The Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Center
Promoting the conservation and restoration of the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes ecosystem through education, research, and the support of cooperative stewardship.
Tuesday-Sunday 10am-4pm
1055 Guadalupe Street, Guadalupe, CA 93434
Tel. 805.343.2455
Fax 805.343.0442
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Olivier Fourie


The Dunes Center in Guadalupe, CA

Museums and Other Organizations:

Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes National Wildlife Refuge

Guadalupe Cultural Arts and Education Center

Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History

Land Conservancy of San Luis Obispo County

California Native Plant Society

Morro Bay State Park Museum of Natural History

The Nature Conservancy

Sierra Club

California State Parks

San Luis Obispo Botanical Garden

San Luis Obispo County Historical Society

Dunes Collaborative

Guadalupe Speaks

Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens

Santa Maria Museum of Natural History

Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum

Dana Adobe

The Dunes Center's Olivier Fourie Research Library

The Olivier Fourie Research Library is the Dunes Center’s research library housing documents, books, articles, and journals all dealing with the Guadalupe-Nipomo Dunes Complex or other dunes complexes around the world.

The mission of the Olivier Fourie Research Library is to enhance the understanding and preservation of the Guadalupe-Nipomo dunes ecosystem by providing access to library and research services.

Housed in the Dunes Center ’s 1910 American Craftsman house, the library offers a place to conduct research, write, and study with access to research tools, resources and staff.

Olivier was born in South San Francisco, the youngest of five children of French immigrants. He served in World War II as a cryptographer for the Army Air Force and was stationed in England. Returning home he earned a B.S. in political science from Santa Clara University, received teacher training from San Jose State University and became a junior high teacher in South San Francisco. He earned his M.A. in Education at San Francisco State University, and served as an administrator and assistant superintendent with the South San Francisco Unified School District.

In 1952 he married Gloria Muncey of San Mateo. Favorite family outings with their three daughters and son included trips to California beaches. Olivier was a life-long educator who enjoyed working with people and enriching their lives.

Gloria Fourie and her family’s vision for a fitting memorial is a natural sciences library. Their support makes possible the Dunes Center Research Library.

The Olivier Fourie Research Library commemorates Olivier’s love of the beaches of California and his love of learning. With the development of this resource center, researchers and visitors of all ages can learn more about the wonders of this magnificent natural environment and the importance of preserving it.

The library is focused on subjects such as flora, fauna, geology, history, conservation, and interpretation:

Books
Journal articles
Dissertations
Technical reports
GIS data
Private/Personal papers and letters
Newspaper clippings
Wildlife inventories
Multi-media