The City of Sacramento approved a pilot project with Sacramento Metropolitan Air Quality Management District to place new air monitors in under-served neighborhoods. The $500,000 pilot program approved by City Council on September 21st will prioritze sensors in neighborhoods that have historically lacked real-time, localized air quality information such as Franklin, Fruitridge, Northgate, and Gardenland.

The Food System Resilience Poll, which was fielded by Valley Vision and CapRadio, in partnership with the Institute for Social Research at Sacramento State, is designed to help inform system work to build an equitable and accessible farm-to-fork culture that resonates and benefits all communities. The results helped inform the Sacramento Region Community Foundation’s 2021 Food System Action Plan, a robust set of strategies and tactics to guide industry leaders, policy makers, universities, and community groups toward actions that achieve more inclusive, supported, sustainable, and equitable food system practices (expected to be released in October 2021).

The City of Sacramento recently released the Slow Streets Evaluation Report that evaluated the Slow Streets pilot that was in place from December 2020 through the end of July 2021 in five Sacramento neighborhoods.

Check out the Sacramento Tree Foundation's latest blog post on the importance of the valley oak.

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October 1 marked the start of a new water year. State entities are providing resources to local water agencies to enable safe, reliable water supplies, including $28 million for small community drought relief funding recently provided by the Department of Water Resources. Visit SaveOurWater.com to learn more about water saving tips to help meet the Governor's call for 15 percent reduced water usage. Follow along with State drought response here.

The September 16th CRC Networking Event focused on how our region is responding to drought with perspectives from local agencies, regional organizations, and the state. Participants had the opportunity to share their own work and hear from other CRC members in breakout groups. Breakout groups were organized around topic areas relevant to drought, climate action, and other adaptation activities. A recording of the presentation and resources shared are available on CRC's website.

ARCCA’s summer learning seminar series – “Building an Inclusive and Equitable Adaptation Movement” – focused on the intersection of equity and adaptation. This series featured voices from underrepresented communities historically left out of climate conversations and highlight community-led initiatives to advance climate equity and build community resilience. There were three learning seminars in total and they took place in July, August, and September (respectively). Access the Recordings Here.

State agencies have just published the Natural and Working Lands Climate Smart Strategy for public input. The new strategy responds to Governor Newsom’s Executive Order on nature-based solutions, which identified our lands as an underutilized sector in the fight against climate change. The draft document, which aims to accelerate climate action across key California landscapes, is available for public feedback through November 9. Read the Document.

LGC's Community Design team is looking to partner with agencies serving disadvantaged communities and communities of color to provide assistance to apply for the Caltrans Sustainable Communities Planning Grant Program! Please reach out to Cayla McDonell-Encina, Community Design Project Manager at cmcdonell@lgc.org. Applications for the grant program are due October 27 by 5:00 p.m. PT for planning projects with an active and/or public transportation nexus.

The California Climate and Energy Collaborative (CCEC) is launching monthly Local Energy Resources Network (LERN) meetings every second Tuesday from 11 AM - 12 PM to exchange knowledge, resources, input, and opportunities to help California local governments pursue their energy and climate goals. California local governments and those who work with them on energy and climate goals are welcome to participate in these interactive, 1-hour meetings. Meetings will feature roundtable peer announcements, a review of timely assistance opportunities and speakers who will share information and solicit feedback on relevant funding and other assistance opportunities. Moderated by the Statewide Best Practices Coordinator, this event will also conclude with a 10 minute “ask the BPC” to submit requests for help identifying energy or climate information or support that can help you pursue your goals. Sign up for CCEC's next LERN meeting on November 9th.

Applications are currently being accepted, with a deadline of November 3, 2021, by 4:00 p.m., MT. An estimated $15 million is available in the current funding cycle. Maximum award of $2 million. Link.

Applications are currently being accepted, with a deadline of December 9, 2021, by 4:00 p.m., MT. Maximum award of $2 million. Link.

Applications are due November 5, 2021. Approximately $23 million is available for competitive grants, with a minimum award of $200,000 and a maximum award of $3 million. Link.

Applications are due by December 31, 2021. $185 million is available in the current funding round. Link.

Applications for shuttle and transit buses are currently being accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. $130 million is available in the current funding round. Link.

To build environmental literacy to reduce risks from current and future environmental hazards through climate-smart and inclusive decision making and long-term stewardship of healthy ecosystems, all the while promoting a low-carbon economy. Due: March 17, 2022. Learn more.

To support transdisciplinary research with approaches that explore and analyze environmental problems at the intersection of climate change, environmental justice, and vulnerable populations/lifestages. Due: November 16, 2021. Learn more.

For more funding and grant opportunities please visit fundingresource.org/

The webinar will focus on an overview of FEMA Hazard Mitigation Assistance funding programs and California priorities, including the upcoming Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) funding opportunity; Information on nature-based solutions for hazard mitigation and examples; and, Details on application/sub-application processes and best practices. This webinar is designed for California partners working on nature-based resilience solutions including land trusts, conservation non-profits, natural resource managers, and state and local agencies. please register in advance for the meeting.

The Day 3 session of the Council for Watershed Health Summit focuses on how agencies, utilities and communities manage and respond to fire impacts. In Panel 1, we examine how agencies utilize land, resource, and infrastructure management to plan for the “anthropocene” or “pyrocene”. Panel 2 will focus on how engaging stakeholders can increase resilience. Registration.

Join the final webinar for Track 1 which will review outcomes on how to build momentum for equitable adaptation in ways that drive systemic change and deliver tangible benefits to historically under-served, under-represented, and under-invested communities. If you have not yet registered for CAF, you can register here.

Join the final webinar for Track 2 which will review frameworks for integrated planning that consider the full spectrum of climate impacts and sectors to deliver holistic solutions that address climate risks and vulnerabilities while meeting community needs. If you have not yet registered for CAF, you can register here.

Join the final webinar for Track 3 which will review opportunities to accelerate the implementation of climate adaptation strategies by tapping into existing assets, leveraging the power of partnerships, and unlocking new pathways for ongoing investment. If you have not yet registered for CAF, you can register here.

Join us for the 2021 California Adaptation Forum's Closing Plenary to hear from state and national leaders on insights into how we can capitalize on upcoming opportunities to accelerate adaptation efforts in an equitable and intentional way. Registration.

At the completion of the training, attendees will understand what futures thinking is (and, importantly what it is not), and be able to use foresight exercises to strengthen their ability to apply futures thinking to present-day policy work. We’ll bring the tools; you bring topics of urgent priority. We use tools of foresight to take the conversation past strategic planning – and into futures thinking. We do not make predictions about the future, but we do take a closer look at what “signals of change” are, how to find them and questions to ask about them that will help you analyze them. This allows individuals and groups to make plans for different potential futures and build resilience in their planning. This webinar is hosted by ILG in partnership with California 100 and Institute for the Future. Registration is free, but space is limited. Please register in advance.

This series will touch on themes including Tribal climate and health, community-led adaptation, and Indigenous sustainability practices. The sessions will include panels, individual speakers, and a documentary film. Additional information about speakers and session details to follow. Link.

Please contact cfoster@lgc.org if you are interested in attending.

Please contact amcgarvey@lgc.org if you are interested in attending.

The Behavior, Energy & Climate Change Conference is the premier international conference focused on understanding human behavior and decision making and using that knowledge to accelerate the transition to a low-carbon future. Currently, in its 14th year, BECC is associated with a growing set of allied conferences in Europe and Asia. Registration.

CRC and ARCCA are participating in the California Economic Summit. Produced by California Forward in partnership with the California Stewardship Network, the Summit influences CA FWD’s ongoing movement to make the government and economy work for everyone. The two-day Summit is designed to create a shared economic agenda known as the Roadmap to Shared Prosperity and strengthen the Summit network, setting the stage for collective action in 2022. Registration is now open.

Officials warn that next year’s cuts in water supply could go even deeper as severe drought grips nearly 90% of California. North Coast and Bay Area residents cut water use while Southern Californians didn’t. Link.

New groundwater agencies in the Sacramento Valley are currently finalizing plans to manage their groundwater basins for long-term balance, as required by the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA). Successful stewardship demands good information not only about groundwater conditions, but also about surface water availability. To help build shared understanding of surface water for agriculture—the valley’s main water-using sector—we produced a new dataset showing how access to this vital resource varies across irrigated farmland in the Sacramento Valley and the Delta. This effort builds on previous PPIC work in the San Joaquin Valley, making it now possible to assess surface water conditions across the entire Central Valley. Link.

Stuart Woolf is among thousands of U.S. farmers whose businesses have been both damaged and transformed by historic drought and heat in recent months. And it’s just the beginning. Climate change is having an impact on agriculture more grave than that of the Coronavirus pandemic, and far more chronic and complex — driving a paradigm shift in the business of food. Link.

New Initiatives at OSHA and Across Agencies Will Enhance Workplace Safety, Build Local Resilience, and Address Disproportionate Heat Impacts. Link.

Extreme heat is one of the deadliest consequences of global warming. But in a state that prides itself as a climate leader, California chronically undercounts the death toll and has failed to address the growing threat of heat-related illness and death, according to a Los Angeles Times investigation. Link.

Responding to the climate crisis provides an immense opportunity for job creation. Those jobs—jobs that help mitigate and adapt to climate change—are climate jobs. In recent years, climate jobs have been on the rise in the United States. However, the economy-wide impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic affected climate employment: eight percent of climate jobs were shed in 2020. Despite this, employment in some climate industries increased in 2020, and many climate jobs are expected to recover in 2021. In total, there were well over 4.1 million climate jobs in 2020. Link.

Governor Gavin Newsom today announced that California has secured a Fire Management Assistance Grant (FMAG) from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to help ensure the availability of vital resources to suppress the Alisal Fire in Santa Barbara County. Link.

The Capital Region Climate Readiness Collaborative is a membership based collaborative network designed to promote greater climate change resilience planning coordination in the six-county Sacramento Region. The purpose of this collaborative network is to create a forum where leaders from government, academia, environmental and community groups, the business community, and labor can come together to exchange information, identify vulnerabilities and data gaps, leverage resources, and advance comprehensive solutions in an effort to create stronger, sustainable, and economically viable communities in the Capital Region.

CRC is a program of the Local Government Commission.