Renewable Energy Trends in Higher Ed: Different Solutions for Different Institutions
2023-03-22 11:00 - 12:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Online
Colleges and universities are buying more renewable energy than ever. Their strategies are evolving and increasing, including: onsite, offsite, PPAs, Utility Green Tariffs, Retail Renewables, unbundled RECs, and emerging approaches. This webinar, which is based on a recent analysis of the state of renewable energy in higher education, will highlight several innovative examples of how institutions are navigating this complex landscape. Participants will hear case studies about Brown University’s community solar projects, Loyola Chicago’s journey from RECs to 100% renewables via retail, and more. Join this webinar to learn what’s happening across the sector and what might work for your institution.
REGISTER HERE
Presenters
Jessica Berry, Director of the Office of Sustainability, Brown University
Jess is the director of the Office of Sustainability and provides leadership and management across the University to enhance sustainability at Brown. She works closely with the associate provost of sustainability and key stakeholders to identify opportunities for integrating sustainability principles into University operations, including the development of a long-term Sustainability Strategic Plan and net-zero strategy. Jess has worked in the environmental field for over 20 years and holds a B.S. and M.S. in environmental studies and natural resources. She can be found mountain biking, skiing or in the Vermont mountains with her family.
Aaron Durnbaugh, Director of Sustainability, Loyola University Chicago
Aaron supports faculty and staff across Loyola’s campuses and academic centers in creating the most sustainable and transformative education experience possible. He serves on the Executive Committee of the Chicago Wilderness Alliance, Chicago Metropolitan Agency for Planning’s (CMAP) Environment and Natural Resources Working Committee, the Illinois Green Alliance’s Drawdown Steering Committee, and is the interim Chair for the Advisory Committee for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment and Rating System (STARS). Previously, he served as the Deputy Commissioner leading Chicago Department of Environment’s Natural Resources and Water Quality Division (NRWQ). The Department of Environment was the lead agency developing and implementing the Chicago Climate Action Plan. NRWQ educated the public on climate change issues through the Chicago Center for Green Technology, Chicago Conservation Corps, and Greencorps Chicago. NRWQ created mitigation opportunities through open space protection in the Calumet region, green infrastructure financing and various urban forestry projects. During his time in City government, Durnbaugh oversaw the City of Chicago’s climate adaptation strategy engaging stakeholders in built environment, public health and the natural environment. He holds a Master’s Degree in Geography and Environmental Studies and is a LEED™ accredited professional.
Dr. Wolfgang Bauer, University Distinguished Professor, Department of Physics and Astronomy, Michigan State University
From 2001 to 2013, Dr. Bauer served as chair of the Department of Physics and Astronomy and from 2009 to 2013 as founding director of the Institute for Cyber-Enabled Research. For the last decade he has worked primarily on MSU’s Energy Transition Plan, with a stint as Senior Consultant (2013-2018) and subsequently Associate Vice President for Administration (2018-2020). He oversaw the development of MSU’s 10 MW portfolio of solar carports, which became operational in 2018 and was the largest solar carport project in the United States at that time.
Chris O’Brien, Vice President, Business Development, Coho Climate Advisors
Chris leads business outreach and solution delivery efforts with a focus on the higher education market. He brings more than 20 years of energy, sustainability, and strategic advisory services including as Director of Sustainability at American University, where he led participation in the Coho-facilitated 53 MW Capital Partners Solar Project. Chris also previously served as Director of Higher Education Programs at Edison Energy. In his side career/hobby in the beer industry, he authored the award-winning book Fermenting Revolution: How to Drink Beer and Save the World. He serves on the board of directors of the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE).

Conversations on Informality: Providing Sustainable Electricity to Urban Informal Settlements of the Global South
2023-03-23 08:00 - 09:00 | Online
Providing basic services to informal urban settlements has been a historical challenge for cities of the global south. One of the defining features of ‘informality’ in settlements has been their lack of access to basic services. This seminar complicates that discussion by asking how to marry the concerns of sustainability and steady electricity provision in informal urban settlements. Dr. Mensah will present his research on electricity provision in Accra’s slums, while Dr. Kitio will focus on the overall macro picture of fitting sustainability into service provision in informal settlements of the global south. In particular, the seminar features research conducted by Eugenie L. Birch, co-Director of Penn’s Institute for Urban Research, and James Mensah entitled “Powering the Slum” and funded by the Kleinman Centre for Energy Policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
The “Conversations on Informality” Seminar Series of the Penn IUR Forum on Urban Informality bring together leading scholars and practitioners for an exchange across academic disciplines and in policy.
This event is a part of Energy Week at Penn, a week of energy-focused events across Penn’s campus. Browse and register for other Energy Week events: www.energyweek.upenn.edu
REGISTER HERE

GRID Talks | Raise the Roof: Women in Construction
2023-03-23 12:30 - 13:30 | Online
Meet the women who are building a more inclusive solar industry!
with Marie Kills Warror, Anna Bautista, Freida Galindo
Join GRID Alternatives for a one hour discussion and Q&A on women in the solar industry, women in construction, and a just transition to a clean energy future through solar energy.
FREE ONLINE WEBINAR – REGISTER HERE
GRID Talks is a new webinar series that brings together leaders from the environmental justice movement to discuss issues related to clean energy access and community-centered solutions. The webinars seek to amplify the voices of GRID’s communities and share the stories, experiences, and work that are creating mission impact and systemic changes.
Marie Kills Warrior, Energy Research & Project Developer | I am an enrolled member of the Oglala Sioux Tribe. I was born and raised on the Pine Ridge Reservation in the small town of Kyle South Dakota. I began my journey in Solar PV at an Earth Day event in 2016. In 2019 I obtained my NABCEP Associates through Red Cloud Renewables during the first Tribal Train The Trainer Program and I aspire to become a NABCEP certified Solar PV designer and Instructor for Indigenous Communities throughout Turtle Island.
Anna Bautista, Vice President of Construction, GRID Alternatives | Anna has broad experience in the solar industry as a site supervisor, hands-on trainer, and design and installation technician. In the private sector, she managed over $4M in residential and small commercial PV projects. She has worked on renewable energy projects and environmental justice campaigns in the Philippines, Haiti, and Costa Rica but is honored to share her skills locally to help democratize access to renewable energy and energy efficiency solutions and training. Anna has a degree in Electrical Engineering from MIT and is proud to represent among other women who are NABCEP Certified Installers in California.
Freida Galindo, SolarCorps Construction Project Management Fellow | Freida is a project management fellow for single-family homes in the greater Los Angeles area. She is an active environmental advocate in her community through lobbying and volunteering, working to advance community and ecosystem resilience. A first generation college graduate, she double majored in environmental studies and global studies at UC Santa Barbara. Her passion for the environment translates to her hobbies, like roller skating and paddleboarding, that allow her to be outdoors to enjoy nature.

Black Holes, White Gold: A Floristic Inventory of the Silver Peak Range, Esmeralda County, NV.
2023-03-23 18:00 - 19:30 | Online
With Peri Lee Pipkin, Masters student, Claremont University & 2022 WMRC Mini Grant Recipient
Peri Lee is conducting a floristic inventory of the Silver Peak mountains in Esmeralda County, Nevada. These desert mountains are arid yet full of incredible biodiversity, and range from valleys of alkali wetlands, cactus flats to red rock canyons, and peaks bearing lupines and bristlecone pines. There are several species of interest in the area, including the endemic and endangered Tiehm’s buckwheat, and the rare plant Tecopa Bird’s Beak. In addition to this floristic inventory, Peri Lee is also writing a conservation plan in order to preserve the threatened population of Tecopa’s Bird’s Beak that occurs in the alkali wetlands.
Registration required via Zoom. REGISTER HERE.
This talk will be recorded. FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

2nd Annual Climate Equity LA Series Launch
2023-03-23 18:00 - 19:30 | Online
The 2nd Annual Climate Equity LA (CELA) Series Launch will provide an overview of Year 2 of the CELA series, including its emphasis on extreme heat and equitable, community-centered solutions for climate resilience, and the collaborative role of the Climate Emergency Mobilization Office (CEMO) in the co-creation of the City of LA’s first Heat Action Plan (HAP), Heat Relief Campaign, and Climate Vulnerability Assessment (CVA).
The launch event will provide an opportunity to review the successes and accomplishments from CELA Year 1, and will highlight the wisdom from community partners in conversation, with the support of public leaders, to improve how the City of LA can meet the needs and priorities of frontline communities most impacted by extreme heat and climate hazards, while advocating for more resources to get there.

Climate Solutions, Justice, and the Rise of a Trillion-Dollar Industry
2023-03-24 07:20 - 08:20 | Online
This is a keynote event of The Penn Regenerative Ag Alliance Workshop.
The workshop’s morning keynote speaker, Dr. Jane Zelikova, will discuss the possibility of regenerative agriculture as a just climate solution. As attention on soil carbon is increasing in rapidly expanding carbon markets, questions of application and scalability must be approached from a framework that prioritizes equity.
Dr. Tamara Jane Zelikova works at the intersection of climate science and policy. Her work focuses on advancing the science of carbon removal and she has published in scientific journals like Nature and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, written and contributed to climate policy reports and published articles in popular media outlets like Scientific American. She is currently the executive director of the Soil Carbon Solutions Center at Colorado State University, where she works with leading scientists to build the tools and approaches needed to accelerate the deployment of credible soil-based climate solutions, measure their impacts and bring them to scale.
In addition to her scientific and policy expertise, Zelikova is the cofounder of 500 Women Scientists, a global grassroots nonprofit organization with the mission to serve society by making science open, inclusive and accessible and fighting racism, patriarchy and oppressive societal norms. She is also the founder of Hey Girl Productions, coproducing and starring in the film End of Snow, which has been featured in National Geographic and Outside magazine.
REGISTER HERE
This event is a part of Energy Week at Penn, a week of energy-focused events across Penn’s campus.
Browse and register for other Energy Week events: energyweek.upenn.edu

Climate Change, Disruption, and Health Equity
2023-03-24 09:00 - 10:00 | Online
As climate-related disasters, such as floods, droughts, and extreme temperatures become more common, humans are being exposed to unique combinations of health hazards and stressors, which are often inequitably distributed across the population. A panel of experts will discuss how climate change and climate disasters impact health outcomes for different populations and exacerbates health inequities, their impact on health systems, and how we can better prepare for and mitigate the health impacts of a changing climate.
REGISTER HERE
This event is part of Energy Week at Penn. Check out the rest of the 2023 programming at energyweek.upenn.edu.

2023 BizFed Institute Water Forum
2023-03-24 09:00 - 12:00 | Metropolitan Water District, 700 Alameda St, Los Angeles, CA, 90012, United States
Join us the L.A. County Business Federation (BizFed) Institute for its in-person Water Resiliency Forum on Friday, March 24th, at the Metropolitan Water District’s Los Angeles headquarters to talk short-term and long-term solutions. They’ll convene change agents from business and government for a frank conversation about challenges, projects, policies, and urgently needed investments.
REGISTER HERE

Bet the Farm: The Dollars and Sense of Growing Food in America
2023-03-24 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
This is a keynote event of the Penn Regenerative Ag Alliance Workshop.
REGISTER HERE
Bet the Farm: A conversation with Beth Hoffman on the dollars and sense of growing food in America.
Speaker:
Beth Hoffman began her writing career focused on culture and food, producing a radio food series documenting the stories of immigrant women as they cooked in their homes (which was nationally syndicated). Now twenty-five years into writing and producing work on food and agriculture, her areas of expertise have grown to include the potential of agriculture in development, the financial viability of farms, and sustainability in agriculture. She has aired and published on NPR’s Morning Edition and on their food blog The Salt, written for The Guardian, Civil Eats, Forbes and produced work for the News Hour, Latino USA, and The World. Most recently she published Bet the Farm: The Dollars and Sense of Growing Food in America. Hoffman currently works as a consultant on food + communications projects, speaks about sustainable farming, and writes a blog as part of the Iowa Writers Collaborative.
Hoffman also spent much of her adult life teaching, most recently as an Associate Professor in the Media Studies Department at the University of San Francisco. She was a Fellow and Co-Lecturer at UC Berkeley’s School of Journalism (where she also went to graduate school) in the Africa Food and Agriculture Reporting Project and traveled to India, Uganda, and Ethiopia to cover agriculture topics.
Perhaps most importantly, she is now a beginning farmer on a 570-acre farm in Iowa with her husband John. The couple raises pasture-raised beef, goats, and vegetables and forage for mushrooms.
This event is a part of Energy Week at Penn, a week of energy-focused events across Penn’s campus.
Browse and register for other Energy Week events: energyweek.upenn.edu

Urban biodiversity: the importance of scale
2023-03-24 11:30 - 12:30 | Online
REGISTER HERE
While much is known about the scaling of biodiversity, less is known about specifically how biodiversity scales in urban areas. This is an important question because over two-thirds of humans live in urban areas. Understanding how, precisely, biodiversity scales in urban areas will inform management. Linear relationships would imply that similar interventions should work across the range of city sizes (from small towns to the largest mega-cities) whereas non-linear relationships would imply that biodiversity strategies must be tailored to the size of the city. We focused on avian biodiversity because more than half of the species are found in urban areas (6,120 out of 11,162 species), including at least 350 threatened ones. We calculated species richness in 2,568 cities and used eBird, a community science platform, to estimate species richness. After controlling for a variety of variables that might explain variation in avian biodiversity, we found a non-linear relationship in cities and contrasted this to a well-established power law found in natural areas. After controlling for other key variables that might explain variation in urban biodiversity, the log-log relationship between city area and avian biodiversity had a slope of 0.42 until cities got bigger than 331 km2, beyond which it decreased to 0.15. This suggests that unique processes affect urban biodiversity in smaller and larger cities. When we focused on the subset of threatened species, we found a linear relationship with a slope of 0.20. Urbanization not only contributes to a global extinction, but urban areas may provide important habitat for threatened species.
About speaker: Dr. Nannan Gao is a Postdoctoral associate with Daniel T. Blumstein in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA. Her research mainly focuses on studying the relationship between urban biodiversity and city size by creating global urban biodiversity datasets that include small towns to megacities involving spatiotemporal advanced computing, statistical computing, and data science. Dr. Gao received her Ph.D. from the Chinese Academy of Science and also studied human geography and urban planning at Peking University. She seeks to balance humans and animals in urban areas.

Life after Concrete: Imagining the Future of the LA River
2023-03-27 14:00 - 16:00 | Doheny Memorial Library (DML) 240, 3550 Trousdale Parkway, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, United States
This is the fifth event of the 2022-23 Mellon Sawyer Seminar Precarious Ecologies: Science and Social Justice in the Production of Environmental Knowledge.
Nearly a century after it was encased in concrete for flood control, the LA River has in recent years become a source of hope for a renewed urban ecology, as well as a site of controversy over how to achieve this vision. Artists, activists, landscape designers and others have worked to imagine what the river might become, whether for green space starved Angelenos or for our city’s nonhuman inhabitants. This panel, part of the Mellon Sawyer series on “Precarious Ecologies,” brings together a range of thinkers to examine the possibilities and constraints of a revitalized LA River.
Panelists include artist Lauren Bon, landscape architect Jessica Hanson, activist mark! Lopez, anthropologist Sayd Randle, and Kizh-Gabrieliño tribal biologist Matthew Teutimez. USC historian William Deverell will serve as moderator.
REGISTER HERE

Under the Redwoods: A Sempervirens Fund Webinar Series - "A Climate Action Plan for Redwoods | Laura McLendon"
2023-03-28 13:00 - 14:00 | Online
Join Sempervirens Fund’s Laura McLendon for a look at new evidence about the climate crisis, the impact on redwoods, and how the organization is responding.
REGISTER HERE
Webinars are the last Tuesday of each month (January – October).

Climate Jobs Around the Green Ecosystem
2023-03-29 09:00 - 11:00 | Online
Join and meet companies working byte by byte and acre by acre to solve the climate crisis.
REGISTER HERE
About Terra.do job fairs
Action-packed job fairs each month, giving candidates upfront access to hear from companies about their climate solutions and why you should join them.

Hear about dozens of open roles, in a single event
Engage directly with CXOs and hiring managers
Get vetted by Terra.do and move into recruiters’ “priority lists”
Free for candidates to attend

Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator's I-710 Blueprint Webinar - Delivering the Goods: How LA County can Invest in Drayage Electrification Infrastructure
2023-03-29 10:00 - 11:30 | Online
The Los Angeles Cleantech Incubator (LACI) and the Transportation Electrification Partnership put forth a call for action in 2019 for 40% of all drayage trucks serving the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to be zero emission by 2028, and have steadily advocated for significant deployment of charging infrastructure to facilitate the rapid adoption of battery-electric trucks. To catalyze the needed investment, LACI has developed an investment framework for the heavily trafficked I-710 corridor that addresses the following questions:
– How much charging infrastructure investment in Los Angeles County is needed to support the Transportation Electrification Partnership’s 40% ZE Drayage Trucks by 2028 and the San Pedro Bay Ports target of 100% ZE Drayage by 2035?
– Where in Los Angeles County should stakeholders prioritize for early deployments of charging infrastructure? What criteria should we consider?
– How can the region cooperate to fund these investments and attract federal support?
– How can different entities in the goods movement industry deploy charging infrastructure to support the drayage?
To learn more about these and other insights, join LACI and its project partners, Coalition for Environmental Health and Justice & bp pulse fleet, as they share preliminary findings and recommendations from a California Energy Commission-funded Medium and Heavy-Duty Zero Emission Vehicle Infrastructure Blueprint grant, An Investment Blueprint for Heavy-Duty Charging to Support Battery-Electric Drayage along the I-710 Corridor.
In this webinar, LACI and its partners will outline the framework and process they created to identify specific site locations with characteristics ideal for the installation of drayage truck charging infrastructure, an overview of the opportunities presented by different sites, and the investment required to meet regional targets for zero emission drayage truck deployment.
REGISTER HERE

2023 La Kretz Center Public Lecture - 30×30 California: Conservation Science and Policy in Action
2023-04-02 15:00 - 16:30 | Hershey Hall Salon, 801 Hilgard Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
Join Sunday, April 2nd, for the annual UCLA La Kretz Center Public Lecture, which will have Drs. Jennifer Norris and Brad Shaffer to discuss California’s pathbreaking initiative to conserve 30% of California natural areas by 2030.
Please join for an informal presentation and lively discussion led by Dr. Jennifer Norris, the California Deputy Secretary for Biodiversity and Habitat at the California Natural Resources Agency, as she gives us an insider’s look at the California “30×30 Initiative”, a science-based plan to protect our state’s biodiversity by conserving 30% of our land by 2030.
The event will continue with an overview by Dr. Brad Shaffer describing the California Conservation Genomic Project (CCGP) and the La Kretz Center’s efforts to use 21st century genomic methods to develop conservation strategies that will benefit the 30×30 Initiative.
Following a Q & A session, please stay for light refreshments and a chance to chat with our current La Kretz postdoctoral researchers and learn about the work we are funding to enhance California conservation science.
This free event is open to the public, but requires an RSVP.
REGISTER HERE
For more information about California’s 30 x 30 Initiative & the CCGP, visit:
https://www.californianature.ca.gov/pages/30×30-partnership
www.ccgproject.org
Parking Information:
The closest UCLA parking structure to Hershey Hall is Parking Structure 2 at 602 Charles E Young Drive. For more details on where to park on UCLA campus and how to pay for parking please visit the Visitor Parking page of the UCLA Transportation website:
transportation.ucla.edu/campus-parking/visitors
This event is funded by the UCLA La Kretz Center for California Conservation Science and is co-sponsored by UCLA’s Institute of Environmental Science and the Mildred E. Mathias Botanical Garden.

Climate Forward Conference
2023-04-04 12:00 - 16:30 | University of Southern California, Town & Gown, 665 W Exposition Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, United States
The conference brings political VIPs together with students and the local community to discuss politically realistic solutions to climate change.
The conference is FREE. You can participate in person, via Zoom, or via livestream.
Lunch is provided. Space is limited. Registration is required.
Lunch begins at 12:00 p.m., followed by two back-to-back panels, each featuring a moderator and two experts – a liberal and a conservative – to find common ground on climate solutions.
Register to attend in person HERE
Register for the Zoom HERE

More Engineering Jobs Across Climate
2023-04-05 09:00 - 11:00 | Online
Meet innovative companies hiring hardware and software engineers across industries.
REGISTER HERE
About Terra.do job fairs
Terra.do hosts action-packed job fairs each month, giving candidates upfront access to hear from companies about their climate solutions and why you should join them.

Hear about dozens of open roles, in a single event
Engage directly with CXOs and hiring managers
Free for candidates to attend

After the final hiring manager presents, stay for networking where you can spend time visiting breakout rooms to chat further with the companies and organizations you have heard from today.

Webinar: Solutions In Our Soil
2023-04-05 11:00 - 12:00 | Online
As we build a more climate-resilient California, it’s important we look at the solutions living beneath our feet. Healthy soils form the foundation of thriving farmlands, communities, and ecosystems. By focusing on practices and incentives that promote soil health, we can improve our farming system and food security, protect water quality and quantity, and sustain and boost biodiversity.
Please join Sustainable Conservation for its Spring 2023 webinar series, Solutions in Our Soil. It will kick off on Wednesday, April 5 with a conversation between Author, Agroecologist, and Assistant Professor Liz Carlisle and Sustainable Conservation’s Director of Business Partnerships Ryan Flaherty. They’ll set the scene for the series and give a high-level overview of soil health and climate-smart agriculture and discuss why they’re so important in California.
REGISTER HERE
Speakers:
Liz Carlisle is an Assistant Professor in the Environmental Studies Program at UC Santa Barbara, where she teaches courses on food and farming. Born and raised in Montana, she got hooked on agriculture while working as an aide to organic farmer and U.S. Senator Jon Tester, which led to a decade of research and writing collaborations with farmers in her home state. She has written three books about regenerative farming and agroecology: Lentil Underground (2015), Grain by Grain (2019, with co-author Bob Quinn), and most recently, Healing Grounds: Climate, Justice, and the Deep Roots of Regenerative Farming (2022). She is also a frequent contributor to both academic journals and popular media outlets, focusing on food and farm policy, incentivizing soil health practices, and supporting new entry farmers. She holds a Ph.D. in Geography, from UC Berkeley, and a B.A. in Folklore and Mythology, from Harvard University. Prior to her career as a writer and academic, she spent several years touring rural America as a country singer.
Ryan Flaherty is Sustainable Conservation’s Director of Business Partnerships and is based out of our Modesto office. Ryan leads the organization’s efforts to promote strategies for San Joaquin Valley dairies for managing animal waste in ways that benefit clean air and water. Prior to Sustainable Conservation, Ryan worked with Business for Social Responsibility, a non-profit that works with business to ensure a just and sustainable world, where he was a manager of advisory services working with the food, beverage, and agricultural industries. Ryan has more than 15 years of experience in business strategy, supply chain management, sustainable agriculture, water stewardship and stakeholder engagement. He has an MBA from the University of South Carolina and a Bachelor of Arts from Tulane University.

Virtual adaptive birding equipment research presentation
2023-04-06 10:00 - 10:45 | Online
Many disabled birders are not able to hold binoculars, or cannot get into position to see through a spotting scope on a tripod.
Adaptive birding equipment makes this possible!
Mounts that attach to mobility devices, like wheelchairs, can hold up optics and allow access to close-up views of birds. But what features of these mounts — and of optics, for that matter — are important? What makes this equipment user-friendly for people with limited hand or body function? What equipment currently exists that is easy to use and works well for this purpose?
Using qualitative research practices, Doctorate of Occupational Therapy student Alex Field, studying at Western Michigan University, under the supervision of occupational therapist and Access Birding owner Freya McGregor, have conducted the first (ever!) formal research on adaptive birding equipment.
REGISTER HERE

UCLA April First Thursdays – Farmers Market & Block Party: Arts Avenue | Climate Justice Conversations
2023-04-06 12:00 - 22:00 | Westwood Village Broxton Ave, 1031 Broxton Avenue , CA 90024, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, United States
UCLA First Thursdays has two parts: daytime activations at the Westwood Village Farmers’ Market and evening block parties with different thematic experiences.
We invite you to discover something new in Westwood!
Westwood Village Farmers’ Market
12:00 – 4:00 p.m.
UCLA Climate Justice Conversations Farmers’ Market Pop-Up| April 6th, 2023
Let’s kick off Earth Month with UCLA Climate Justice Conversations! Learn about our April events, UCLA climate resilience planning and how to up-cycle your gear with screen printing!
Evening Block Party
7:00 – 10:00 p.m.
Arts Avenue | April 6th, 2023
Join us for an interactive and exploratory arts journey along Broxton Avenue and surrounding spaces—featuring a series of hands-on creative moments with live performances and art-making by Hammer Museum’s Art Lab, The Poetry Bureau and much more. Bring your creative spark!
Visit the First Thursdays event website and follow @UCLA for more information about #UCLAfirstthursdays.
REGISTER HERE

Earth Month: Saving Corals - A Lecture @Fisher with Dr. Carly Kenkel and Adib Mustofa
2023-04-06 18:00 - 19:00 | USC Fisher Museum of Art, 823 W Exposition Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, United States
Join the USC Fisher Museum of Art, Wrigley Institute faculty affiliate Dr. Carly Kenkel, and Wrigley Institute graduate fellow Adib Mustofa for a special lecture on the impact of climate change on coral reefs.
This program complements the Fisher Museum exhibition Mulyana: Modular Utopia, which is composed of intricately constructed, knit modules of marine life sculptures that vividly portray an unadulterated underwater world.
Followed by light refreshments.
REGISTER HERE
About the speakers:
Dr. Carly D. Kenkel is Gabilan Assistant Professor of Biological Science in Marine and Environmental Biology at the University of Southern California. Her lab studies the eco-evolutionary dynamics that affect populations of tropical reef-building coral. This research illuminates patterns of adaptive diversity, helps predict corals’ responses to global climate change, and informs preservation work aimed at conserving genetic diversity and restoring ecosystem function. Kenkel is a 2019 Sloan Research Fellow and received the International Coral Reef Society’s Early-Career Scientist Award in 2020. She is also a recognized expert and active participant in several inter-institutional working and advisory groups, most recently serving on the steering committee for the NSF Research Coordination Network on Evolution in Changing Seas and the Genetics Working Group of the Coral Restoration Consortium.
Adib Mustofa is originally from Indonesia and earned his master’s degree in marine conservation from the University of Tasmania in 2016. He worked with the World Wildlife Fund-Indonesia as an MPA and biodiversity officer at Seram Seas before serving as a lecturer at the Institute Teknologi Sumatera, Lampung Province. He recently joined Dr. Carly Kenkel’s CEE Lab as a University of Southern California Ph.D. student. His research covers the genetics of reef-building, climate change-resilient corals and the symbiotic relationship between corals and microalgae to improve coral reef restoration efforts. He is also a USC Fulbright Scholar.

WMRC Lecture Series: "Guess who is coming to stay? Impacts from an extended visit by a family of atmospheric rivers, December 27 2022 to January 16 2023"
2023-04-06 18:00 - 19:30 | Online
With Sue Burak, former Sierra Avalanche Center forecaster.
Join WMRC and Sue Burak as she discusses the science behind recent Eastern Sierra avalanche activity and climate changes implications on the phenomenon.
Sue Burak has been fascinated by snow, weather and avalanches in the eastern Sierra for many winters. Past project include study of snow properties in the Sierra Nevada during NASA’s recent SnoEx field campaign, collecting snow properties in the boreal forests of Saskatchewan and Manitoba, to on-going research into the mysteries of glide avalanche formation and release on Olmsted Point in Yosemite National Park. This talk presents on-going efforts to unravel the relationship between specific weather, climate and snowpack factors that contributed to numerous large magnitude avalanches during December 2022 and January.
Registration required via Zoom. REGISTER HERE.
This talk will be recorded. FREE & OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.

lol climate change: a show
2023-04-06 19:00 - 22:00 | Second Home Hollywood, 1370 North Saint Andrews Place, Los Angeles, CA, 90028, United States
Tickets are live for this LA comedy show. Between each set, the best and funniest narrative climate writing tips will be shared
– Sponsored by NYU Los Angeles, Good Energy Stories Generation 180 and YEA Impact!
Tickets are free and pay-what-you-can with donations going to Meztli Projects, an Indigenous-based arts and culture collaborative in LA.
REGISTER HERE
NOTE: There will be ASL interpretation.

Houselessness Day of Service: Care Package/Hygiene Kit Making & Distribution
2023-04-07 14:00 - 15:30 | Los Angeles Tennis Center Straus Clubhouse, 420 Charles E Young Drive West, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
Volunteers will have the opportunity to construct care packages and baggies containing hygiene products, daily essentials, & clothes. After construction of the packages, volunteers will go out into Westwood and/or the surrounding LA community to distribute the resources and provide support for individuals experiencing homelessness.
REGISTER HERE

UCLA Transportation's Bike Recycling Day
2023-04-08 10:00 - 12:30 | Top of Parking Structure 8, 555 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
One person’s trash is another’s sweet ride! Transportation’s popular Bike Recycling Day returns on Saturday, April 8, to the northwest corner of the Parking Structure 8 rooftop from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Members of the UCLA community with a valid BruinCard will have an opportunity to receive a used bike or bike parts for free.
Available bikes have been repurposed from being abandoned or impounded on campus. Recycling abandoned bikes supports UCLA Transportation’s commitment to sustainability and making bicycling more accessible to the campus community.
Those wishing to participate in Bike Recycling Day must register by Sunday, April 2 here. Due to the limited number of bikes, participants will be randomly selected and assigned a time slot. Participants need to be present when their time slot begins to claim their bike. Those not selected for a time slot will receive a special bike offer.
Approximately 65 bikes or parts that equal bikes will be available. Some bikes are stripped down to their frame but offer an excellent opportunity for those interested in building their own bike from the ground up.

Eyes in the Sky, Birds in the Heart and Mind
2023-04-10 12:00 - 13:00 | Experimental Digital Arts, UCLA Broad Art Center, 240 Charles E. Young Dr. N, Los Angeles, CA, 90024, United States
Counterforce Lab Salon, ep. 5
Augmented Reality + Interspecies Friendship + Community-Storytelling
Dr. Francesca Albrezzi (UCLA Digital Humanities) and Yogan Müller (UCLA DMA) will explore how digital methodologies can open up immersive experiences for sensory modalities of engagement between the human and the more-than-human.
This newly-to-be-built AR interface will offer a virtual space where viewers can experience the awe of avian life, fostering interspecies friendship without encroaching on their sensitive space. Simultaneously, they will discuss AR to facilitate community storytelling and place-making as a part of a virtual counter-map wherever iterations of the Biophilia Treehouse are welcomed.
Dr. Albrezzi’s background includes extensive work in museums, such as the Los Angeles County Museum of Art and the Getty Museum, exploring the greater contextual understanding of art and culture through the use of digital visualization.
Free lunch!
Eyes in the Sky, Birds in the Heart and Mind is Counterforce Lab’s 2023 lecture series exploring interspecies friendships and entering into conversations across disciplines. We ask how technology, in combination with different knowledge systems and design, can provide an avenue to connect with and learn from the more-than-human. Drones, or, “eyes in the sky,” craan enrich our empathetic connection to the natural world, if we think critically about how we use them.
Made possible with the generous support of a UCLA IDRE grant and UCLA, Design Media Arts Department.

Research Seminar: Brake and Tire Wear
2023-04-10 14:00 - 16:00 | Online
Background
With increasing market share of zero emission vehicles in California and reductions of tailpipe emissions, non-combustion sources have become the dominating source of traffic emissions. Non-combustion sources of traffic emissions include brake and tire wear. Emissions studies have been conducted on vehicular non-combustion emissions through various study designs, including ambient measurements, laboratory modeling, and on-road sampling. Studies have been conducted on the metal contents and size distribution of brake and tire wear particles dispersed in the near-road environment. It is important to reassess these emissions as the vehicle fleet changes. However, no study has been conducted to examine health impacts from brake and tire wear PM metals.
This study examined the distribution of PM metals associated with brake and tire wear and their ability to produce oxidative stress in the body and used this information to model PM metals and determine their association with birth outcomes and placental health outcomes in the Los Angeles area using health data funded by other sources. Health effects studies included placental abnormalities and function and birth outcomes in an ongoing NIH-funded study of 161 pregnant women in Los Angeles and pre-term births and low birth weight in 285,614 live births in Los Angeles County from 2017-2019 from publicly available data.
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Biography
Dr. Michael Jerrett, is an internationally recognized expert in Geographic Information Science for Exposure Assessment and Spatial Epidemiology. He is a full professor in the Department of Environmental Health Science, and Director of the Center for Occupational and Environmental Health at UCLA’s Fielding School of Public Health. Dr. Jerrett earned his PhD in Geography from the University of Toronto. Over the past 23 years, Dr. Jerrett has researched how to characterize population exposures to air pollution and built environmental variables, the social distribution of these exposures among different groups, and how to assess the health effects from environmental exposures. He has worked for many years on how the built environment affects exposures and health, particularly the role of parks and green spaces on physical activity promotion and obesity prevention. He has published extensively on climate change, including wildfires, vulnerability to heat stress, and public health co-benefits of climate mitigation. He serves as a standing member of the Health Effects Institute Review Committee, as an editorial board member for the Annual Review of Public Health, and he recently completed a 3-year term on the Geographical Sciences Committee of the U.S. National Academy of Science.

The Wildfire-Stormwater Nexus
2023-04-10 16:00 - 17:30 | Online
UCLA Water is hosting an online seminar on the Climate-Wildfire-Stormwater Nexus: featuring the research insights of Sanjay Mohanty and Onja Raoelison, with framing remarks and panel discussion from Faith Kearns and Ken Susilo.
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An Overview of Building Electrification (Webinar)
2023-04-11 10:30 - 12:00 | Online
Have Energy Efficiency (EE), Building Electrification (BE), Transportation Electrification (TE), and Distributed Energy Resources (DERs) got you feeling like you’re in over your head? If so, join this Overview of Building Electrification! This class, the second in a BE series, being offered by the Energy Education Centers (EECs) will expand upon topics introduced in ‘Building Electrification and Me’.
Taught by Kavita Rodrigues from the EECs, this class will provide attendees with an expanded understanding of what BE is and how it will help California to achieve its ambitious climate goals. Participants will learn about the common misconceptions that are frequently held about electrification technologies, their applications, and how they can realize the overall benefits of electrification.
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Landscapes of Political Memory - Reading Group Session
2023-04-11 13:00 - 14:00 | Kaplan Hall 193, 415 Portola Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
Mihaela Mihai, Senior Lecturer in Political Theory at the University of Edinburgh, will give a lecture on “Representing Environmental Grief” on Wednesday, April 19th at 4:00pm. In addition, Dr. Mihai will participate in several other events, including a Reading Group session.
