George Poinar, Jr. has visited dune habitats around the world, beginning with his early years examining plants along the Massachusetts seashore. He began his Pacific Coast dune studies in southern California in 1962 while working at the University of California, Riverside. In 1965, a move to UC Berkeley allowed him to research the northern California dune forests and wetlands. After retiring to Oregon in 1995, he continued studying plant communities in the dune forests and wetlands of Oregon and Washington. Throughout his studies, he collaborated with numerous specialists (listed in the acknowledgments) for assistance in identifying the many life forms encountered.