Taking Action for Living Systems

Taking Action for Living Systems (TALS) is a fiscally sponsored organization by Inquiring Systems Inc., a registered 501(c)(3). TALS was founded in 2017 and is a professional collaboration working to establish an innovative, enterprise-based approach to reduce wildfire hazards, increase climate change resilience, and improve forest health in California’s North Bay Region. TALS is founded on the principle that an effective response to environmental and social challenges must come from ‘valuing nature’ -- a purposeful blending of what’s good for nature and what’s good for people. 

The central tenet of the TALS enterprise approach is the development of “Natural Enterprise Complexes” (NECs). These entities are spatially discrete geographic areas, containing a unique mix of living systems and their related ‘benefit sheds’ and where common wildfire hazards and risks and forest stewardship requirements are identified, implemented, governed, and financed. Creating the NECs requires an alignment of, and cooperation among, landowners, local government agencies, community interests, enterprises, service providers and beneficiaries—with a common objective of coordinating and expanding efforts for reducing wildfire risk and improving landscape health. As a complement to the formation of individual NECs, TALS advocates for expansion of regional natural enterprises, seeks supporting institutional and governance changes, and promotes investment in infrastructure, business services, job growth, and training and placement programs.