Los Angeles’ last wetland, a nearly 600-acre site north of Los Angeles International Airport, is called Ballona, pronounced: Bah-Yo-Nuh. Inside Ballona is an audio-visual research project that explores the marsh's vital role in battling climate change.
The Tongva people called the Ballona Wetlands their ancestral land Waachnga or Pwinukipar, meaning "full of water.”
In the Ballona Wetlands, freshwater from sources like rain runoff or underground water mixes with salty ocean water. These areas create unique zones, where plants and animals that thrive in both freshwater and saltwater environments can live.
Marshlands function as nature’s recycling center: They remove harmful substances such as pollutants and recycle vital nutrients to help plants grow and sustain diverse ecosystems.
Inside Ballona Waachnga aims to raise awareness of the urgency of preserving endangered urban areas. Scientists, artists, and researchers from various fields are all welcome to join in.
“We are training each other in acts of communication we barely understand. We are, constitutively, companion species.”
Donna Haraway, The Companion Species Manifesto: Dogs, People, and Significant Otherness
Back in 2015, I started my journey with plants in Iceland. Fast forward to when I moved to Los Angeles, and came across the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve, which happened to be the last marshy area in the city, right next to my Venice home.
As I explored this urban oasis, I found myself captivated by the plants and pollinators living there, like the Yellow-Faced Bumble Bee or the California Poppy. I started taking photos and digging into why wetlands matter so much for our planet’s health.
The project has grown and is now hosted by Halina Kliem in Los Angeles, California.
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