Introducing the Second Day of Webinars and Update on the Water Laws Panel
The California Environmental Assembly will continue on February 10th. The second week of the event will focus on California’s transportation, housing, and zoning laws by discussing the implementation of SB 743 and brainstorming ways we can rethink our planning laws. Some notable speakers include Nailah Pope-Harden, Executive Director of ClimatePlan, Eric Sundquist, Sustainability Advisor/SB 743 Program Manager of CalTrans, and Mike McKeever, Former Executive Director of Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG). Click here for more information about our schedule this year.
Additionally, we included a short announcement regarding the first panel of the Assembly, “Updating California Water Laws in the Face of Droughts/Climate Change”. Continue reading to learn more.
Session Three: SB 743, 2 Years in to Implementation
February 10th, 9:00 am – 10:30 am
SB 734, a law that mandated a new methodology for analyzing transportation impacts, was passed in 2013—and it has been fraught with debate ever since. The vehicle miles traveled-based methodology that was developed from that mandate has the potential to be one of the most effective policy levers we have now to change land use and transportation behavior in California. Yet, since these new regulations were finally implemented in 2020, jurisdictions across the state are still grappling with the execution of the law.
This panel will discuss emerging best practices for evaluating VMT impact and mitigation, challenges that persist, challenges unique to suburban and rural communities, and strategies to mitigate displacement pressures where we are seeing the effective direction of resources into existing communities.
Eric Sundquist
Sustainability Advisor/SB 743 Program Manager
CalTrans
Eric Sundquist is joined Caltrans in 2021. In his role of sustainability advisor, he serves as program manager for VMT reduction and SB 743 implementation. Prior to working at Caltrans, Eric worked as the director of the State Smart Transportation Initiative (SSTI) at the University of Wisconsin. Eric has been active in the Transportation Research Board, chairing the Social, Economic, and Cultural Issues Section and serving as paper review coordinator for the Major Cities and Transportation and Sustainability Committees. Eric has a doctorate in City and Regional Planning and a master’s degree in Public Policy, both from Georgia Tech, as well as a master’s in humanities from the University of Richmond, and a BA from Miami University.
Mariah Thompson
Staff Attorney, Community Equity Initiative
California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc
Mariah Thompson is a staff attorney with California Rural Legal Assistance, Inc., located in Fresno. Her areas of expertise include environmental, land use, civil rights, housing, and language access law. Mariah provides legal representation to community groups in rural disadvantaged communities as they advocate for the reversal of historic and ongoing discriminatory land use practices, healthy and thriving communities, rural community investment, and equitable access to municipal services. Mariah graduated from the University of Virginia School of Law.
Ramses Madou
Division Manager, Planning, Policy, and Sustainability
City of San Jose, Department of Transportation
Ramses Madou is the Division Manager of Planning, Policy, and Sustainability for the Department of Transportation in the City of San José. At the City of San José. Ramses leads a team of planners, engineers, policy specialists, data and model experts to plan the Citywide transportation system. His team is working to implement the ambitious mode change and VMT reduction goals of the City’s general plan all while proactively dealing with the fundamental disruptions that are currently shaking the transportation world. He is also the Vice Chair of the Board for the Open Mobility Foundation. Before joining the City of San Jose he worked as the Associate Director of Parking & Transpiration Services for Stanford University where he worked for 10 years.
Jamey Volker
Postdoctoral Researcher
UC Davis Institute of Transportation Studies
Dr. Jamey Volker is a postdoctoral researcher with the National Center for Sustainable Transportation at UC Davis and an environmental lawyer. He studies transportation policy, housing policy, and land use and environmental law.
Moderator
Matthew Baker
Policy Director Planning and Conservation League
A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Matt began working locally with the Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) in 2008. Focused initially on biodiversity preservation, Matt became ECOS’s Land Use and Conservation Policy Director, engaging on the broad spectrum of issues at the nexus of land use, transportation, housing, and climate policy. As PCL’s statewide Policy Director since 2017, he continues his focus on planning policy development that seeks to provide joint-solutions to California’s environmental and social equity challenges.
Session Four: A New Planning Paradigm for California
February 10th, 10:45 am – 12:15 pm
The fires and drought are getting worse, housing prices are skyrocketing, both VMT and disparities between rich and poor are rising at alarming rates. Meeting our housing needs in a way that will achieve our climate mandates, preserve our land and water, and address social inequities will require a fundamental shift in the way we employ our land use and transportation investments, and we just aren’t getting there fast enough.
This panel will discuss what’s working and what’s not in California’s planning processes, and what policy solutions could look like to address where we are falling short of our needs.
Nailah Pope-Harden
Executive Director
ClimatePlan
Nailah manages ClimatePlan’s state policy campaigns to achieve ClimatePlan’s vision for a healthier, more equitable California. Nailah mobilizes partner organizations, provides analysis on policy, state investments, and legislation, and builds strong relationships with state agencies and key decision-makers. She comes to the position with years of community organizing experience that spans regional, state and national environmental justice campaigns. She advocates for equity, inclusion, and authenticity in all spaces. Of all the campaigns Nailah has been a part of the neighborhood ones are always the ones that bring the most fulfillment. In her free time, Nailah is an avid traveler but also enjoys quiet time with her son in South Sacramento.
Cathy Creswell
Principal
Creswell Consulting
Cathy Creswell, an affordable housing and planning consultant working to preserve and increase the supply of safe, accessible, affordable homes as a platform for improving the lives of people with low incomes, ending homelessness, and strengthening families while creating healthy, equitable and economically vibrant communities. She spent over 25 years at the California Department of Housing and Community Development, including being appointed to serve as Deputy Director for Housing Policy Development for over 10 years and Acting Director. She is the Board President of Sacramento Housing Alliance, the Board Chair of Mutual Housing California and is an Emeritus member of the California Planning Roundtable. She was recently appointed to the City of Sacramento Measure U Advisory Committee to assist in the expenditure of the local sales tax revenues.
Louise Bedsworth
Land Use Program Director
UC Berkeley’s Center for Law, Energy, and the Environment
Louise Bedsworth is Director of the Land Use Program at the Center for Law, Energy, and the Environment where she also serves as a Senior Advisor to the California-China Climate Institute. Before joining CLEE, Louise spent nearly a decade working for the State of California, most recently as the Executive Director of the Strategic Growth Council, a Cabinet-level State institution that brings together multiple agencies and departments to support sustainable communities emphasizing strong economies, social equity, and environmental stewardship. Prior to joining SGC, Louise was the Deputy Director of the Office of Planning and Research in Governor Jerry Brown’s office.
Mike McKeever
Former Executive Director, Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG)
Mike McKeever was appointed Executive Director of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments Board of Directors on December 17, 2004. Previously, Mr. McKeever was project manager of the Blueprint Project at SACOG. Over his 30-year career specializing in the field of planning, he has owned and managed two private businesses that specialized in working with local governments on innovative multi-jurisdictional projects. He has been instrumental in developing cutting-edge planning techniques to integrate land use and transportation planning. Mr. McKeever was the founder and President of McKeever/Morris for 13 years and then a Senior Supervising Planner for Parsons Brinckerhoff, before joining SACOG as Blueprint Project Manager in 2001.
Moderator
Matthew Baker
Policy Director Planning and Conservation League
A native of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Matt began working locally with the Environmental Council of Sacramento (ECOS) in 2008. Focused initially on biodiversity preservation, Matt became ECOS’s Land Use and Conservation Policy Director, engaging on the broad spectrum of issues at the nexus of land use, transportation, housing, and climate policy. As PCL’s statewide Policy Director since 2017, he continues his focus on planning policy development that seeks to provide joint-solutions to California’s environmental and social equity challenges.
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Update on the “Updating California Water Laws” Panel on February 3rd
On Thursday, February 3rd, a group of preeminent water law and policy experts will be releasing their recommendations for updating California water law to address drought and climate change. The release will coincide with the panel on that subject at the Planning and Conservation League’s Annual Assembly February 3rd from 9 to 10:30 am.
On the panel will be two of the report’s co-authors, Clifford Lee, former Deputy Attorney General’s Office and Jennifer Harder, Professor of Law, Legal Practice. The other co-authors are Richard Frank, Professor of Environmental Practice, U.C. Davis School of Law and former Chief Deputy Attorney General; Barton Thompson, Professor of Law Stanford University; Tam Doduc, Former Member of the State Water Resources Control Board; Holly Doremus, Professor of Law, U.C Berkeley; Camille Pannu, Former Director of the Water Justice Clinic at U.C. Davis and visiting Assistant Clinical Professor of Law, U.C. Irvine School of Law. Logistical support was provided by the Planning and Conservation League.
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How to participate in the Webinars
- Register Online at pcl.org/register (Registration fee is $25 to attend all eight sessions)
- You will receive an email with a list of links for each webinar
- Click the link on the day of the webinar to join!
If you are a student or a recent graduate, contact us at events@pcl.org to receive information on how to receive a scholarship to attend the Assembly for free!