In order to foster a collective commitment to equitable adaptation to climate change, the first San Mateo County Climate Summit will be held.
The San Mateo County Climate Summit will be held next Monday, October 3 from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm on the Stanford University campus in Redwood City and will be co-hosted by local organizations Climate Resilient Communities, Nuestra Casa, Rise South City, and Thrive Alliance.
The summit is supported by Stanford's Doerr School of Sustainability, the Haas Center for Sustainability, the Haas Center for Public Service and the Office of Community Engagement.
"Climate change is not a distant threat, it's already here and it's affecting San Mateo County's frontline communities," said Violet Wulf-Saena, executive director of Climate Resilient Communities.
This, as climate change exacerbates heat, flooding, wildfires and poor air quality across the region - phenomena that disproportionately affect low-income communities of color.
Thus, decision-makers must identify and address adaptation strategies that ensure community safety, health and community livelihoods.
The theme of this year's summit is: Building Collective Commitment to Ensure Climate Adaptation and Equity, and will bring together local residents, community-based organizations, city and county agencies, elected officials, funders and business leaders to discuss how to ensure equitable, community-led climate adaptation in San Mateo County.
"Local residents are the experts in their own community; they live there, take their children to and from school, and shop locally, so it is important that their opinions are taken into account when looking for mitigating solutions," said Julio Garcia, executive director of Rise South City, underscoring the importance of community-led adaptation.
San Mateo County Supervisor Dave Pine and Menlo Park Councilmember Cecilia Taylor will open the summit, followed by three panels with local leaders and experts.
The Adaptation and Equity panel, moderated by Violet Wulf-Saena, executive director of Climate Resilient Communities, will discuss turning science into policy and community-led practices.
Meanwhile, the Community Leadership panel, moderated by Miriam Yupanqui, executive director of Nuestra Casa, will focus on how to shift power to frontline communities.
The summit's final panel on Resources and Accountability, moderated by Julio Garcia, executive director of Rise South City, will address how government and philanthropy can better fund climate resilience based on community priorities.
The event will conclude with a special youth presentation and a call for a collective commitment towards equitable climate adaptation that prioritizes frontline communities.
"We are delighted to come together during this summit to talk about community-led solutions," Yupanqui explained. "We firmly believe that our community members have the solutions to the challenges they face."
This will be the second of Stanford's Office of Community Engagement Regional Forums.
The Climate Summit will be both in-person and virtual. In-person registration is limited to 150 participants.
For those who wish to register in person or virtually, please visit the following site https://www.thrivealliance.org/climate-summit.
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