California native, Jo Ruggles grew up riding the hills and shoreline of Malibu and free diving for Pismo clams and abalone at Pt. Dume. “I remember fishing in the Malibu Creek with my dad when I was a child.” she said in the documentary, Malibu Creek and Its Surrounding Watershed. As a founding Director of Save Our Coast and Malibu Dolphin Watch, she worked with the late Malibu Environmentalist, Mary Frampton to clean up the pollution of Malibu Lagoon and Malibu’s coastal waters to protect Malibu’s dolphins and other sea creatures, and worked on the Malibu Marine Sanctuary legislation. She was a supporter of cityhood, was chair of the Malibu Wastewater Study Group for six years and assisted in the preparation of the 1992 Malibu Wastewater Management Study. She was a member of the General Plan Task Force that drafted Malibu’s General Plan, and she served on the Local Coastal Plan committee during the drafting of Malibu’s Local Coastal Plan. She has been a staunch, lifelong advocate for protecting Malibu’s fragile environment and maintaining its rural quality of life. She has been in leadership roles as chair of the Malibu Planning Commission, and is currently a board member of the Malibu Township Council and President of the Malibu Trails Association.
