Net Zero Accelerator (NZA) Annual Demo Day 2026
2026-01-29 12:00 - 14:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Online
The NZA accelerates the adoption of impactful solutions in the built environment. The program helps growth-stage companies de-risk their offerings, align with market needs, and implement technologies through pilot projects across our community.
This year’s event will be virtual and will feature a keynote speaker, a panel discussion with investment partners, and live demonstrations of the 2025 cohort’s innovations in short form. This interactive format allows for facilitated and lively discussion throughout the program.
Demo Day highlights solutions from our newest cohort along with milestone updates from NZA alumni dating back to our 2019 inaugural year. The 2025 companies are advancing critical technologies that address the most pressing challenges in the built environment.
REGISTER HERE

Free Food from UCLA Dining Halls!
2026-01-29 22:00, 2026-02-10 22:00, 2026-02-11 22:00, 2026-02-12 22:00, 2026-02-18 22:00, 2026-02-19 22:00, 2026-02-24 22:00, 2026-02-25 22:00 | Conference Room 1 in the Student Activities Center Basement, 220 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
Join Bruin Dine for food recovery events every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday at 10PM in the SAC Basement (unless otherwise announced)! Please bring your own tupperware and utensils!
Follow https://www.instagram.com/uclabruindine/ for additional updates!

Future Foods @ UCLA, Words Matter: Communicating Science and Policy
2026-01-30 14:00 - 16:00 | UCLA Mildred E Mathias Botanical Garden, La Kretz Garden Pavilion, 707 Tiverton Dr, Los Angeles, CA, 90095
Join future food experts Jack Bobo, Janet Tomiyama, and Michael Roberts for a conversation moderated by David Welch as they discuss effective communication strategies for translating the science and real-life applicability of novel foods.
REGISTER HERE

Shigeru Ban at The Hammer - Talk and Book Signing
2026-01-30 19:30 - 21:30 | Billy Wilder Theater, 10899 Wilshire Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, United States
Shigeru Ban stands as one of contemporary architecture’s most radical humanists, fusing structural innovation with profound social commitment. A 2014 Pritzker Prize laureate, Ban pioneered the structural use of recycled cardboard tubes, beginning in the mid-1980s with exhibition designs and evolving into disaster relief architecture deployed across five continents. His Paper Log Houses, first realized for Vietnamese refugees after the 1995 Kobe earthquake, exemplify architecture’s capacity for urgent social response. The 2013 Cardboard Cathedral in Christchurch—at 79 feet tall—demonstrates how “temporary” materials can achieve civic monumentality and community permanence. Ban’s philosophy, “I don’t like waste,” encapsulates his practice—transforming material economy into architectural poetry while maintaining unwavering commitment to humanitarian crises from Rwanda to Ukraine.
Shigeru Ban will be available for a book signing after the talk. Copies of Shigeru Ban: Timber in Architecture (Rizzoli) and Shigeru Ban. Complete Works 1985–Today (Taschen) will be available to purchase at the Hammer Store between 11am – 8pm and, supply depending, outside the theater after the talk. Book purchase does not guarantee entry.
Ticketing: Admission is free. Your seat will be assigned to you when you pick up your ticket at the box office. Seats are assigned on a first come, first served basis, limit one per visitor. Box office opens one hour before the event.
MORE EVENT INFO HERE

Time Series Foundation Models (TSFMs) for Carbon-Aware Research and Sustainability
2026-02-02 10:00 - 12:00 | HYBRID – OARC Portal MS 5628 and Online, 5628 Math Science Building
This hybrid workshop will introduce the UCLA research community to the emerging class of Time Series Foundation Models (TSFMs) and their application to sustainability challenges such as electricity grid carbon intensity forecasting. Participants will gain hands-on experience with TSFM frameworks, open-source datasets (e.g., ElectricityMaps), and computational tools designed to enable accurate, generalizable forecasting without requiring extensive region-specific data. The workshop will emphasize reproducible workflows, integration with high-performance computing, and the potential for interdisciplinary applications across energy, environment, and policy domains.
MORE INFO HERE
REGISTER HERE

WEBINAR - Water Knows No Borders: Transboundary Water Sources in the Middle East
2026-02-03 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
This event is part of the UCLA Younes and Soraya Nazarian Center for Israel Studies series “Scientific and Environmental Diplomacy.”
Join a webinar with Professor Eilon Adar, who will be discussing the significance of integrated water management between nations in the Middle East, and how this reality can either be a trigger for conflict or a catalyst for cooperation. Professor Emeritus Adar is founder of the Zuckerberg Institute for Water Research at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev.
MORE INFO HERE
REGISTER HERE
After registering, you will be emailed an RSVP confirmation. If you do not receive your email confirmation, please check your spam or junk mail folders.

Defensa contra Incendios para Profesionales de la Construcción
2026-02-04 15:00 - 17:30 | Online
El Programa de Capacitación para la Certificación en Defensa contra Incendios Forestales de USGBC-CA fue desarrollado para educar a profesionales de la construcción y paisajistas en cómo reforzar mejor los hogares y paisajes contra incendios a través del uso de materiales, prácticas de mantenimiento y diseños adaptados para reducir el riesgo de daños por fuego. La intención de esta capacitación es preparar el camino para que el mercado privado impulse la adopción de mejores prácticas contra incendios y genere un cambio cultural dentro de la industria de la construcción.
La capacitación destaca recursos existentes e incluye un pequeño grupo de asesores diversos en prevención de incendios, diseño de edificios y paisajismo para fomentar la conciencia y transferir conocimientos sobre las mejores prácticas líderes en la industria para reducir el riesgo de incendios en hogares y paisajes.
RSVP HERE

Fire Tender: Documentary Screening and Discussion
2026-02-10 12:15 - 13:15 | Center for the Study of Women, 1500 Public Affairs
An exploration and discussion on Indigenous fire stewardship
Join the UCLA Center for the Study of Women | Streisand Center for a screening of the short film Fire Tender, directed by Roni Jo Draper (Yurok) and Marissa Lila, followed by a discussion.
Fire Tender tells the story of Yurok tribal members returning to traditional fire practices as an essential form of land stewardship. The film centers on Margo Robbins—grandmother, cultural educator, healer, and Indigenous fire practitioner—who is leading efforts to restore Yurok fire sovereignty: the right to use fire for tribal land care, a practice outlawed under settler colonial policies. Through her work, Robbins challenges more than a century of environmentally destructive anti-fire policies that have endangered Yurok lands and restricted access to the natural resources necessary for clean water, food, and traditional lifeways.
The screening highlights Indigenous-led efforts to reintroduce prescribed fire as an essential land management tool, connecting environmental health, cultural continuance and climate resilience in fire-adapted landscapes.
Seating is first come, first served. No registration required.
Attendees are welcome to bring their lunch for the 30-minute screening and discussion to follow.
Learn more about the film. This event is part of programming for Thinking Gender 2026: “Feminist & Queer Ecologies.” Register for the conference.

100 Lecture Series LIVESTREAM: L.A. From the Viewpoint of A Walker with Alissa Walker
2026-02-11 10:30 - 11:45 | Online
Perloff Lecture Series on 100 Years of Transportation Research
Presented by UCLA Urban Planning and UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies
L.A. From the Viewpoint of A Walker
Alissa Walker has been observing Los Angeles as a pedestrian and journalist since before Twitter existed. How people learn about their community has changed, and Alissa now works on a newsletter and podcast to inform Angelenos about transportation, housing, urban design, and governance. Her project Torched.LA covers the civic investments and policy decisions that Los Angeles is making in preparation for its megaevent-hosting era.
WATCH THE TALK LIVESTREAM HERE
ALISSA WALKER is a writer based in Los Angeles where she has covered transportation, housing, urban design, public space, and environmental policy for two decades. She edits the newsletter Torched, which tracks the legacy improvements that LA is making for the 2028 Summer Olympics. Alissa is the 2021 recipient of the Steven Heller Prize for Cultural Commentary for her writing on design and urbanism, and played herself on the traffic safety episode of Adam Conover’s show Adam Ruins Everything, “Adam Ruins a Murder.” She lives in L.A.’s Historic Filipinotown neighborhood, where she is the co-host of LA Podcast, an avid ice cream consumer, and a mom to the city’s two most enthusiastic public transit riders.

100 Lecture Series LIVESTREAM: Investing in Sidewalks and Streets with Jessica Meaney
2026-02-18 10:30 - 11:45 | Online
Perloff Lecture Series on 100 Years of Transportation Research
Presented by UCLA Urban Planning and UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies
Investing in Sidewalks and Streets
Jessica Meaney is the Executive Director of Investing in Place. Investing in Place imagines a Los Angeles that cares for its sidewalks, streets, and parks as everyday expressions of dignity, equity, and belonging. Public spaces are planned and maintained as the foundation of community life, where investment and care reach every neighborhood.
Jessica has professional experience in Los Angeles, spanning transportation planning for safe streets, administration of philanthropic grants, and management of mission-driven organizations.

WATCH THE TALK LIVESTREAM HERE

JESSICA MEANEY is the founder and executive director of Investing in Place, a leading voice for reimagining Los Angeles’ public realm—sidewalks, streets, and infrastructure. For two decades, Jessica has led efforts in LA to promote inclusive decision-making and equitable resource allocation in public works and transportation funding to create accessible and well maintained public spaces that enhance quality of life.

On-Campus Farmers Market
2026-02-18 13:30 - 16:30 | Bruin Plaza, 308 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
Come grab some fresh produce and bread in Bruin Plaza.

2026 City of Calabasas Environmental Forum: “Butterflies in Bloom”
2026-02-19 18:00 - 20:00 | Founder’s Hall, 200 Civic Center Way, Calabasas, CA, 91304, United States
The City of Calabasas Environmental Commission invites the community to the 2026 Annual Environmental Forum: “Butterflies in Bloom”, a public forum on pollinators, biodiversity and local conservation efforts. Admission is free and open to all.
The City of Calabasas hosts an annual public Environmental Forum, organized by the Environmental Commission, to engage the community on pressing and relevant environmental topics. This event typically occurs in February and features expert panels, educational exhibits, and opportunities for public participation.

February Beach Cleanup | Santa Monica Beach
2026-02-21 09:00 - 12:00 | Lifeguard Tower 20 Santa Monica, 20 Bicknell Ave, Santa Monica, CA, 90401, United States
Join this upcoming monthly beach cleanup at Santa Monica Beach, Lifeguard Tower #20. All events will take place from 9AM – 12PM.
REGISTER HERE

Vertical Gardening Workshop with Dr. James Bassett
2026-02-21 10:00 - 11:30 | jane b semel Healthy Campus Initiative Community Garden, Sunset Canyon Recreation Center, 111 Easton Dr, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, United States
Take a break from the rain and join a workshop on Vertical Gardening, led by Dr. James Bassett. Learn more about how to integrate trellises, hanging planters, and other space-saving methods into your garden!
REGISTER HERE

UCLA Climate Action Plan Town Hall
2026-02-23 18:00 - 19:00 | Online
UCLA has completed a Decarbonization Study, funded by the State of California, to develop and analyze strategies for a 90 percent or greater reduction in scope 1 emissions from fossil gas use in campus energy systems. Based on the results of this study, UCLA is now engaged in developing an updated Climate Action Plan (CAP) which integrates the recommendations of the study.
The draft Climate Action Plan was submitted to UCOP in December 2025 and can be viewed at this link – Draft UCLA Climate Action Plan. Feedback on the plan is welcome by Friday March 27 through this form: https://forms.gle/JcCYqQrApea9sa4v7. UCLA Sustainability is also hosting Town Halls for students and staff where you can learn more about the draft updated Climate Action Plan, starting on Monday, February 23rd.
Link to Presentation Recording (use passcode: [REDACTED]
For an overview presentation about the plan, please see this recording of the briefing given the UCLA Executive Sustainability Committee in November, 2025.
Additional Climate Action Plan Town Hall sessions

Wednesday February 25, 6pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/oej5i8inR0C2N-A2WCgZCw
Thursday February 26,12pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/iUlvBn_qR0Gf9buH9ZmxLw

If you have any questions about the Decarbonization study or climate planning please contact: sustainability@ucla.edu.

51st Lester Breslow Distinguished Lecture | Dr. Yifang Zhu: "From Invisible to Visible: How air pollution research informs action in a changing climate"
2026-02-24 12:00 - 13:00 | Online
Join the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health for the 51st Lester Breslow Distinguished Lecture, via Zoom. The event will be hosted by the dean of the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Dr. Ron Brookmeyer, and feature Dr. Yifang Zhu delivering her lecture, “From Invisible to Visible: How air pollution research informs action in a changing climate.”
REGISTER HERE
ABOUT DR. YIFANG ZHU
Dr. Yifang Zhu is a professor in the Department of Environmental Health Sciences in the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health. She graduated from Tsinghua University in 1997 and received her PhD in Environmental Health Sciences from the UCLA Fielding School of Public Health in 2003. Her research interest is primarily in the field of air pollution, climate change, environmental exposure assessment, and aerosol science and technology. Her current research focuses on measuring and modeling air pollutant emissions, transport, and transformation as well assessing and mitigating the associated health effects. Her scholarship and creativity has been recognized by several national awards, including the Walter A. Rosenblith New Investigator Award from the Health Effects Institute in 2007, the Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Award from the National Science Foundation in 2009, and the Haagen-Smit Prize from Atmosphere Environment in 2011.

UCLA Climate Action Plan Town Hall
2026-02-25 12:00 - 13:00 | Online
UCLA has completed a Decarbonization Study, funded by the State of California, to develop and analyze strategies for a 90 percent or greater reduction in scope 1 emissions from fossil gas use in campus energy systems. Based on the results of this study, UCLA is now engaged in developing an updated Climate Action Plan (CAP) which integrates the recommendations of the study.
The draft Climate Action Plan was submitted to UCOP in December 2025 and can be viewed at this link – Draft UCLA Climate Action Plan. Feedback on the plan is welcome by Friday March 27 through this form: https://forms.gle/JcCYqQrApea9sa4v7. UCLA Sustainability is also hosting Town Halls for students and staff where you can learn more about the draft updated Climate Action Plan, including on Wednesday, February 25th.
REGISTER HERE
For an overview presentation about the plan, please see this recording of the briefing given the UCLA Executive Sustainability Committee in November, 2025.
Additional Climate Action Plan Town Hall sessions

Monday February 23, 6pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/8ya9xQtYS1GPQcS1wKroBQ
Wednesday February 25, 6pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/oej5i8inR0C2N-A2WCgZCw
Thursday February 26, 12pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/iUlvBn_qR0Gf9buH9ZmxLw

If you have any questions about the Decarbonization study or climate planning please contact: sustainability@ucla.edu.

UCLA Climate Action Plan Town Hall
2026-02-25 18:00 - 19:00 | Online
UCLA has completed a Decarbonization Study, funded by the State of California, to develop and analyze strategies for a 90 percent or greater reduction in scope 1 emissions from fossil gas use in campus energy systems. Based on the results of this study, UCLA is now engaged in developing an updated Climate Action Plan (CAP) which integrates the recommendations of the study.
The draft Climate Action Plan was submitted to UCOP in December 2025 and can be viewed at this link – Draft UCLA Climate Action Plan. Feedback on the plan is welcome by Friday March 27 through this form: https://forms.gle/JcCYqQrApea9sa4v7. UCLA Sustainability is also hosting Town Halls for students and staff where you can learn more about the draft updated Climate Action Plan, including on Wednesday, February 25th.
REGISTER HERE
For an overview presentation about the plan, please see this recording of the briefing given the UCLA Executive Sustainability Committee in November, 2025.
Additional Climate Action Plan Town Hall sessions

Monday February 23, 6pm – Link to Presentation Recording (use passcode: [REDACTED]
Thursday February 26, 12pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/iUlvBn_qR0Gf9buH9ZmxLw

If you have any questions about the Decarbonization study or climate planning please contact: sustainability@ucla.edu.

Botany Brown Bag with Dr. Andy Kleinhesselink
2026-02-26 12:00 - 13:00 | UCLA Mildred E Mathias Botanical Garden, La Kretz Garden Pavilion, 707 Tiverton Dr, Los Angeles, CA, 90095
Join for another installment of Botany Brown Bag. Dr. Andy Kleinhesselink will give a talk titled “A Scrap of Nature: Rediscovering UCLA’s Native Plants on Sage Hill.”
One-hundred years ago, UCLA began constructing the Westwood campus on 419 of acres of open pasture, riparian, and coastal scrub habitat. Within 40 years, nearly all of that open space and most of the native species were gone, replaced by lawns, buildings, and parking lots. Nevertheless, a few small patches of natural habitat and about 50 native plant species survived. But which native species were lost? And which species should we attempt to bring back? Dr. Andy Kleinhesselink, the Managing Director of Sage Hill, will describe how he uses herbaria collections, historical photos and other data to piece together a more complete picture of campus’ past biodiversity. He will discuss how this history guides our plans for restoring Sage Hill, and how we can use the story of biodiversity on campus to bring lessons about conservation and restoration to life for UCLA undergraduates.
Make sure to bring your lunch!
This event is free and open to the public, no RSVP required!

UCLA Climate Action Plan Town Hall
2026-02-26 12:00 - 13:00 | Online
UCLA has completed a Decarbonization Study, funded by the State of California, to develop and analyze strategies for a 90 percent or greater reduction in scope 1 emissions from fossil gas use in campus energy systems. Based on the results of this study, UCLA is now engaged in developing an updated Climate Action Plan (CAP) which integrates the recommendations of the study.
The draft Climate Action Plan was submitted to UCOP in December 2025 and can be viewed at this link – Draft UCLA Climate Action Plan. Feedback on the plan is welcome by Friday March 27 through this form: https://forms.gle/JcCYqQrApea9sa4v7. UCLA Sustainability is also hosting Town Halls for students and staff where you can learn more about the draft updated Climate Action Plan, including on Thursday, February 26th.
REGISTER HERE
For an overview presentation about the plan, please see this recording of the briefing given the UCLA Executive Sustainability Committee in November, 2025.
Additional Climate Action Plan Town Hall sessions

Monday February 23, 6pm –Link to Presentation Recording (use passcode: [REDACTED]
Thursday February 25, 6pm – https://ucla.zoom.us/meeting/register/oej5i8inR0C2N-A2WCgZCw

If you have any questions about the Decarbonization study or climate planning please contact: sustainability@ucla.edu.

Shine LA
2026-02-28 08:00 - 12:00 | Los Angeles
Let’s come together and make Los Angeles shine! Join the Office of Mayor Karen Bass, our partners, and your neighbors in cleaning, greening, and preparing our city for the world stage. Take pride in your neighborhood and be part of this movement to make LA its best! We hope you will join us on February 28th at various locations across the City.
REGISTER HERE

The Road to Repair: Transforming Infrastructure to Advance Environmental Justice
2026-03-02 10:00 - 12:30 | Online
A mini-symposium from the UCLA Institute of Transportation Studies
REGISTER HERE
The automobile-dominated transportation system has historically and disproportionately harmed low-income communities and communities of color, dividing neighborhoods, increasing exposure to traffic and noise pollution, and contributing to long-term health and economic disparities. This virtual mini-symposium explores how innovative, justice-focused approaches to freeway removal can repair these harms, reconnect communities, and create more equitable and sustainable urban environments, issues highly relevant to transportation planning, policy, and engineering. The mini-symposium features two panels:
Panel 1: Impacts and Inequities of Freeway Construction
This panel examines the social, environmental, and health impacts of freeway construction, with a focus on racial-ethnic disparities in exposure to traffic-related air pollution, displacement, and community severance. Panelists will discuss how transportation planning and infrastructure policies have marginalized communities of color and created persistent inequities.

Adam Paul Susaneck, AECOM/Segregation By Design
Demetria Murphy, Estolano Advisors
Amy Castaneda, Environmental Health Coalition
Dilia Ortega, Communities for a Better Environment

Panel 2: Solutions and Opportunities in Freeway Removal
The second panel explores innovative strategies to reimagine urban transportation. Panelists will discuss freeway removal, boulevard replacement, and investments in public transit and active transportation as tools to reconnect communities, reduce environmental harm, and promote transportation equity. Case studies, including California examples, will highlight planning, policy, and design strategies to advance environmental justice.

Dr. Ben Crowther, America Walks
Randolph Belle, Outreach Lead for Vision 980
Yesenia Perez, Senior Program Manager for Climate Equity, The Greenlining Institute

Why Attend
Attendees will gain insights into both the systemic challenges posed by freeway construction and the transformative potential of equity-driven transportation planning that prioritizes equity, environmental justice, and community well-being. The mini-symposium is designed to foster dialogue between researchers, students, and policymakers on practical and innovative solutions for more just and sustainable transportation systems.

Live Webinar: From Procurement to Governance: Board Oversight of Sustainability Measurement & Reporting
2026-03-04 09:00 - 10:00 | Online
Everyone is part of someone else’s Scope 3, and sustainability performance is rapidly becoming a core factor in procurement, risk, and revenue. As customers increasingly ask suppliers to disclose climate and ESG data, sustainability is moving into the boardroom. How prepared is your organization to respond?
Join this webinar to explore the board’s role in governing sustainability, including oversight structures, accountability, and reporting readiness. Gain practical governance models, escalation triggers, and strategic questions directors can use to guide management and strengthen resilience in an evolving business and regulatory landscape.
REGISTER HERE
