Long Beach Sustainability Fall Newsletter, October 2019
LB Sustainability Quarterly Newsletter
Dear Friend,

Each quarter we create a newsletter with updates on sustainable programs, projects, and events from our office and others in the City of Long Beach. Below is the digital version of the newsletter, you can also download the print version here:
Last month, on September 28th, the City hosted the 2nd Annual Ranchos Walk in partnership with Walk Long Beach, Rancho Los Cerritos, and Rancho Los Alamitos. Nearly 400 people participated in the walk from Rancho Los Alamitos to Rancho Los Cerritos which ended in a celebration for Rancho Los Cerritos’ 175th anniversary.

“We hope residents and visitors will learn more about their city and its topography and history through participating in the Ranchos Walk,” said Larry Rich, Long Beach’s Sustainability Coordinator. “Helping to foster a sense of place for participants can lead to better stewardship of the places we live, work, and play.”

Rancho Los Alamitos helped welcome guests at CSULB with information and a photo op. The finish festival at Rancho Los Cerritos celebrating the Rancho’s 175th anniversary featured live music from the Long Beach Poly High School Jazz Combo and The Bernie Pearl Blues Band, kids’ activities, a “Brewery Knolls” beer garden featuring Liberation Brewing Co., food vendors, a 175th birthday cake-cutting ceremony and self-guided tours of the historic adobe building.

Look out for news of next year’s Ranchos Walk in September 2020. More information will be posted at 
www.longbeach.gov/ranchoswalk. We hope you can join us next year!
Planting trees provides many benefits to neighborhoods and communities. In addition to cleaning the air we breathe, trees also increase property values, shade our homes reducing our energy use, and help to soak up rainwater so it doesn’t all flow into storm drains or cause flooding. Studies in Baltimore and Philadelphia even show a link between street trees and reduced crime rates.

The Office of Sustainability encourages all Long Beach residents to #TreeYourself. If you would like to plant a tree on your property, our office can provide you with planting and care guides and advise you on proper spacing. You can also use our Approved Tree List from our tree planting program page to find drought tolerant and native trees to plant.

Our office can also plant trees for you for free! Our street tree planting program will plant a tree in your parkway (the area between the street and sidewalk) if you have an empty space, and you can also apply to have a fruit tree planted in your front yard. Fruit trees are limited, and we are planting in priority neighborhoods first, so be sure to check the map to see whether you are in one of these areas. 

More information on both programs can be found at  www.longbeach.gov/trees.
Earlier this month the Long Beach Water Department and Environmental Services Bureau partnered up for a new event, the Taste of Sustainability Social Crawl, to showcase sustainable restaurants in the city. Participants boarded a big red bus and toured 3 restaurants and a brewery that were all both Certified Blue and Foam Free.

This event was a great collaboration between these two programs that are both pushing our restaurants to be more environmentally friendly.

Join us at Willow Springs Park for Native Plant Workshops! View the schedule of upcoming workshops and RSVP online at:

Workshops will be held every second Saturday from 9:00 – 10:00 am with an opportunity to volunteer on site from 10:00 – 11:00 am. Please bring water and wear closed-toed shoes.
Don’t miss the upcoming Edible Garden Workshops! View the calendar of upcoming classes online at:

Classes are held at various libraries throughout the City. Contact us to have the schedule sent to your email each month: 
As part of the California Green Business Network (CAGBN), Long Beach certifies and recognizes green businesses for their efforts to protect the environment. Below are some of the businesses that have been certified in 2019. 

Join us at the next Lunch and Learn to learn more about the benefits of certification and how to get your business certified!

Green Business Lunch and Learn
Tuesday, November 5th, 12-1:30pm
CommonGrounds Workplace, 145 W Broadway

Find more green businesses and get your business certified at www.longbeach.gov/greenbusiness.
Meet our Fall Interns
Kelli Davis is interning with Long Beach Sustainability as the Fall 2019 Green Business Intern. Currently Kelli is enrolled as a senior at CSULB majoring in Business Management. In her free time she enjoys hiking, painting, cooking, photography, and spending time at home with her dogs.
Demi Espinoza (she/her pronouns) joins Long Beach Sustainability as a Native Plants Intern. She is the daughter of working-class Mexican immigrants and the youngest of ten children raised in Riverside, California. She earned a degree in Sociology at Cal State San Bernardino and is now working on a Master’s in Urban Sustainability and GIS at Antioch University. Demi currently serves as Board President for the Center for Community Action and Environmental Justice and is a member of the California Native Plant Society’s student advisory committee.
Dominic Merkle is our fall GIS Intern. He spent the last three years living in Germany while studying at the University of Kiel. He moved back to California and is currently conducting research and writing his master’s thesis. Dominic takes advantage of his newfound appreciation for sun, and commutes to City Hall on his bicycle.
Come to the next Sustainable City Commission meeting: 
Thursday October 24th at 4pm in City Council Chambers.
Join us at the next Longview Litter Patrol
The first Friday of each month the Office of Sustainability teams up with volunteers to take care of Longview Point at Willow Springs Park. Join us for the next event:
November 1st 3-4pm at 2755 Orange Avenue.
 
Find more sustainable events in Long Beach on our
LB Sustainability | 562-570-6396 | Sustainability@longbeach.gov | www.LBSustainability.com