Island of Iz -- Fishermen in the Village of Mali Iz fold their nets. The island which used to contain 2,500 people, is now home to only a few hundred because of emigration and the Croatian civil war. Residents of the tiny rocky island mostly grow their own produce and sell olive oil to inhabitants of neighboring islands. The Light sent reporter David Rolland and photographer Janine Collins to Switzerland and Croatia in April and May to research two of the five historic waves of ethnic immigration to West Marin. Others were from Ireland, Portugal's Azore Islands, and the Mexican state of Jalisco.

Map of the Balkins (44k gif)

Croats made Tomales Bay a fishing center

Inverness Park resident provides relief in Balkans

History of conflict in the Balkans

Villager from Iz epitomizes US link to the Balkans

A reporter's notebook: taken into custody