UCLA Sustainability

AILA Earth Summit
2026-04-08 14:30 - 20:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | 1800 Abbot Kinney Blvd, 1800 Abbot Kinney Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90291, United States
​Join AILA’s 7th Earth Summit, to examine the technologies, policies, and ideas shaping our climate future. From artificial intelligence to breakthrough materials science, from state climate policy to investment strategies— explore the full spectrum of how we adapt to our changing planet.
​Can we innovate our way to a sustainable future? Earth Summit brings real data and diverse perspectives about how California addresses climate challenges through policy and technology. What are the actual costs and benefits? Where are the greatest opportunities?
​Earth Summit convenes 100-150 sustainability champions, technologists, policymakers, and investors for honest conversations about progress. With a keynote speech by California State’s climate leadership, lightning talks showcasing technical breakthroughs across multiple domains, and panels examining everything from AI’s role in climate science to the business models funding our transition, you will gain a comprehensive view of the transformation.
​This is a day for builders and pragmatists — people who want facts over hype, who see challenges as opportunity, and who are ready to make something happen, across technology, policy, and investment.
LEARN MORE AND REGISTER HERE

"Smog and Sunshine” - A Book Talk with Ann Carlson
2026-04-10 12:15 - 13:30 | UCLA School of Law, 385 Charles E. Young Drive East , Los Angeles , CA, 90095, United States
Join a conversation about an exciting environmental success story that too few Americans know in detail.
In Smog and Sunshine, UCLA Law professor and LA native Ann Carlson recounts the dramatic policy fights and the determined scientists, lawyers, and community members who worked alongside public officials to face off against major polluters and save their city. Like the book, this event will highlight the work of advocates, academics, regulators, and everyday people who refused to turn a blind eye to the toll dirty air was taking in Los Angeles and across Southern California. The conversation will also touch on lessons learned and how to channel them for the broader fight for clean air and to fight climate change.
REGISTER HERE
In a time of unprecedented climate change and skepticism about government and science, Carlson’s book is an inspiring reminder of what concerned residents and all levels of government can achieve by working together.
Carlson is the Shirley Shapiro Professor of Environmental Law and Faculty Director of the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment.
Smog and Sunshine: the Surprising Story of How Los Angeles Cleaned Up Its Air, to be released on April 7, during LA Climate Week. Pre-order available here.
Books will be available for purchase before and during the event.
Please contact Heather Morphew, morphew@law.ucla.edu, with any questions.

Opening Celebration: Mountain Spirits
2026-04-11 18:00 - 21:00 | Fowler Museum
Celebrate the opening of Mountain Spirits: Rice and Indigeneity in the Northern Luzon Highlands, Philippines, with an evening of music and dance honoring cultural pride and the enduring connections between the Philippines and Los Angeles.
LEARN MORE HERE

LA Climate Reality Project and LA Neighborhood Council Sustainability Alliance tour of Athens Materials Recovery Facility
2026-04-13 10:00 - 12:00 | Irwindale Materials Recovery Facility, 2200 Arrow Hwy, Irwindale, CA, 91706, United States
​Tour of Athens Services Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in the City of Irwindale, providing waste services to millions of residents in Greater Los Angeles. Tour hosted by Los Angeles Climate Reality Project and Los Angeles Neighborhood Council Sustainability Alliance.
LEARN MORE AND REGISTER HERE

Music Sustainability Summit
2026-04-14 08:00 - 19:00 | Solotech Studios, 1017 N Las Palmas Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90038, United States
The Music Sustainability Summit returns for its third year, convening professionals from across the live and recorded music ecosystem to advance sustainability in the industry. MSS26 focuses on the ideas and initiatives that reshape how music is made, performed, and experienced. Join artists, venue operators, tour managers, promoters, and more for a day of learning, networking, and action.

Check in/Coffee: 8am
Summit: 9am-5:30pm
Reception: 5:30pm-7pm

MSS26 is produced by the Music Sustainability Alliance (MSA), a 501c3 nonprofit organization. MSA’s mission is to embed sustainability in the music industry’s DNA by convening stakeholders to showcase and accelerate initiatives where sustainability becomes the norm, inspiring audiences to carry those values and empowering artists to advocate for sustainable behaviors by their teams, venues, and fans.
REGISTER HERE
**Music Sustainability Summit Scholarship Application**
MSA is proud to announce the latest round of the MSA Scholarship Program, in partnership with Warner Music Group. The scholarship is designed for those dedicated to the intersection of art and advocacy.
LEARN MORE AND APPLY HERE
Application Deadline: March 6

Water for Life: Film Screening and Discussion
2026-04-14 19:30 - 22:00 | Hammer Museum, Bay-Nimoy Theatre, 10899 Wilshire Blvd., Los Angeles, CA, 90024, United States
Water For Life tells the story of three extraordinary individuals: Berta Cáceres, a Lenca Indigenous leader in Honduras; Francisco Piñeda, a subsistence farmer in El Salvador; and Alberto Curamil, an Indigenous Mapuche Chief in Chile, all of whom refused to let government-supported industry and Transnational Corporations take their water and redirect it to mining, hydroelectric, or large scale industrial agriculture projects. The screening is followed by a conversation on the diversion of water resources from the Owens Valley to Los Angeles and its impact on local tribal communities.
The screening will be followed by a conversation with Teri Red Owl, Executive Director of the Owens Valley Indian Water Commission, and the struggle of the local Paiute Tribes of Payahuunadü (the Owens Valley) to protect and reclaim water resources diverted to Los Angeles.
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.

2026 Luskin Summit, Building Power Through Local Solutions
2026-04-15 07:30 - 14:30 | UCLA Luskin Conference Center, 425 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
The 2026 Luskin Summit, Building Power Through Local Solutions, will examine how California communities can build power to address vulnerability through locally driven policy action that advances equity, and well-being. The Summit will emphasize that lasting change comes not from one-size-fits-all approaches, but from empowering local governments, institutions, and communities to shape solutions that reflect their needs and strengths.
Grounded in UCLA Luskin’s commitment to tackling society’s most urgent challenges, the Summit will explore how vulnerability is shaped by policy choices—and how power can be built through collaboration, accountability, and strategic action at the local and regional levels. Conversations will focus on how communities can leverage policy tools, data, and partnerships to translate broad goals into concrete, on-the-ground outcomes.
UCLA Luskin faculty and researchers will join policymakers, nonprofit leaders, and community partners to analyze the systems that influence everyday life and to identify opportunities for reform. This year’s discussions will examine the local implementation of SB 79, California’s new housing development law; community-centered responses to environmental challenges such as plastics and mega-events; strategies to strengthen transit safety; and approaches to addressing market concentration and intergenerational inequities—highlighting how building power locally can produce durable, equitable solutions across California.
REGISTER HERE

Thinking Gender 2026 Graduate Student Research Conference
2026-04-17 09:00 - 18:00 | James West Alumni Center, 325 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California, 90024
Thinking Gender 2026 will feature a full day of graduate student presentations highlighting innovative research at the intersections of gender, sexuality, and the environment. The conference will include a keynote address by Cutcha Risling Baldy (Cal Poly Humboldt; NAS Rou Dalagurr Food Sovereignty Lab & Traditional Ecological Knowledges Institute), whose work centers Indigenous feminisms, land relations, and food sovereignty.
Learn more at https://csw.ucla.edu/tg26.
REGISTER HERE

UCLA AUD presents: "Transitioning Worlds" conference
2026-04-20 09:00 - 2026-04-21 19:00 | UCLA Perloff Hall, DeCafe, 365 Portola Plaza, Room 1302, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
The third program in the AUD60 Celebration
Transitioning Worlds is a two-day conference hosted by UCLA Architecture and Urban Design (AUD), reflecting on the changing global conditions that shape architecture and the evolving pedagogies, practices, and technologies through which AUD continues to engage them.
The conference includes a full day of thematic sessions, gathering panels of designers, instigators, and thought leaders to take up and debate the ground shifting beneath us all (Monday, April 20). On Day Two (Tuesday, April 21), they will reconvene with a morning workshop and an afternoon student session, interrogating the insights and proposals from Monday’s sessions and forecasting what’s imagined next.
MORE INFO HERE

CicLAvia—West LA
2026-04-26 09:00 - 16:00 | West LA
Join this upcoming Los Angeles Open Streets Event: CicLAvia—West LA!
What: CicLAvia is a nonprofit organization that has been opening streets throughout LA County since 2010. Come experience car-free open streets at our upcoming event, CicLAvia—West LA.
Enjoy the pop-up park for the day in your favorite people-powered way, whether that’s walking, jogging, biking, roller skating, skating, or simply spectating! All ages and abilities are welcome. Be sure to join the CicLAvia email list so you don’t miss any event news and updates. Click HERE to download the CicLAvia—West LA route map.
Learn more at https://www.ciclavia.org/ciclavia_west_la26.

Clarkia Flower Festival
2026-05-16 10:00 - 16:00 | Botanical Garden, 707 Tiverton Dr
Save the date! The Clarkia Flower Festival will take place on Saturday, May 16, 2026 from 10 am to 4 pm. Check back later for more details!
