Program

Building a Collective Commitment To Ensure Climate Adaptation and Equity

• Breakfast and Registration

• Welcome

  • Georgia Farooq, Executive Director, Thrive Alliance

  • Kathryn A. (Kam) Moler, Vice Provost and Dean of Research, Stanford University

  • Nicole Taylor, CEO, Silicon Valley Community Foundation

  • Petra Silton, Senior Director of Programs, Thrive Alliance

  • Jonathan Cordero, Metush of the Ramaytush Ohlone peoples

• Keynote Speakers

  • Dave Pine, San Mateo County Supervisor

  • Cecilia Taylor, Menlo Park City Councilmember

• Adaptation and Equity Panel: Translating Science into Policy and Practice, moderated by Violet Wulf-Saena, Executive Director, Climate Resilient Communities

  • Natalie Herbert, Postdoctoral Researcher, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment

  • Dr. Desiree LaBeaud, Professor at Stanford University and Co-Founder, HERI-Kenya

  • Derek Ouyang, Research Manager in Stanford’s Regulation, Evaluation, & Governance Lab

• LUNCH

• Local Leadership Panel: Shifting Power to Frontline Communities moderated by Miriam Yupanqui, Executive Director, Nuestra Casa

  • Irma Rodriguez Mitton, Executive Director, South Coast Sustainable

  • Ever Rodriguez, Founding President, North Fair Oaks Community Alliance

  • Regina Wallace Jones, City Councilmember & Former Mayor of East Palo Alto

• Resources and Accountability Panel: Funding Community Priorities, moderated by Julio Garcia, Executive Director, Rise South City

  • Carolyn Bloede, Director, Office of Sustainability, San Mateo County

  • Dana Brechwald, Adapting to Rising Tides Program Manager, Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC)

  • Laura Tam, Program Officer, Resources Legacy Fund

• Youth Presentation by 'Anamatangi Polynesian Voices

•  Building a Collective Commitment

• Reception and Tabling Expo

See agenda for times and details

Keynotes

Panels

SPEAKERS

Cecilia Taylor — City CouncilMemBer of Menlo Park district 1

Cecilia is committed to improving the safety, economic development, and prosperity of Menlo Park and its residents. “As a renter, I want to protect our community from constant turn over and outrageous rents. As an educator, I want to ensure that our children are receiving equitable education regardless of the neighborhood we live in. As your neighbor, I want us all to be safe inside and outside of our homes.”

Adaptation and Equity: Translating Science into Policy and Practice

Moderator - Violet Wulf-Saena — Founder & Executive Director, Climate Resilient communities

Violet has served as an international climate change expert for over 10 years and has worked with
various groups in Less Developed Countries (LDCs) and Small Island States (SIDS) to protect communities from the impacts of climate change. Violet’s dedication to elevating community leadership and response to environmental justice is rooted in her experiences in the South Pacific. She now works in the Bay Area in partnership with the government sector, research institutions, and community-based organizations, building community capacity to respond to climate change and sea-level rise.

Natalie Herbert is a Postdoctoral Research Fellow in Behavioral Science in the Department of Earth Systems Science and the Woods Institute for the Environment at Stanford University. She researches climate adaptation for communities and individuals, including how interventions to support decision-making can improve health outcomes. Herbert’s PhD is in science communication from the University of Pennsylvania.

Dr. Desiree LaBeaud is a physician-scientist, epidemiologist, and professor in the Division of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at Stanford University’s School of Medicine. She received her MD from the Medical College of Wisconsin and trained at the Rainbow Babies & Children’s Hospital during her pediatric residency and pediatric infectious disease fellowship program. She studies the human health impacts of climate change. Currently, she heads a clinical research lab focused on better understanding the risk factors and long-term health consequences of arboviral infections and the most effective means of prevention.

Derek Ouyang is Research Manager in Stanford’s Regulation, Evaluation, & Governance Lab. He was project manager of Stanford’s first-ever entry to the U.S. DOE’s 2013 Solar Decathlon. He's been featured as an up-and-coming designer in the Los Angeles Times, and in Home Energy magazine’s “30 under 30” at TEDxStanford, Stanford+Connects NY, and Seattle. He is also the Executive Director of City Systems.

Local Leadership: Shifting Power to Frontline Communities

MODERATOR - Miriam Yupanqui — Executive Director, Nuestra Casa

Miriam Yupanqui is building a movement to transform East Palo Alto into a place where every resident thrives. A thriving community is one where everyone has a place to call home, a living wage, and the same opportunities for success we see across Highway 101. An East Palo Alto native, Miriam is thrilled to be back in her old stomping grounds. Miriam served as a Board Member of Nuestra Casa before being hired as the Executive Director. Miriam also has vast experience working in our communities and program evaluation. Before Nuestra Casa, she was a Program Manager at Family Connections in Redwood City. There she developed and implemented their Young Scholars Program.

Irma Rodriguez Mitton is the Executive Director, South Coast Sustainable, and Chief Resiliency Practitioner at Fruition Sustainability Solutions. Fruition helps companies and communities of all sizes design and implement planet-positive systems to achieve zero-carbon, zero-waste goals while increasing shared prosperity. She helped develop community-based initiatives for increasing resiliency, equity, and prosperity while protecting our planet. Her expertise includes corporate communications, innovation/growth strategy development, and product marketing management. A strong advocate for sustainable placemaking and local living economies, Irma is an EcoDistricts Accredited Professional and a graduate of Stanford University.

Everardo (Ever) Rodriguez is a librarian by training. Ever has been a resident of North Fair Oaks (NFO) for 30 years and has been volunteering and doing community work for over 20 years with several Bay Area nonprofit organizations. He is the Founding President of the North Fair Oaks Community Alliance ( NFOCA), a community organization that builds community, promotes equity, and improves life for all in NFO. Ever is a member of the North Fair Oaks Council, providing recommendations on the issues of community health, safety, welfare, public works, and planning for NFO. And he is also a proud member of the Board of Directors for the REACH Coalition. He co-founded the Climate Ready North Fair Oaks, a collaborative cohort of several community-based.

Regina Wallace-Jones is the Chief Operating Officer at LendStreet Financial. She has served the City of East Palo Alto in various ways, currently as City Council Member and previously served as the Mayor of East Palo Alto in 2019. She is the founding board president of StreetCode Academy, board member at Change, patron of Black Girls Code, and a partner of the Lean In Foundation to advocate for women pursuing professional ambition. Regina continues to be a leader in dual career professional, leading in the capacity of tech executive and public servant.

Resources and Accountability: Funding Community Priorities

MODERATOR - Julio Garcia — Founder and Executive Director, Rise South City

Julio aims to create a new center of gravity in the climate movement by uniting frontline communities, allies, and organizations towards resilient, regenerative, and equitable neighborhoods. Julio was a part of The EJ Review Team of representatives from Bay Area equity and social justice organizations that helped develop San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission Environmental Justice policies that the Commission unanimously adopted in 2019. His work continues today as a member of Bay Adapts’ Leadership Advisory Group and part of a new group of BCDC EJ Advisors tasked with guiding the agency to implement the Environmental Justice Policies.

Carolyn Bloede is the Director of the Office of Sustainability at County of San Mateo. Before joining San Mateo County in 2020, she was with Alameda County’s Sustainability Office for 17 years. She built the office from the ground up to deliver-results driven programs in climate action, green building, and resource conservation for the county government and the community. Carolyn sees a big part of the role of the Office of Sustainability as conveners and facilitators. Pulling wisdom from the group to come to a consensus and to move the work forward through collaboration.

Dana Brechwald is the Resilience and Climate Adaptation Manager at San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC). Her specific interests are in sustainable, resilient communities She received her master’s in Urban Planning from Harvard University Graduate School of Design. She focuses on preparing for and adapting to long-term climate change and building strong, prepared communities that can effectively and quickly recover from disasters

Laura Tam is a Program Officer at Resources Legacy Fund, a 501c3 organization that works with donors to conserve landscapes, waters, and oceans in the West and address the climate crisis. Laura works with public agencies, funders, grantees, and other partners to advance policy and public funding for equitable climate solutions, community resilience, and wildfire. Before coming to RLF in 2020, Laura was Sustainable Development Policy Director at the San Francisco Bay Area Planning and Urban Research Association (SPUR).

Nicole Taylor—President & EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, Silicon Valley Community Foundation

Nicole Taylor is president and CEO of Silicon Valley Community Foundation. She combines a rich background in Bay Area philanthropy, nonprofit administration, and fundraising with extensive experience in the private and public sectors.

Since taking the helm at SVCF, Nicole has led the organization to renew its focus on the many challenges facing residents of San Mateo and Santa Clara counties. She has championed efforts to increase local giving from SVCF donors and offer donors new avenues for working with the community foundation, so they are effective philanthropists.

Kathryn A. (Kam) Moler, Vice Provost and Dean of Research, Stanford University

Kathryn is the Dean of Research at Stanford University. She conducts research in magnetic imaging, develops tools that measure nanoscale magnetic fields, and studies quantum materials and devices. Among other honors, she received a national Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, held a Packard Fellowship for Science and Engineering, received the William L. McMillan Award “for her fundamental studies of the superconducting pairing state, Josephson vortices, and the role of interlayer coupling in high-temperature superconductors,” she is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and a member of the National Academy of Sciences.

GEORGIA D. FAROOQ (NÉE ANTONOPOULOS) —EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR, THRIVE Alliance

Georgia is a passionate nonprofit executive with experience leading bold change throughout all life cycles of an organization. She has served as Executive Director of Thrive Alliance for over six years, where she leads a cross-sector network of nonprofit, public sector, and private sector leaders working together to strengthen the community. Georgia serves as a board member for the Palo Alto Community Fund and as a founding board member for Leadership Council San Mateo County. Georgia is an American Leadership Forum (ALF) Senior Fellow and a graduate of ALF Class XLI. Georgia has her M.B.A. from Boston University and a B.A. from Wellesley College. She lives in Redwood City with her husband Armaghan and their preschooler son Keyaan, who enjoys outrunning her and participating in her Zoom sessions!

PETRA SILTON — SENIOR DIRECTOR OF PROGRAMS, THRIVE Alliance

Petra is an energetic connector, coordinator, and leader passionate about bringing people together to turn ideas into action to create a better and more just world for everyone. She developed and directs the Advocacy & Education program at Thrive Alliance, where she drives advocacy, outreach, and education initiatives to help nonprofits amplify the impact of their work. Before Thrive, Petra established innovative social programs such as a for-profit catering service at D.C. Central Kitchen, one of the first revenue-generating social enterprises, and the School Choice Program at Peninsula Bridge. She is also an experienced leader and effective fundraiser for local schools.