Upcoming Events In California
Past Events In California
Building Community-Academic Partnerships for EJ
For the NorCal University-Community network, Iris Stewart-Frey co-organized “Voices of the Community: Building Community-Academic Partnerships for Environmental Justice in the northern San Joaquin Valley” in collaboration with the Tuolumne River Trust (Modesto Office) and the Environmental Justice Program of Catholic Charities (Stockton) and collaborators at Stanford University. Presentations focused on climate change planning (by SCU’s CJ Gabbe), air pollution (by Nayamin Martinez of Central California Environmental Justice Network), and food security (by Stergios Roussos, UC Merced Community University Research and Action for Justice).
Building Partnerships NSanJoaquin Valley10.15.2020 Slides
Learning about 15 years of multi-sector funding of community-academic partnerships in the South Bay
The panel discussion focusing on environmental justice funding and government partnerships was an inspiring session on SJSU's funding model for CommUniverCity, their anchor institution program working in partnership with the City of San Jose. CommUniverCity is a nationally recognized place-based community engaged learning model that operates in about 1.5 mile radius around SJSU. It has been working with San Jose City and other organizational partners for 15 years. With a $670,000 annual budget, they are able to involve 5,000+ low-income residents and 1,700 SJSU students per year in a long-term investment responding to community priorities. During the panel, the presenters shared how they have successfully funded their own EJ work and attendees identified common challenges that they should address moving forward and how to improve collaboration. The panelists included Katherine Cushing (CommUniverCity’s Executive Director), Imelda Rodriguez (CommUniverCity’s Community Director) and Michael Gonzalez (City of San Jose Environmental Services). This event was hosted by SJSU and the Environmental Justice & the Common Good Initiative at Santa Clara University.
September 1st, 2020
Testimony on the Food Systems and Public Comment Relating to Item 10: Food, Restaurants, Agriculture, and Health Access Initiative
The South Bay Food Justice Collaborative's submitted a comment to contribute to SCC board of supervisors meeting agenda item #10 regarding the Food, Agriculture and Health Access Initiative (FAHAI) Referral and a report back that took place online on september 1st, part of this agenda packet. Christopher Bacon worked with an intern Katherine Omalley on this policy doc, and also collaborated with colleagues from La Mesa Verde, Second Harvest Food Bank, Stanford and others with the goal to build more equity into the emergency food security response and also try to build back a more sustainable food system
August 12 and 14, 2020
Research team presented at the Modesto General Plan meeting.
Research team Iris Stewart- Frey, Chloe Gentile-Montgomery and Meghan Adams presented a few maps and ideas regarding data and communities at two meetings that TRT and Catholic Charities convened on August 12 and 14 for Modesto Disadvantaged Unincorporated Communities.
08,2020 Modesto Research Contribution to Community Action Plan
Image: Mapping of wells and nitrate contamination 2010-2020
July 14th, 2020
Models of community partnerships for environmental justice , applications and impacts: Challenges and solutions for supporting community partners
The Northern California Network for Community-Academic partnerships in Environmental Justice, and the Environmental Justice and Common Good Initiative in collaboration with colleagues from Stanford University and UC Berkeley hosted a virtual workshop on successful models for community-academic engagement for environmental justice. The goal of this workshop was to present models, illuminate issues, and pose solutions around community partner engagement. Over 60 representatives from community and government organizations, and Northern California academic institutions attended, The workshop included presentations on different models for sustained collaboration on environmental justice work for change from the academic and community partner perspective. Models presented and referenced included theUC Davis Center for Regional Change, the UC Berkeley Water Equity Science Shop, and the Stanford Future Bay Initiative, CommUniversity at SJSU, and the Environmental Justice and the Common Good Initiative at SCU. The event sparked a conversation about EJ in a grounded way that offers practical solutions to common challenges that researchers and community organizations face in building effective partnerships.
Slides: Models of Community Partnerships Presentations. July 14, 2020 Worshop
June 24, 2020
ONLINE: Environmental justice concerns in the northern Central Valley region.
On June 24th, 2020 TheThe Environmental Justice and the Common Good Initiative at SCU, jointly with the Tuolumne River Trust (Modesto Office) and the Environmental Justice Program of Catholic Charities (Stockton) and collaborators at Stanford University and UC Berkeley hosted a listening session for community environmental justice concerns in the northern Central Valley region. Over 60 representatives of 22 community and local government organizations and six academic institutions participated. Panel presentations on community-academic partnerships for environmental justice were followed by discussions in breakout groups that covered six topics: Food access in the context of Covid-19, safe access to parks/open space, sustainable water and climate justice planning, affordable housing & sustainable transportation, air quality and economics & green jobs especially under Covid-19. Common emerging themes were the need for financial support, collaboration, and expertise, the need to follow-up with networking and collaborative effort with the goal of developing long-term partnerships.
June24 Worshop Notes EJConcerns Central Valley
June24Workshop Slides EJConcerns Central Valley
Image: Modesto City Entrance
April 3, 2020
ONLINE: Workshop on real-time campaigns in EJ: Amah Mutsun fight against mining at Juristac
The Environmental Justice and the Common Good Initiative at SCU, jointly with collaborators at San Jose State and Stanford Universities, hosted an online workshop with about 60 participants from 11 universities, including SCU, SJSU, Stanford, UC Berkeley, UC Santa Cruz, UC Davis, USF, and more, as well as the City of San Jose and the Community Water Center. A focal topic of the gathering was a workshop by Valentin Lopez, Chairman of the Amah Mutsun Tribal Band, and Michelle Glowa (UC Santa Cruz) on the role of real-time campaigns in environmental justice teaching and research. Chairman Lopez shared updates on the Campaign to Protect Juristac, historically tribal lands in southern Santa Clara County under siege by the potential granting of a mining permit. The gathering inspired participants to expand regional networking on environmental justice, and share teaching and research expertise in support of the campaign. In addition, the Northern California Environmental Justice Network followed up with a joint letter to the Santa Clara County Planning commission urging the protection of the Juristac lands. The letter was signed by 80 members from various Northern California Institutions. Another letter from the Santa Clara University Community was signed by 369 supporters.
Workshop Agenda:Real-time campaigns as a teaching tool in EJ
Condensed Workshop Notes 04032020
Letter of Support Juristac NorCalEJ Network
Image: Valentin Lopez
March 6, 2020
Jahi Chappell - Food Justice
Jahi Chappell, author of Beginning to End Hunger (UC Press), and recently-appointed Executive Director of Food First, presented recent research and future prospects for food systems change at scales ranging from cities to international policy fora convened by the United Nations, drawing on his study in Belo Horizonte, Brazil. He also shared lessons for how university researchers can collaborate productively and respectfully with communities, which helped to inform the Initiative’s ongoing work with the emerging South Bay Food Justice Collaborative. Chappell’s talk was co-sponsored by SCU’s Center for Food Innovation and Entrepreneurship in the Leavey School of Business.
Image: Jahi Chappell.
March 6, 2020
Food Justice in the South Bay Half Day Workshop
The EJ and Common Good Initiative's emerging food justice program collaborated with the University of California Cooperative Extension and community-based food justice groups, including Fresh Approach, La Mesa Verde, Valle Verde, and Veggielution, to organize a half-day workshop at SCU. The workshop brought together 38 South Bay organizations working on food justice, farming, and public health issues for learning, dialogue, and exploration of potential research and social change partnerships to leverage collective impact. Participants shared their work and learned from food justice leaders in the wider Bay Area.
Photo Credit: Isabel Medina, Fresh Approach
>> read the South Bay Food Justice Workshop Agenda
>> read the South Bay Food Justice workshop Executive Summary