Bay Area Green Tours 501 (c) 3 serves as a conduit to solutions for a more sustainable future and a bridge from the past to all new possibilities.The fundamental idea of Bay Area Green Tours arose from a fourth grade field trip to a waste water treatment plant in New York City which our Founding Executive Director, Marissa LaMagna, attended. She couldn’t help but wonder: “Where does all the waste go”?
Ever since Marissa has been an ambitious environmentalist trying to make the proactive changes we need to ensure the health and well being of our shared planet and future generations. In 2008, Marissa began a project of The San Francisco Green Festival, named Bay Area Green Tours which has grown by now into an educational organization showcasing local green models focused on creating a positive and sustainable future.
We provide educational tours and events that demonstrate the sustainable economy in action, inspire support of local green businesses, and empower people to incorporate 
environmental responsibility and social justice into their personal and professional lives.
Suzy Karasik, Tour Manager/Sales Manager
Suzy’s been involved and supported Bay Area Green Tours since its inception. She brings to the organization decades of experience in a variety of fields, including Secondary School Teacher, Convention Services and Event Planning, Hi-tech Business Development, Somatic Education, Nutrition, Permaculture Design, international humanitarian work, and teaching about sustainability and preserving our precious Mother Earth. An avid activist and community organizer, Suzy also volunteers with the Pachamama Alliance as a Symposium Leader, Bay Area Integral, and Beyond the Culture of Separation, a program for white-identified people committed to changing the story of separation. Suzy is passionate about bringing BAGT’s eye opening tours into the corporate arena. She wholeheartedly believes that educating people about successful green business ventures in our own communities is a vital and powerful experience that needs to be known, shared and appreciated.
Here is a link to our student tours
Our Tours Topics include:
Green Business/Economy, Food & Agriculture, Solutions & Resources for the Future as well as diverse Locations.
At Bay Area Green Tours our mission is to turn our attention to positive solutions that bring to light amazing projects and people that are illuminating a path forward with innovation, passion and solutions.
Here’s a great article about us!
What I’ve seen today is the ability of small business owners to bring their personal values and their sustainable values to bear on the community and the marketplace. Coming from a corporate background, this is refreshing to see.” Amy Barr- Former consultant to the financial banking industry:
I learned a lot of things that I can apply to my business . . . The whole Green Tour was very inspiring and the level of commitment of the people running the businesses and organizations is very impressive. It’s nice to see the ideas in practice.” Robert Akiyama – Berkeley-based architect
“The Green Tour is really inspiring. I thought I was pretty knowledgeable, but I learned a lot. The tour is really the cutting edge . . . teaching us all a new eco-literacy, a new vocabulary, a whole new way of being in the world.” – Jeff Ritterman, Retired Cardiologist, Richmond City Council Member
“The tours are lively, upbeat, spirited, information-rich, and inspiring. In a relatively brief period, you get to visit some of the cutting edge sustainability enterprises in the country, and meet and talk with their operators. – Mark McLeod, Executive Director, Sustainable Business Alliance
“The Bay Area is a hotbed of ideas and experiments in sustainability. Green Tours are a fun, quick way to gain an insider’s peek at a wide variety of successful operations. The tours provide a jolt of inspiration, which will leave you excited for the future and committed to playing a role in the revolution!” – Amy Kiser, Program Director of The Ecology Center, Berkeley
“I loved the ambitious, varied nature of your itinerary, the high quality of all invited guests, and the breadth and depth of your commentary.”
– Jill Valenti, Realtor, Mill Valley
“What a day of pleasant surprises! We toured Green Restaurants, Solar Powered buildings, Community Gardens, and went to a show Room of Green Cars. It was an education in the broad scope of sustainability where I experienced first hand a full spectrum of Green Businesses, led by knowledgeable and entertaining Tour leaders. It was a lot of fun.”
– Jean Sturges, Insurance Broker
“I had a blast! Lots of fun and great to see some of these businesses I did not know.” – Rauly Butler, Senior Vice President, Mechanics Bank