Steering Committee

Meet Our Members

  • Alison Yoshimoto-Towery, Executive Director, UC–CSU California Collaborative for Neurodiversity and Learning and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Alison Yoshimoto-Towery

    Executive Director, UC–CSU California Collaborative for Neurodiversity and Learning

  • Annamarie Francois, Associate Dean of Public Engagement, UCLA and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Annamarie Francois

    Associate Dean of Public Engagement, UCLA

  • Arianne Teherani, Co-Director, Center for Climate, Health and Equity, Professor of Medicine, UC San Francisco, and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Arianne Teherani

    Co-Director, Center for Climate, Health and Equity and Professor of Medicine, UC San Francisco

  • Benjamin Fordham, Senior Sustainability Consultant, Arcadis and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Benjamin Fordham

    Senior Sustainability Consultant, Arcadis

  • Candice Dickens-Russell, CEO, Friends of the Los Angeles River and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Candice Dickens-Russell

    CEO, Friends of the Los Angeles River

  • Cassandra Drake, Assistant Professor of Liberal Studies, Stanislaus State and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Cassandra Drake

    Assistant Professor of Liberal Studies, Stanislaus State

  • Danielle Harlow, Professor of Education and Director, Certificate in College and University Teaching, UC Santa Barbara and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Danielle Harlow

    Associate Dean, Academics & Faculty Development Gevirtz School of Education; Director, Certificate in College and University Teaching

  • Deb Morrison

    Coordinator and Learning Scientist, University of California's Center for Climate Justice.

  • Frank Gomez, Executive Director, STEM-NET, CSU Chancellor’s Office and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Frank Gomez

    Executive Director, STEM-NET, CSU Chancellor’s Office

  • Frank Niepold, Senior Climate Education Program Manager and Coordinator, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Frank Niepold

    Senior Climate Education Program Manager and Coordinator, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration

  • Jeff Schmidt, Senior Director of Strategy and Communications, Student Affairs Division at Stanford and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Jeff Schmidt

    Senior Director of Strategy and Communications, Student Affairs Division at Stanford

  • Jerry Song, STEAM Coordinator for PK–12 Instruction, Los Angeles Unified School District and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Jerry Song

    STEAM Coordinator for PK–12 Instruction, Los Angeles Unified School District

  • Jessica Pratt, Associate Professor of Teaching, UC Irvine and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Jessica Pratt

    Associate Professor of Teaching, UC Irvine

  • Joana Tavares, Director, West LA Community College and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Joana Tavares

    Marine Scientist, UC Irvine and Director, California Center for Climate Change Education at West LA College

  • Joely Proudfit, Director, California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center and Department Chair and Professor of American Indian Studies, CSU San Marcos and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Joely Proudfit

    Director, California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center and Department Chair and Professor of American Indian Studies, CSU San Marcos

  • Juan Manuel Rubio, Emerging Voices Fellow, American Council of Learned Societies, Princeton and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Juan Manuel Rubio

    Emerging Voices Fellow, American Council of Learned Societies, Princeton (soon to be UC Santa Barbara)

  • Kimi Waite, Assistant Professor, Child & Family Studies, CSU Los Angeles and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Kimi Waite

    Assistant Professor, Child & Family Studies, CSU Los Angeles

  • Kristina Cullen, Sustainability Director, UC Davis and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Kristina Cullen

    Sustainability Director, UC Davis

  • Kristy Drutman, CEO and Founder, Brown Girl Green and Co-Founder, Green Jobs Board and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Kristy Drutman

    CEO and Founder, Brown Girl Green and Co-Founder, Green Jobs Board

  • Matt St.Clair, Chief Sustainability Officer, UC Office of the President and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Matt St.Clair

    Chief Sustainability Officer, UC Office of the President

  • Michael Downs, Director of Justice and Kinship, Bishop O'Dowd High School, and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Michael Downs

    Director of Justice and Kinship, Bishop O'Dowd High School

  • Michael Karavolias, Sustainable Innovation Specialist, California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Michael Karavolias

    Sustainable Innovation Specialist, California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development

  • Michael Matsuda, Superintendent, Anaheim Union High School District and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Michael Matsuda

    Superintendent, Anaheim Union High School District

  • Nalleli Cobo, Student, Activist, and Co-founder, South Central Youth Leadership Coalition and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Nalleli Cobo

    Student, Activist, and Co-founder, South Central Youth Leadership Coalition

  • Nan Renner, Senior Director, Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Nan Renner

    Senior Director, Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego

  • Rebecca Anderson, Head of Education and Storytelling, Action for Climate Emergency and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Rebecca Anderson

    Head of Education and Storytelling, Action for Climate Emergency

  • Shannon Gordon, Education Programs Consultant, California Department of Education and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Shannon Gordon

    Education Programs Consultant, California Department of Education

  • Sky Keyoung, Student, Founder, ClimateLitNow

    Sky Keyoung

    Student, Founder, ClimateLitNow, Youth Action Team Co-chair, Orange County Climate Reality Project

  • Skyler Griswold, Student, Humanitarian, and Founder, Future Generations Now and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Skyler Griswold

    Student, Humanitarian, and Founder, Future Generations Now

  • Steve LaDochy, Professor Emeritus of Geosciences and Environment, Cal State LA and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Steve LaDochy

    Professor Emeritus of Geosciences and Environment, Cal State LA

  • Veronica Roach, Coordinator, City of Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Department and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Veronica Roach

    Coordinator, City of Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Department

  • Wendell Brase, Associate Chancellor of UC Sustainability, UC Irvine and ECCLPs Steering Committee Member

    Wendell Brase

    Associate Chancellor of UC Sustainability, UC Irvine

More About the Steering Committee Members

  • Alison is the executive director of the UC–CSU California Collaborative for Neurodiversity and Learning. In this role, she oversees and coordinates a statewide hub of activities and resources developed by leading researchers, UC and CSU teacher education programs, and partnering districts and schools to advance learning for neurodiverse students, which will ultimately support better educational opportunities for all children.

  • Dr. Francois is Associate Dean of Public Engagement at the UCLA School of Education and Information Studies (Ed&IS). In this role, Dr. Francois ignites opportunities for transformative “good trouble” between and among Ed&IS initiatives to directly engage and influence K–16 education policy and practice in California. Dr. Francois represents UCLA Ed&IS in local, state, and national convenings that spur equity and innovation in educator preparation, development, and support. She currently provides thought partnership and service to a range of agencies and organizations seeking to meet the needs of California's increasingly diverse student body and educator workforce including: the California Commission on Teacher Credentialing; the UC–CSU Collaborative for Neuroscience, Diversity, and Language; the California Community Schools Transformative Assistance Center; the 21st Century California Leadership Academy State Center; the CSU Center for Closing the Opportunity Gap; and the California Teacher Education Innovation and Research Network. Her public scholarship, teaching, and service to the community contribute significantly to educator development, organizational leadership, and transformational partnerships.

  • Dr. Teherani is Professor of Medicine and Education Scientist in the Center for Faculty Educators at the UC San Francisco School of Medicine. She is the Director for Program Evaluation and Education Continuous Quality Improvement for the School of Medicine. Dr. Teherani is the Founding Co-director of the UC Center for Climate Health and Equity. Her research, which has informed local and global conversations, research agendas, and policies, focuses on advancing knowledge in equity and social justice, professionalism, and education for climate change and health. Her research identifies and addresses the role of accepted assessment and learning environment practices in perpetuating educational disparities and she studies interventions aimed at creating equity during health professions education. Her research underscores the important role of solutions built on exemplars of success in contributing to equity. She has led studies aimed at identification and remediation of unprofessional behaviors and the role.

  • Climate and Energy professional working to implement sustainable solutions across diverse sectors. I work with transportation, energy, utility, and technology clients to implement durable solutions supporting real change. Areas of focus include renewable energy, operational and supply chain decarbonization, greenhouse gas quantification and reporting, nature-based solutions, and stakeholder engagement. I'm driven by my belief in our ability to learn, adapt, and shape the future we want.Climate and Energy professional working to implement sustainable solutions across diverse sectors. I work with transportation, energy, utility, and technology clients to implement durable solutions supporting real change. Areas of focus include renewable energy, operational and supply chain decarbonization, greenhouse gas quantification and reporting, nature-based solutions, and stakeholder engagement. I'm driven by my belief in our ability to learn, adapt, and shape the future we want.

  • Candice is a passionate leader in sustainability, education, environmental literacy, and environmental justice. With nearly 20 years of experience in the environmental nonprofit sector, Candice has worked with schools, school districts, government agencies, utilities, and municipalities to develop and deliver high quality sustainability and environmental education programs. She has led large teams and multi-million dollar contracts creating innovative environmental education resources. Candice served as the regional director for environmental education for the California Department of Education for 12 years, representing Los Angeles County. There she built a strong and vibrant network of Los Angeles-based environmental organizations. In 2015, Candice was selected as one of 47 people to serve on the Blueprint for Environmental Literacy Taskforce for the state and continues to serve on the implementation committee, the California Environmental Literacy Initiative as the Equity Innovation Hub Chair. An equity thought leader with a passion for environmental justice, Candice is also certified in Diversity and Inclusion and Micro-aggressions. She has led organizations in equity strategic planning and organizational development for over five years.

  • Dr. Drake (she/her/xers/ella) is an Assistant Professor of Liberal Studies at Stanislaus State. She earned her PhD in Education (Teaching, Learning and Culture) at San Diego State in conjunction with Claremont Graduate University. She has a MA in Curriculum and Instruction, a California multiple subject teaching credential and a BA in Liberal Studies; all from Sacramento State. She is a former K–8 classroom teacher, and used her dissertation to explore the development of teacher-candidate cultural competence toward the overall development of a social justice orientation. Broadly, her research interests are based on educators addressing the social/academic advancement and learner rights of K–12 public school students from ethnically, culturally, linguistically and socioeconomically diverse communities. Within her work as a teacher educator, she believes advocacy is a necessary disposition for future teachers and seeks to advocate against all forms of oppression including but not limited to racism, sexism, classism, ableism, nationalism, homophobia, xenophobia and religious discrimination.

  • Craig is the former associate director of The Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley. He focuses on building capacity to improve science, ocean, and environmental literacy in formal and informal education systems nationally and internationally. He has led teams that work in partnership with dozens of school districts, and serves as a consultant and coach to district leadership teams and superintendents. He was the founding director of Marine Activities Resources and Education, and was the lead Principal Investigator of the National Science Foundation Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence—California, also serving as the first Chair of the National Center for Ocean Sciences Education Excellence Council. He co-led the Ocean Literacy Campaign that resulted in Ocean Literacy: The Essential Principles of Ocean Sciences for Learners of All Ages, The Ocean Literacy Scope and Sequence for Grades K–12, The Alignment of Ocean Literacy and the Next Generation Science Standards, and the International Ocean Literacy Survey. He is the founding co-chair of the statewide California Environmental Literacy Initiative, and a founding member and co-chair of the ChangeScale (a Bay Area environmental education collaborative) Steering Committee. He designs instructional materials and programs that promote language development among emerging bilingual students. He is currently the principal investigator of the National Science Foundation-funded Working Toward Racial Equity Project that builds on a previous pilot project, Working Toward Equitable Organizations. He also co-leads the Network for Network Leaders: Justice, Community and Outdoor Learning.

  • Dr. Harlow is a professor of STEM Education at UC Santa Barbara (UCSB). As a professor of STEM education, she works with educators to develop the capacity of youth to innovate a more sustainable and just future. Throughout her career, her work has resulted in undergraduate physics curricula, engineering-focused museum field trips and classroom activities for elementary school students, digital games focused on quantum computing, professional development for museum facilitators, and teacher education and professional learning programs that develop the capacity of teachers to focus students’ attention on their local environment and develop the skills to create a sustainable and just future.

    Danielle Harlow has a PhD in Education from the University of Colorado, Boulder, an MS in Geophysics from Stanford (now the Doerr School of Sustainability) and a BS in Physics from Valparaiso University. At UCSB, she is the faculty director of the California Global Education Project, director of the Certificate in College and University Teaching, and Associate Dean of faculty development for the Gevirtz Graduate School of Education.

  • Dr. Deb L. Morrison is the Coordinator for the University of California's Center for Climate Justice. She works at the intersection of justice, climate science, and learning as a climate and anti-oppression activist, scientist, learning scientist, educator, mother, locally elected official, and many other things besides. Deb works in research-practice-policy partnerships from local community to international scales. She works to iteratively understand complex socio-ecological systems through design-based and action-oriented research while at the same time seeking to improve human-environment relationships and sustainability. Dr. Morrison is a well-published author on diverse topics that intersect with climate justice learning and continues to foster collaborative writing partnerships across disciplines and communities that have historically been disconnected. Information about Dr. Morrison’s work can be found at www.debmorrison.me

  • Dr. Gomez is the executive director of STEM-NET, a multicampus consortium, based at the CSU Chancellor’s Office where he has led STEM initiatives for the 23-campus CSU system since 2019. He is also a professor of Chemistry at Cal State LA—since 1994. He received his BS (1986) and PhD (1991) in Chemistry from Cal State LA and UCLA, respectively. From 1991–1994 he was a Damon Runyon-Walter Winchell Cancer Research Fund Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard University. Dr. Gomez’s research focuses in developing microfluidic point-of-care diagnostic devices, fuel cells, and batteries. He has mentored over 140 students and postdocs, the majority from underrepresented groups, and published over 130 publications in these fields. Since 1994, he has received over $21 million in research funding. As executive director of STEM-NET he has been a part of collaborative grants securing over $50 million in funding. As executive director, some of his work focuses on equity in STEM, climate change, social justice, workforce development, diversity, and STEM for the social good.

  • Frank is the Senior Climate Education Program Manager and Coordinator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Climate Program Office in Silver Spring Maryland, Climate.gov education section lead, the 7th UNFCCC National Communication Report Chapter on Education Engagement Workforce Development and Training lead, education and youth delegate for the US at the 2015 Conference of Parties (COP21) Obama Administration, federal lead for the Climate Education and Literacy Initiative, founding member of the CLEAN Network and co-chair of the CLEAN Network Leadership Board, and a member of the Federal Steering Committee for the Fourth National Climate Assessment (NCA4). At NOAA, he develops and implements NOAA's Climate goal, education, and outreach efforts that specifically relate to NOAA's Climate goal and literacy objective. Frank is the Teaching Climate Lead for NOAA’s Climate.gov web portal that offers learning activities, curriculum materials, multimedia resources, and professional learning opportunities for formal and informal educators who want to incorporate climate science into their work. Additionally he is the managing lead of the US Global Change Research Program’s (GCRP) Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Science. He received a MSEd in Earth Space Science Education (2006) from John's Hopkins University with areas of concentration in Earth Systems, Scientist/Teacher/Student Collaboration, and Earth Systems education focused on climate.

  • Jeff Schmidt is currently the senior director of strategy and communications for the Student Affairs Division at Stanford. He helps the university enhance the student experience, communicate about complex issues, and deliver world-class programs and services. Prior to joining Stanford, Jeff was the chief executive officer of Ignited, a national education nonprofit focused on advanced science and technology career awareness for underserved students. Jeff was instrumental in establishing Sustainability and Water as one of Ignited’s ten career pathways and he helped focus the organization on bringing green and blue jobs to a larger number of students across California and beyond. During his twenty-five-year career in industry, he’s held a variety of business, communications, and operational roles based in the U.S., Switzerland, and Ireland at Lockheed Martin, Lam Research, eBay, Hewlett-Packard, Quantum, and Texas Instruments and has led global teams across the Americas, Asia-Pacific, and Europe.

  • Jerry is the STEAM coordinator for the Division of Instruction at the Los Angeles Unified School District. He has nearly a decade of experience as a district administrator and nearly thirty years as an educator in a variety of roles. He graduated from UC Davis with a BS and is currently a National Board Certified Teacher.

  • Jessica is a community ecologist broadly interested in research and education in the applied fields of conservation science and restoration ecology. She currently is an associate professor of Teaching in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UC Irvine and mainly teaches courses in the campus-wide minor in Global Sustainability and the Masters in Conservation and Restoration Science program.

    Jessica has been a dedicated researcher and educator in the fields of ecology and conservation since 2003 and has been working and living in Southern California since 2005. She has conducted research on animal behavior, tropical bird foraging ecology, the conservation value of tropical agricultural ecosystems, the dynamics of butterfly species range shifts in response to climate change, and most recently, the effects of plant species responses to environmental change on associated animal communities. Her teaching experience spans middle school up to the university graduate level and she has taught courses ranging from genetics to conservation biology. Jessica’s current work integrates her research and teaching by focusing on ecological grief and climate anxiety in students, or the affective domains of environmental education.

  • Jo Tavares (she/ they) is a scientist, an educator, and a community organizer who loves to help people find their own ways of getting involved in Climate Action. As the Director for the new California Center for Climate Change Education at West LA College, Jo is working with students, faculty and community members to solve the climate crisis while improving lives by prioritizing projects centered on justice and equity. Jo also loves art, and is particularly into street theater, improv, and dancing “forró” and “samba de roda”, which are traditional dances from Bahia, Brazil, where Jo is originally from.

  • Dr. Proudfit (Luiseño/Payómkawichum) is an award winning educator, activist and content creator. She serves as the department chair of the American Indian Studies Department and the director of the California Indian Culture and Sovereignty Center at CSU San Marcos. In 2016, she was appointed by President Barack Obama to the National Advisory Council on Indian Education. In 2021, California Governor Gavin Newsom appointed her to the Commission on the Status of Women and Girls. Dr. Proudfit is the executive director of the California’s American Indian; Indigenous Film Festival, and she owns Native Media Strategies, LLC, which produces with the entertainment industries and professionals to foster authentic representation of Native Americans. Proudfit holds positions on numerous boards and committees and previously served on the State of California’s Environmental Literacy Task Force. She is the lead author and researcher on the groundbreaking annual reports on the State of American Indian and Alaskan Native Education in California. Dr. Proudfit along with Dr. Warner are the series editors of a ten-book contract with Information Age Publishing, Charlotte, NC. The books address American Indian education through the lens of ten different regions throughout the US. The first book published in 2017 focuses on California, On Indian Ground: A Return to Indigenous Knowledge—Generating Hope, Leadership and Sovereignty through Education. Proudfit has worked for nearly three decades to decolonize California curriculum to add authentic California Indian voices, histories, peoples to the California state curriculum. In April 2022, she was named one of two Educators of the Year by Variety Magazine.

  • Dr. Rubio is a scholar of capitalism, labor, and the environment. His work focuses primarily on the history of the mining industry and the struggles of those touched by its environmental legacy. He is currently working on a book manuscript about a series of environmental conflicts connected to the rise of industrial copper mining in central Peru (1880–1930). In addition to studying the social history of miners, mine-owners, transnational capitalists, and Indigenous communities during this period, Dr. Rubio researches the impact of the mining industry on disadvantaged communities today. Through community-based collaborations with public health scholars and environmental activists, Dr. Rubio is doing scientific research on the sources of lead contamination in California and its connection to histories of capitalism, corporate science, and environmental racism. As part of the Blue Lab at Princeton University, he is also curating an audio series, Healing with the Soil, about different experiences with soil remediation around the world.

  • Dr. Gomez is a professor in the School of Education & Information Studies at UCLA. She leverages design-based and impact-focused research methodologies to study and support literate practices in STEM teaching and learning with the aim of supporting more socially just and equitably focused designed tools and contexts. She is a 2019 National Science Foundation Computer Science for All funding awardee, as a part of the Researcher-Practitioner Partnership (RPP) program. The focus of which was the co-design of effective problem-solving pedagogy practices in elementary computer science classes. The work introduced an extension of the conjecture map conceptual tool, by adding equity conjectures to the mapping. The equity conjectures supported conceptualization, and co-design of the computer science lesson templates. She is faculty sponsor for UCLA's STEM+C3 project, which is a teacher residency program that integrates both a secondary single subject credential in math or science and a supplementary authorization in computer science. STEM+C3 aims to disrupt dominant notions of neutrality in both STEM and computer science fields by infusing a humanizing lens within the computer science and STEM fields. She is also a co-principal investigator on a 3-year WT Grant Foundation funded study of the use of research evidence in working within RPPs. In this work, they aim to illustrate the potential of RPPs for addressing persistent systemic K–12 educational inequities. She has been awarded funding from the WT Grant, Spencer, Joyce Family, and MacArthur Foundations, among others. The author of over 60 publications, she has received numerous awards, including the Harold A. and Lois Haytin Faculty Award from UCLA for her collaborative work with practitioners.

  • Kimi will be an Assistant Professor of Child and Family Studies at Cal State LA in Fall 2023. A former elementary school teacher and K–12 STEM Curriculum Specialist in South Los Angeles, she has received awards and fellowships from organizations such as the California Council for the Social Studies, North American Association for Environmental Education, Yale Program on Climate Change Communication, and UCLA's Center for Diverse Leadership in Science. Her research and professional praxis are situated at the intersections of environmental justice education, geography, critical pedagogy, and social studies. Her work has been published in outlets such as Grist, Ms. Magazine, The Emancipator, PBS, American Documentary & The Center for Asian American Media, and the Journal of Curriculum & Pedagogy.

  • Kristina has a decade of professional work experience in environmental sustainability focusing on resource conservation, strategic master planning, and behavioral-driven change management. Kristina strategizes in the development and implementation of waste, water, energy, and emissions reduction strategies, while engaging people in shifting behaviorally-driven sustainability culture. Kristina has expertise in the following areas: metrics management; utilities management; energy project management; budget management and financial forecasting; technical writing, reporting and public speaking; expertise in grant resource development; government relations; knowledge of EPA, federal, state and local environmental and utility regulations; community engagement liaison; and marketing and outreach. Kristina is also a self-taught beekeeper!

  • Kristy Drutman, otherwise known as “Browngirl Green” is a speaker, consultant, media producer, and environmental educator passionate about working at the intersections between media, diversity, and environmentalism.

    As a young entrepreneur, Kristy has educated hundreds of thousands of people across the globe about modern-day environmental issues through speeches and media content, and facilitates workshops centered around environmental media and storytelling in cities across the US.

    Kristy is also the co-founder of the Green Jobs Board, a climate tech start-up bridging the equity and inclusion gap within the green economy through conversations, resources, and pathways to bring more diverse talent into the environmental field.

  • As director of research opportunities for the CSU Chancellor’s Office, Dr. Leslie Ponciano oversees programmatic and administrative aspects of research, scholarship, and creative activities, including systemwide initiatives. She mentors faculty, administrators, and staff in grant proposal development and builds interdisciplinary research communities across 23-campuses. Her prior background includes faculty and academic program director positions at UCLA (Applied Developmental Psychology), Cal State LA (Child and Family Studies), and Loyola Marymount University (Early Childhood Education) for both undergraduate and graduate students. Additionally, Dr. Ponciano served as the director of research for an education technology software company. Her active research agenda has examined the role of perception and implicit biases in interactions between caregiving adults and children, particularly in foster care. She has presented at numerous conferences and published academic books and journal articles as well as two children’s books. Dr. Ponciano received her BA in psychology from UC Irvine, her MA in developmental psychology from Teachers College at Columbia University, and her PhD in psychological studies in education (AKA human development) from UCLA.

  • Leslie Mintz Tamminen is a director of Seventh Generation Advisors, an environmental nonprofit in Santa Monica. In 2006, she founded the Clean Seas Coalition, a growing group of environmentalists, scientists, students, and community leaders pushing states to strengthen laws reducing plastic pollution at its source. Leslie spearheaded Clean Seas Coalition efforts to create and pass California’s SB 270 law to ban single-use plastic bags. Formerly, Leslie was a special advisor to Lt. Governor John Garamendi, and the legislative director and staff attorney for the California environmental nonprofit, Heal the Bay, where she was responsible for the development and implementation of statewide water quality regulation and legislation, including the first federal pollution limit for trash in an urban river (Los Angeles). In 2003, Leslie also worked to pass and implement California’s Education and the Environment Initiative, the only state requirement for environmental education principles and curricula development in all core disciplines in public schools for K–12. A former CA Ocean Science Trustee, and member of the state California Environmental Literacy Initiative, tasked with implementing the California 2015 Blueprint for California Environmental Literacy, Leslie currently works on climate and plastic pollution legislation for 7th Generation Advisors. Leslie is a graduate of UC Berkeley and the University of Southern California Law Center. Leslie lives in the Los Angeles area with her husband, Terry Tamminen.

  • Matthew is the first director of sustainability for the University of California's Office of the President, leading sustainability efforts across the 10-campus UC system since 2004.

    Mr. St.Clair was a founding member of the board of directors for the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education. He is also a member of the board of directors of Strategic Energy Innovations, a nonprofit organization that implements energy conservation and sustainability education programs in California.

    Mr. St.Clair has delivered lectures at numerous universities, been an invited keynote speaker at several regional and national conferences, and has advised the US House of Representatives on the formation of an Office of Sustainability for the US Capitol.

    Mr. St.Clair has a MS in environmental policy from the Energy and Resources Group at UC Berkeley and a BA in economics from Swarthmore College. He is a LEED accredited professional and a certified energy manager.

  • Michael Downs MA MEd currently serves as director of justice and kinship at Bishop O'Dowd High School in Oakland, a Catholic high school with a legacy of leadership in environmental education. He is also a member of the California Catholic Conference's Environmental Stewardship Committee and the Vatican's Laudato Si' Action Platform Working Group for Schools. As certified Laudato Si’ Animator (and Animator of Laudato Si’ Animators), he has written about environmental literacy in Catholic education for the Ignatian Solidarity Network, National Catholic Reporter, and National Catholic Education Association. He was recently honored by the Diocese of Oakland with the inaugural St. Francis De Sales excellence in teaching award for his bioregional efforts to integrate ecology across Catholic schools' campus, curriculum, community, and culture.

  • Dr. Karavolias serves as the sustainable innovation specialist in the California Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development (GO-Biz). In this role, he provides strategic support to the Business Investment Services (CalBIS) team to promote inclusive, equitable, and sustainable regional economic development and helps to grow California’s innovation ecosystems. Following his PhD in Chemical Engineering at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, Michael joined GO-Biz as a California Council on Science and Technology Fellow. As a fellow he leveraged his research and data-based background to develop online mapping and data resources that are used by economic development and workforce partners through the state to quantify their regional economic development needs and opportunities.

  • Michael is a nationally recognized 21st century educational leader known for innovation, entrepreneurship, and compassion. Under his leadership, the Anaheim Union High School District (AUHSD) has built a new educational model incorporating “reverse engineered” career pathways in partnership with higher education, private, and nonprofit sectors, which have extended and transformed educational opportunities for all students.

    As an innovator, Mr. Matsuda has developed the Anaheim Innovative Mentoring Experience program to create mentorships for over 15,000 high school students and has created over 300 annual summer work-based paid internship experiences for students who also receive college credit from Fullerton College. He also conceptualized the AUHSD SERVATHON, an annual service event celebrating Martin Luther King Jr. Day with over 4,000 students, families, and adult mentors.

  • Nalleli is a Center for Diverse Leadership (CDLS) Fellow. Since the age of nine Nalleli has been fighting for a healthier community in her hometown of South Los Angeles. In 2015, she co-founded the South Central Youth Leadership Coalition, which successfully sued the city of Los Angeles for disproportionately permitting oil drilling in Latino and Black communities. She was awarded the 2022 Goldman Environmental Prize which recognizes grassroot environmental champions.

    Nalleli is currently working with the CDLS to develop a research program that will provide communities the tools they need to advocate for themselves.

  • Dr. Renner (she, her, hers) is an educator, designer, cognitive scientist, and project leader who works with colleagues and collaborators to promote learning about and love for our living planet. Through her work as the the senior director of strategic partnerships at UC San Diego’s Birch Aquarium at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and CREATE (Center for Research on Educational Equity, Assessment, and Teaching Excellence STEM Success Initiative), she connects learning across the lifespan in multiple settings, in schools and outside of schools. She advocates for educational equity and experiential learning with shared goals and a common purpose, ultimately striving for greater curiosity, creativity, compassion, and collective action. Current projects focus on climate action and environmental justice; youth leadership; partnership with Kumeyaay community members; art, science, and technology integration; and deepening connections with nature and place.

  • Rebecca started at Action for Climate Emergency (ACE) at its inception in 2008 as an educator, and now leads ACE’s Education and Storytelling program. Reb believes that education is the foundation for ACE’s mission to give young people the tools they need to fight for their future. Reb came to ACE with a background in paleoclimate, where she did research in the Arctic and Antarctic. For her MS, she studied ice caps on Baffin Island in the Canadian Arctic. Most of the ice caps she studied in 2005 have since disappeared. Reb was also a member of the West Antarctic Ice Sheet Ice Core Drilling Project, where she analyzed the age of the ice core in a refrigerated building at -30º. When not fighting for climate justice, Reb enjoys chasing her husband and son over the slopes, rocks, and trails around Truckee.

  • Shannon is an education consultant who began working for the California Department of Education (CDE) in October 2013. She graduated with a BS in Animal Science and attended Tufts University, School of Veterinary Medicine only to discover the field of education was closer to her passion to help educate others about environmental issues. Shannon received her MA studying environmental science education organizations and their relationship with the formal education system. From 2000 to 2013, Shannon worked as a formal middle school science teacher, nonformal educator, and environmental education program coordinator. She began working on implementing the national Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) before she began working for the CDE. Through her current position at the CDE, she has the privilege of assisting with the implementation of the California NGSS and the Environmental Principles & Concepts in addition to serving as the Environmental Education Grant Program and California Regional Environmental Education Community Network program monitor.

  • Sky Keyoung is the founder of the non-profit organization ClimateLitNow and is a high school junior at Orange County School of the Arts for Classical Voice. As co-chair of the Youth Action Team at Climate Reality OC and president of ClimateLitNow, she believes that education and literacy is the first step in creating solutions through public policy and youth education to combat world problems like climate change. She is also a host of Climate Activate, a podcast dedicated to teaching youth about climate-related careers to activate the next generation of change-makers. Besides advocating for climate literacy and holding workshops for students, she is a recognized public policy advocate, championing various clean energy and environmental justice bills across California. Beyond the world of environmentalism, Sky is an award-winning opera singer, performing as Rosalinda in Die Fledermaus and creating original mini-operas to promote classical music.

  • At a very young age, Skyler began to demonstrate an unusually high level of empathy and genuine compassion for the plight of the poor, the socially-disadvantaged, due to lack of educational opportunities, or visible physical and health challenges. Born and raised in America, of Korean ancestry, Skyler also possessed a heightened sensitivity to societal injustices based on one's race, color, gender, or creed. A prolific reader, Skyler devoured the writings of poets whose work inspired and fueled her own poetic aspirations. In 2015, at age 10, Skyler's talents as a gifted orator came to light when she was asked to address the annual gala for the humanitarian initiative, Operation Smile in Los Angeles. Skyler's impassioned eloquent delivery of the poem, What Kind of Asian Are You by Alex Dang, memorized verbatim, received a long, earned standing ovation from the mesmerized audience. It was at that moment that Skyler realized and received confirmation of what she had felt and believed all along: No matter our age, gender, or social status, we each have the power to effect change. Without question, Skyler's innate desire to make a positive difference in the world was undeniably ignited!

    Inspired by her experience at the gala, Skyler teamed up with school administrators to raise awareness and much-needed funds for children around the world to receive treatment through Operation Smile. Later that year, Skyler embarked on her first global mission to the Philippines, traveling alongside physicians and volunteers, assisting the families of the children requiring urgent medical treatment. In the spring of 2017, Skyler embarked on her second volunteer medical mission with Operation Smile to Lima, Peru. Skyler witnessed firsthand the positive, life-changing impact brought about by the skilled surgeons, lending their time, resources, and expertise to treat the children suffering from various facial and dental malformations. Thereafter, Skyler continued to expand the scope of her humanitarian reach, visiting the Seed Vault in Svalbard, Norway. Led by Martha Stewart, Skyler joined a select group of 30 delegates to address issues concerning food security and their fragile environment. After returning to her hometown of Los Angeles, Skyler teamed up with the LA Chapter of Blessings in a Backpack to provide food on non-school days for local elementary school children who might otherwise go hungry.

    In July 2018, Skyler officially launched Future Generations Now, a nonprofit organization to build a volunteer-service community that will actively support and participate in humanitarian projects locally, and worldwide. To date, Skyler has amassed several groups of middle school and high school students in California to help raise awareness and philanthropic support for programs in the areas of child wellness, education, and the environment.

  • Dr. LaDochy is professor emeritus of Geosciences & Environment at Cal State LA. His teaching and research interests include climate change, urban climatology, severe weather meteorology, and air pollution meteorology. He has taught over 30 different courses at undergraduate and graduate levels at Cal State LA and in Canada. He supervised several Master’s theses and helped many of his students gain research experience on his funded projects, publishing their collaborations in over 40 articles and book chapters. Steve also spent 13 summers at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), NASA, working with JPL scientists and student interns on California climate change and Pacific Ocean influences on west coast climate, fog and air pollution. For 20 years, Dr. LaDochy has also worked with K–12 teachers in the American Meteorological Society Project Datastreme, mentoring over 150 teachers with college level online courses in meteorology, oceanography, and climate science. He has presented papers and led workshops at several science education conferences and developed a Climate Kit from a National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) grant for K–12 classrooms. Dr. LaDochy was co-principal investigator on a multi-year National Science Foundation research grant investigating neighborhood urban air pollution, supervising 10 students, while also a co-principal investigator on a multi-year NOAA research grant supervising eight students investigating the Los Angeles urban heat island. He currently serves as a mentor to two research experiences for undergraduate students studying urban hydrology and the urban heat island. Dr. LaDochy continues research on western US climate change, publishing articles, and reviewing articles for several journals. Steve also worked at the National Weather Service, the Los Angeles County Air Pollution Control District, and for KNBC preparing Fritz Coleman’s weather forecasts.

  • Veronica is a program coordinator for the City of Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Department, and a Part-Time Instructor. She alternates between teaching Physical Geography at California Indian Nation College, and Society Sustainability at Irvine Valley Community College. Veronica earned her BS in Sociology with a concentration in education, a BA in Studio Art, and a MS in Geography from Cal State Fullerton. Her deep appreciation and recognition for the environment and all its intricacies developed while working in outdoor education. As a program coordinator, she continues to introduce culturally relevant, hands-on, environmental education through the City’s Community Garden Program and Wilderness Club.

  • Wendell Brase is UC Irvine’s associate chancellor for sustainability. In this role, he leads efforts by UC Irvine and assists other campuses throughout the UC system to implement UC’s Carbon Neutrality Initiative.

    For 25 years, he provided leadership for an award-winning sustainability program in his role as vice chancellor for Administrative and Business Services. UC Irvine received California’s highest environmental award, the Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Award, in 2008 and again in 2013; has earned numerous accolades for sustainability, including a 2009 Environmental Protection Agency Environmental Leadership Achievement Award and their 2014 Climate Leadership Award; was on Sierra magazine’s Top 10 list of greenest campuses for twelve straight years, coming in at No. 1 in 2014, 2015, 2018, 2020 and first in the US in 2019; and in 2018 and 2021, UCI was recognized by the American Association for Sustainability in Higher Education with a STARS Platinum rating for its sustainability operations, academics, and research. The campus currently has 23 LEED Platinum and 11 LEED Gold buildings, among the most of any campus in the US UC Irvine was first in the nation to attain President Obama’s Better Buildings Challenge to improve energy efficiency 20 percent by 2020. UC Irvine achieved this 2020 goal in 2013 for the entire campus.