UCLA Sustainability

Smart Gardening Webinar - Small Space Gardening
2023-08-23 18:00 - 19:00 (America/Los_Angeles) | Online
Small-space Gardening: learn to grow plants in containers and set up a small-space worm composting system.
Join L.A. County Public Works for free webinars to beautify your home and garden. Webinars are approximately 45 minutes followed by a 15-minute period to answer questions and take orders for compost bins.
REGISTER HERE

Smart Gardening Webinar - Organic Gardening
2023-08-24 09:00 - 10:00, 2023-08-31 09:00 - 10:00 | Online
Organic Gardening: build healthy soil, grow herbs and vegetables, and address plant pests and diseases using organic methods.
Join L.A. County Public Works for free webinars to beautify your home and garden. Webinars are approximately 45 minutes followed by a 15-minute period to answer questions and take orders for compost bins.
REGISTER HERE

Sustainability and Environmental Programs Virtual Open House
2023-08-24 12:00 - 13:00 | Online
Join UCLA Extension for a free information session about its Sustainability Certificate, Environmental Studies Certificate, Sustainability and Business Management Specialization, and Food Studies Certificate programs. If you are a career changer or looking to enhance your skills, meet with a program counselor during an interactive Q&A session that will also include an explanation of the certificate’s benefits, including full-time or part-time scheduling.
REGISTER HERE

FREE Home Composting Workshops - Lopez Canyon
2023-08-26 09:00 - 10:30 | Lopez Canyon Environmental Center, 11950 Lopez Canyon Road, Sylmar, CA, 91342, United States
This workshop will teach you how to turn kitchen scraps and yard trimmings into a nutrient-rich soil amendment. Home composting is taught by a team of ten rotating LA Sanitation & Environment green waste specialists. Each participant will take home a free garden plant at the end of the event. Some workshops even have surprise guests!
REGISTER HERE
At Lopez Canyon, there’s free compost and mulch in bulk; please bring your own shovel and container to take as much as you need for your residential gardening project.

Smart Gardening Webinar - Water-Wise Gardening
2023-08-26 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
Water-wise Gardening: create a beautiful drought-tolerant landscape and learn about grasscycling to fortify your lawn.
Join L.A. County Public Works for free webinars to beautify your home and garden. Webinars are approximately 45 minutes followed by a 15-minute period to answer questions and take orders for compost bins.
REGISTER HERE

#MejorAfuera: Latino Conservation Week Achievement Awards Ceremony
2023-08-29 17:00 - 18:00 | Online
The Latino Conservation Week fun isn’t over! Join the #LCW2023 Achievement Awards Ceremony in partnership with Latino Outdoors.
REGISTER HERE

Summer Sustainability Workshop: Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) for Businesses
2023-08-30 09:00 - 11:00 | Online
ESG has quickly become a hot topic in the market, but what does it mean to your business?
Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG) reporting is a framework that can help your company become a leader in the race to Net Zero while helping to retain and attract investors and stakeholders.
Understand the Net Zero mindset, identify the core challenges that must be addressed for an ESG effort to succeed, and take advantage of the many benefits of decarbonizing and electrifying your operation.
This two-hour virtual workshop will lay out a roadmap for companies to get started with corporate Net Zero strategies and provide tangible steps for making measurable progress towards your ESG goals, moving from compliance to performance for a decarbonized building and business.
The workshop will be presented by Verdical Group’s Rebecca Ramsdale (Director of Projects), Bobby Almeida (Director of Commissioning), and Ali Ronning (Project Manager).
REGISTER HERE

Hydrogen’s Role in the Clean Energy Economy
2023-08-30 10:00 - 11:30 | Online
With both states and the federal government investing heavily in new hydrogen projects, hydrogen has re-emerged as a major topic of debate in climate, energy, and environmental justice circles. There are many unresolved questions about hydrogen, including the definition of green hydrogen, how to get hydrogen to where it is needed, and what its appropriate applications are. This webinar will examine the impacts of hydrogen on surrounding communities, the definition of green hydrogen, and appropriate deployment models and end uses for hydrogen as California builds a more equitable, clean energy economy.
REGISTER HERE

Smart Gardening Webinar - Intro to Composting
2023-08-30 18:00 - 19:00 | Online
Intro to Composting: learn about backyard and worm composting to create a rich soil amendment to nourish your garden.
Join L.A. County Public Works for free webinars to beautify your home and garden. Webinars are approximately 45 minutes followed by a 15-minute period to answer questions and take orders for compost bins.
REGISTER HERE

Conversations with James: An interview with Isaias Hernandez
2023-08-31 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
James Page, Chief Global Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Officer for The Nature Conservancy, speaks with Isaias Hernandez, an environmental educator and founder of QueerBrown Vegan. They will be discussing all things climate, diversity, veganism and more!
JOIN HERE

GRID Talks | Energy Sovereignty + Solutions for Indigenous Communities
2023-08-31 12:30 - 13:30 | Online
Indigenous people worldwide are among the first to face the direct consequences of climate change due to their dependence upon and close relationship with the environment and its resources. Indigenous leadership is critical to addressing environmental justice and understanding their role in advancing renewable energy solutions in their traditional homelands. This webinar will bring together leaders to discuss how locally sourced and controlled renewable energy can allow Indigenous people from around the world to take control of their energy resources, keep local dollars in the community, and reap the long-term environmental and economic benefits of their investment.
GRID Talks is a 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.
REGISTER HERE

30X30 Biodiversity Showcase Webinar Celebrating Biodiversity Week
2023-09-06 10:30 - 11:30 | Online
Join special guests to hear about important work happening across the state to protect, steward, and restore nature:

Alina Bodke, Los Angeles County Parks
Alison Young, California Academy of Sciences
Colin Barrows, Cactus to Clouds Institute
Mark Hennelly, California Waterfowl
Michelle Halbur, Pepperwood Preserve
Tiana Williams, Yurok Tribe Wildlife Division

REGISTER HERE

Secretary Speaker Series: Charging Ahead Toward a 100% Clean Energy Future
2023-09-06 12:00 - 13:00 | Online
California leaders have set a world leading target to achieve 100% clean energy over the next two decades. Californians are also rapidly shifting to zero-emission vehicles, which will increase electricity demand. As climate change intensifies, heat waves and extreme weather challenge our existing energy grid. How can California achieve our bold clean energy goals while maintaining reliable and affordable energy to power our communities and economy?
Join for a candid discussion with state energy leaders about how California is working to achieve this bold vision. They’ll discuss recent progress, current challenges, and the road ahead toward our clean energy future.
REGISTER HERE

Green Building Corps Fall Cohort Zoom Info Session
2023-09-06 17:00 - 18:00 | Online
The USGBC-LA Green Building Corps (GBC) is a structured internship program that provides participants with valuable experience, relationships, and opportunities to contribute to green building projects with the goal to make the greater Los Angeles region healthier, more affordable, and sustainable for all.
This engaging online event offers an opportunity to grasp insights into the upcoming autumn cohort. Whether you’re a student, a professional, or simply curious, this session suits anyone keen on enrolling in the GBC Program.
REGISTER HERE

The Engine Inside Film Screening and Panel Discussion
2023-09-06 19:00 - 21:00 | The Aero Theater, 1328 Montana Ave, Santa Monica, CA, 90403, United States
About the Film
The Engine Inside follows six everyday people from vastly different worlds who dedicate their lives to a simple, 200-year-old machine. Their trials and tribulations reveal the bicycle’s unique power to change lives and help build a better world.
Covering many different global issues—from climate change and indigenous trauma to socio-economic inequality and more livable cities —The Engine Inside sparks hope and agency in everyone it touches.
Live Panel Discussion
A panel discussion with Jason Kligier, Mobility Manager at City of Santa Monica and Cynthia Rose, Director Santa Monica Spoke, Co-founder of the Santa Monica Safe Streets Alliance and Board Chair, California Bicycle Coalition & Bike LA will follow the film. More Panelists to be added.
The panel will be moderated by Ferris Kawar, Sustainability Manager, Santa Monica College.
REGISTER HERE

GreenBiz Net Zero conference
2023-09-07 08:30 - 13:15 | Online
GreenBiz Net Zero is an online, collaborative experience that equips you with cutting-edge strategies proven to dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions. Registration is free!
Mobilize your organization’s net-zero transition through small-group discussions, solution-forward workshops and illuminating keynotes — plus, gain access to all the recordings after the event. You’ll form quality connections with leaders across industries and sectors, including experts in carbon markets, transport, finance and policy.
REGISTER HERE

Santa Monica Main Street Community Garden Open House
2023-09-09 09:00 - 11:00 | Main Street Community Garden, 2318 Main St, Santa Monica, CA, 90405, United States
Join for a stroll through this magical habitat just a few blocks from the Pacific Ocean. Grab a complimentary cup of coffee and see what the buzz is all about. Might be the bees and butterflies, might just be the chatter about our new project, the 19th Street Community Farm and Wellness Center, coming soon to the Pico Neighborhood.
This event is free and open to the public.

Los Angeles Union Station Train Festival 2023
2023-09-09 10:00 - 2023-09-10 18:00 | Los Angeles Union Station, 800 North Alameda Street, Los Angeles, CA, 90012, United States
All aboard! Grab family and friends and join Los Angeles Union Station for #TrainFestival2023 on September 9 and 10 to celebrate the past, present and future of train travel with activations and programs throughout the iconic Los Angeles landmark.

Railroad Equipment Tours & Displays
Model Train Displays
Architecture, Arts & Culture Tours
Information Booths
ShopLAUS
Music
Giveaways
Eateries & Amenities and more!

REGISTER HERE

Sunset Restoration Event with Mujeres de la Tierra
2023-09-09 17:30 - 20:00 | Five Points Habitat Restoration Project at Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area, 4100 S La Cienega Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90056, United States
Join nature Nexus Institute (NNI) and Mujeres de la Tierra for a sunset restoration event at the Five Points Habitat Restoration Project at Kenneth Hahn State Recreation Area.
Enjoy a hands-on activity, plant walk, and habitat restoration work.
Please register for this event in advance HERE!
Email info@mujeresdelatierra.org for more information.

Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing Docent Tour: North Side
2023-09-10 08:00 - 12:00 | Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing: North Side, 27400 Canwood Street, Agoura Hills, CA, United States
Guided by the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing Docents, each tour will lead small groups along publicly accessible trails near the South side of the construction site of the Wallis Annenberg Wildlife Crossing in Agoura Hills. Participants will have the opportunity to learn about how the crossing will ensure that local wildlife populations thrive into the future. Tour groups will also have access to factual information about human-wildlife interactions including effective non-lethal strategies that can be used to coexist with cougars and other animal species while living and recreating in or near wild spaces.
REGISTER HERE
There are some challenges associated with accessing this tour.

You can expect to walk approximately < 0.2 miles across uneven terrain and gain approximately 30 feet in elevation during the tour.
This location is also open, with direct sun exposure, and our team recommends wearing appropriate clothing, and taking special precautions [ie. sunscreen, hats] for your safety and comfort during the tour.
There are no bathrooms located at the crossing site.

Want to see where the Docent tours take place? Click on this link or enter into your browser: https://bit.ly/docenttourmap.
The program is free and members of the community are invited to register in advance for the tours. These tours are recommended for ages 18 years or older. If minors attend, they must be accompanied by a supervising adult.
If you have an accommodation request, and for groups larger than 6 people, please email Kelsey Bernard at kelsey@cougarconservancy.org.
The Cougar Conservancy reserves the right to cancel any reservations/tours for any reasons at any given time (i.e. such as severe or imminent deterioration of weather conditions). We will communicate with event registrants prior to the tour time if a cancellation is required.

Open Wetlands event at the Ballona Wetlands
2023-09-10 09:00 - 12:00 | Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve, 303 Culver Blvd, Los Angeles, CA, 90293, United States
The first Saturday and second Sunday of every month (except August). Los Angeles Audubon Society hosts the Open Wetlands event at the Ballona Wetlands Ecological Reserve with the collaboration of Nature Nexus Institute (NNI) staff.
Binoculars are available to borrow! Volunteers help visitors view aquatic invertebrates through microscopes, learn about the unique ecosystems found at Ballona, and view birds through powerful spotting scopes along Ballona Creek. Please call (310) 301-0050 if you have any questions.
Enter through the gate located in the northeast corner of the parking lot behind Alkawater/Gordon’s Market, in the 300 block of Culver Blvd. in Playa del Rey.
No baby strollers please.
New to Ballona Wetlands? Check out this guide to learn more!

Sustainability Solutions Colloquium: Eli Yablonovitch
2023-09-11 15:30 - 17:00 | USC Michelson Center 101 & 102, 1002 Childs Way MCB 101 & 102, Los Angeles, CA, 90089, United States
Join visiting University of California, Berkeley Electrical Engineering & Computer Sciences Professor Eli Yablonovitch for the inaugural gathering of the Sustainability Solutions Colloquium in MCB 101 & 102 from 3:30-5:00 PM on September 11th. This seminar will focus on Professor Yablonovitch’s research into the developing field of carbon sequestration through engineered dry biolandfills as a solution to the climate crisis.
REGISTER HERE

Stanford Environment & Energy Panel Series: This is Not Your Usual Heat Extreme
2023-09-12 11:00 - 12:30 | Online
2023 has seen heat records smashed around the world in places like Phoenix, AZ, where temperatures of 110 degrees or more continued for over 30 straight days. Rising temperatures and increased heat have been accurately projected in climate change modeling, but to describe 2023 temperatures as the new normal is inaccurate; we are just beginning to feel the effects of a changing climate, and things will likely get worse. How much worse it gets depends on our ability to mitigate GHG emissions and implement adaptation measures.
Stanford scientists and other climate experts will discuss what we know about extreme heat and the range of possible future scenarios we should reasonably prepare for. They will discuss the health implications of extreme heat for people, especially vulnerable populations, and highlight additional significant impacts on the planet and nature.
REGISTER HERE

Carbon Negative Technology to Solve the Climate Crisis
2023-09-12 16:00 - 17:30 | HYBRID: UCLA Mong Auditorium and Zoom, Engineering VI, 404 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, United States
SPECIAL EVENT
Eli Yablonovitch & Harry Deckman
Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences Dept.,
﻿University of California, Berkeley & UCLA
Location: UCLA Engineering | Mong Auditorium
Date/Time: September 12, 2023 | 4:00 pm PT
Zoom: https://ucla.zoom.us/j/3965234221
Abstract:
In 1977, the physicist Freeman Dyson1 proposed the burial of biomass, as a scalable, economical solution to the CO2 problem. Today we know that the harvested vegetation should be buried in an engineered dry biolandfill. Plant biomass can be preserved for thousands of years by burial in a dry environment with sufficiently low thermodynamic “Water Activity”, which is the relative humidity in equilibrium with the biomass. A “Water Activity” <60% will not support life, suppressing anaerobic organisms, thus preserving the biomass for millennia. Current agriculture costs, and biolandfill costs indicate $60/ton of sequestered CO2 which corresponds to $0.53/gallon of gasoline. If scaled to the level of a major crop, existing CO2 can be extracted from the atmosphere and sequester a significant fraction of prior historical CO2 emissions
Prof. Yablonovitch introduced the idea that strained semiconductor lasers could have superior performance due to reduced valence band (hole) eective mass. With almost every human interaction with the internet, optical telecommunication occurs by strained semiconductor lasers. He is regarded as a Father of the Photonic BandGap concept, and he coined the term “Photonic Crystal”. The geometrical structure of the first experimentally realized Photonic bandgap, is sometimes called “Yablonovite”. In his photovoltaic research, Yablonovitch introduced the 4(n squared) (“Yablonovitch Limit”) light-trapping factor that is in worldwide use, for almost all commercial solar panels. He was elected to NAE, NAS, NAI, AmAcArSci, and as Foreign Member, UK Royal Society.

Net Zero 2023 Conference
2023-09-13 18:30 - 2023-09-14 17:30 | Los Angeles Convention Center, 1201 S Figueroa St, Los Angeles, CA, 90015, United States
Join Verdical Group September 13+14 in Los Angeles to experience educational sessions on climate, groundbreaking keynotes, an in-person expo, and more!
REGISTER HERE

Insights from the New End of Life EV Battery Policy Simulator
2023-09-14 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
The rapid growth of electric vehicles (EVs) powered by lithium ion batteries (LIBs) is a key mechanism for achieving environmental targets for greenhouse gas and air pollution mitigation in the transport sector. Yet, the potential impacts of producing and disposing of these batteries and the risks of resource constraints affecting the availability of materials required for their production has started to focus attention on the need for advancing policy, infrastructure, and technology required for robust and environmentally preferable LIB end-of-life management.
Given the weak economics and an uncertain future regulatory environment for LIB reuse and recycling, swift policy intervention is required for sustainable and safe end-of-life treatment of LIBs. In this webinar, Dr. Alissa Kendall, Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at UC Davis, will share insights from the new End of Life EV Battery Policy Simulator. Dr. Kendall’s research integrates economic, environmental, and social factors in a mixed methods approach in effort to help shape robust policies for LIB end-of-life management.
REGISTER HERE

MBA Academy: Understanding the Business of Climate
2023-09-15 10:00 - 11:00 | Online
MBA Academy is a new virtual education series in which you can learn directly from business leaders, academic thought leaders and entrepreneurs about how to be an effective climate-conscious leader and navigate the new climate economy.
The first speaker is Jamie Alexander, Director of Drawdown Labs at Project Drawdown. Jamie will discuss how every MBA Job is a Climate Job and how current MBAs can see the climate opportunities within different career paths.
REGISTER HERE

Community Habitat Restoration
2023-09-16 08:00 - 11:00 | Baldwin Hills Scenic Overlook State Park Visitor Center, 6300 Hetzler Road, Culver City, CA, 90232, United States
Join this habitat restoration event! It’s a great opportunity to learn about native plants and local wildlife, all while spending some time outdoors in beautiful Baldwin Hills Parklands. This event is in partnership with California State Parks Foundation.
Spaces are limited, so if you are interested in participating, please RSVP to the coordinator at least 24 hours in advance of the event: amendiaperez@naturenexusinstitute.org
Important things to know about this event:

Volunteers under 18 years of age must be accompanied by a parent/guardian. Habitat restoration tasks are best suited for people who are 12 years of age or older.
Please wear long pants and covered shoes.
Please bring plenty of drinking water for yourself as well as ample sun protection.
Work sites are frequently off trail and may be on uneven terrain.
We typically meet up at the top parking lot adjacent to the visitor center to start the event, but we work in several sites throughout the park. If you arrive late you may have trouble finding us. Please be sure to RSVP so we know to expect you!

2nd Annual Sustainable Landscape Open House and Summer Seed Saving
2023-09-16 09:00 - 12:00 | Ishihara Park Learning Garden, 2909 Exposition Blvd., Santa Monica, CA, 90404, United States
Stop by Ishihara Park on Saturday, September 16th for the Sustainable Landscape Open House.
Learn more about the City’s Landscape Rebate program and get inspired with the landscape at Ishihara.
REGISTER HERE
Seed Saving Workshop Begins at 10:00 AM, with “Experts” leading through harvesting, cleaning and storing.
