cool to see that kind of restaurant in the Valley where it’s sort of a food desert. And the Cafe has always maintained their mission to provide plant-based products.
- Best kept SoCal secret: The Japanese Tea Garden near Lake Balboa. It’s actually very weird how to get there. When you get into the park, you enter this hilly area, and you have to go through this peculiar gate, and you're thinking, There's nothing up here. The garden is shared with the Donald C. Tillman Water Reclamation Plant; that's where they recycle our wastewater. But the Japanese Garden is on the left side of it, and it's actually a very rich place. Ponds and lakes occupy a significant portion of the space. It’s a hidden gem in the Valley because no one would figure that it exists. Actually, I didn't even know about it growing up. And then this year, I found it.
- I love SoCal because.... it has a Mediterranean climate. It’s characterized by a lot of dry summers, slightly rainy winters, and moderate temperatures. You have mountains, beaches, deserts, and forests. It’s very rare to find an environment with the best of all the four main ecosystems around you. The Mediterranean climate also coincides with sunnier days, and sunnier days means people being happier!
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18111 Nordhoff Street, Los Angeles
MON-FRI:8AM-5PM
SAT-SUN:CLOSED
The first stop on Hernandez’s tour is the campus of Cal State University, Northridge. “They have an orange grove and a pond on five acres of land. And the grove has more than 400 trees. It really provides this sense of tranquility. The grove was around before the university, but the university kept it. And so today, when you go, you can relax around the pond and see the ducks and the little turtles—and you can also harvest oranges.”
15151 San Fernando Mission Boulevard, Los Angeles
CHECK OUT A HISTORIC MISSION
Hernandez next recommends a visit to the Mission San Fernando Rey de España as an interesting part of the Valley’s history. “The Convento [used as a guest house for the Mission] is one of the largest adobe buildings in California,” he says. “We know that California missions have a history of perpetuating a lot of violence and harm towards indigenous communities. Today, you can visit and learn more about the history and design of the building—even how it was able to sustain itself because in the 1970s it suffered a lot of damage from an earthquake and they were able to fix it. And then outside of the Mission, there's a little square and a lot of Latin populations will photograph their daughters there for their quinceañeras. It’s been used for weddings. So there’s a very rich celebration of culture there.”
To get around town, Hernandez has a fun suggestion: the San Fernando Trolley.
“You can catch it at Library Plaza—that’s one of the 28 stops along the San Fernando Valley—and right now, it’s free to ride! It spins you around the neighborhood, to the shopping centers, the school, there's a flea market, and it runs daily. It’s a very cute aspect of history.”
13000 Sayre Street, Sylmar
TAKE A WALK
Escape from the urban bustle with a walk in Veterans Memorial Regional Community Park. “On one side of the park, there's a popular hiking trail called the Veteran’s Park Trail,” says Hernandez. “It’s great because a lot of people in the Valley don't have that many green spaces to be in. There’s also a small river, a lot of wildlife, and it's just a little hidden gem for a lot of people who live there.”
10820 Ventura Boulevard, Studio City
MON-SUN:8AM-11.30PM
GET SOME LUNCH
For lunch, depart the Valley and head to Studio City to SunCafe, an organic vegan restaurant that Hernandez likes. “It's won many awards, and they use food that's GMO free. What’s really cool is that you can dine inside or out; they have an outside garden. I personally love it because it's kind of a hole in the wall restaurant, but it's known in a lot of vegan spaces.”
From the Ground Up: Nurturing Diversity in Hostile Environments
LEARN AND GROW
The next destination is Pasadena, where you’ll be making two art stops. The first is at the Armory for the Arts to see the PST ART exhibit, From the Ground Up: Nurturing Diversity in Hostile Environments. In it, 17 contemporary artists consider what happens when food supply chains are disrupted, as well as the power of one of the smallest elements in nature: the seed. The exhibit appeals to Hernandez’s interest in plants, foraging, and urban gardens. “When I lived in New Jersey,” he says, “I had my own composting [system]. I don't have it here in LA because I have an apartment, but I really care about these smaller things that residents can do. Like, knowing your neighbor and harvesting free fruit and creating a free fruit system in your city. That's so cool to see.”
145 North Raymond Avenue, Pasadena
MON-SUN:8AM-6PM
Pasadena is also home to another of Hernandez’s favorite gardens: “Arlington Garden is three acres,” he says, “and it's on land owned by the California Department of Transportation, which is cool. They lease it to the city of Pasadena and, basically, it's a public space for, like, birds, bees, and butterflies…for the rehabilitation of different species. I love that it gives back to the community and understands the importance of having green spaces.”
Storm Cloud: Picturing the Origins of Our Climate Crisis
The Huntington Library, Art Museum, & Botanical Garden is hosting the second exhibition to check out, Storm Cloud: Picturing the Origins of Our Climate Crisis, which looks back at 19th century works of art and their depictions of industrialization and a global economy. The Huntington is also the site for a related event, the Huntington Sustainable CHANGES Youth Summit. Using Storm Cloud’s themes as a jumping off point, high school students will come together to brainstorm possible climate change solutions. “Anything environmentally related that brings together the larger community?” says Hernandez. “Yes, please.”
[Editor's note: The Huntington is also home to one of the most beautiful botanical gardens in the world. Yes. The world!]
Brackish Water Los Angeles
The last stop on Hernandez’s tour is a bit of a journey—to CSU Dominguez Hills Art Gallery—but it touches on water ecology, also an issue important to him. Brackish Water Los Angeles studies how urban environments have affected—and often contaminated—local water sources and the communities they serve. It also offers hope on how we may revive and use these often beautiful urban waterways. “I love the LA River,” Hernandez says. “I did an episode on it [for my web series] and a lot of my community loved it; I interviewed an urban ecologist and there are really cool facts about that area. So I'm so glad for any opportunity for young people to learn about the river.”
