Region Matters

 

December 9, 2014  Vol. 4 - Issue 50     

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Greetings, CRC Community:

Jonathan K. London, Ph.D.

CRC Director


We hope you enjoy this week's edition of Region Matters.  Our goal is to make this newsletter an asset to our campus and community partners.  Please continue to send your requests for inclusion, along with any comments or questions, to [email protected].  
 

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CRC Spotlight 

CRC Search for Programs Manager 

The CRC is seeking a talented Programs Manager (Req. #03013344) committed to our mission of producing innovative research to build healthy, prosperous, sustainable and equitable communities in California and beyond.  Please click here to read more about this new leadership opportunity. Please note that the official recruitment period has been extended until January 16, 2015 (the website lists an earlier deadline).  Job Summary: Under the general supervision of the CRC Director, the Programs Manager will help develop and implement management systems for our complex and fast-paced projects; will track and report on project activities, deliverables, and budgets; and maintain/support relationships with funding agencies. UC Davis and the CRC are proudly committed to the principles of community and the value of diversity.  We encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds. 
 

Drinking Water in Disadvantaged Communities

How can California meet its obligation to respect the Human Right to Water mandate by providing clean, accessible, and affordable drinking water to the state's most disadvantaged communities? CRC post-doctoral affiliate, Dr. Carolina Balazs, recently co-led a three-day workshop on this topic with community and public agency leaders to develop a comprehensive set of recommendations on ways to enhance California's Integrated Regional Watershed Management Plans (IRWMP) to engage and benefit residents in disadvantaged communities. This event builds on collaborative research by Dr. Balazs and CRC Director, Jonathan London, with additional support from Mark Lubell, UCD  Professor of Environmental Science and Planning, assessing seven IRWMP pilot projects in disadvantaged communities. This project is funded through the University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources Water Policy Center and will result in a range of academic and policy-oriented publications over the next year. The project is also linked to the CRC's collaborative work, led by CRC Geographic Information Systems Analyst Sara Watterson, to develop a series of maps for the Environmental Justice Coalition for Water's IRWMP pilot project on disadvantaged communities in Santa Cruz County.  


 

Left to Right: Vicente Lara (Environmental Justice Coalition for Water), Carolina Balazs (UCD Post-Doctoral Scholar), Sergio Carranza (Pueblo Unido CDC), Colin Bailey (Environmental Justice Coalition for Water), Jonathan London (CRC Director), Luis Olmedo (Comite Civico del Valle)
 

 
 
 

 

Save the Date: CRC Book Launch Forum January 28 

CRC post-doctoral affiliate Alex Karner, CRC Director Jonathan London, and an expert panel of respondents will present "Putting Data into Action for Regional Equity in California's San Joaquin Valley."  The article is based on their work integrating social equity into regional planning, and will appear in the forthcoming book, What Counts: Harnessing Data for America's Communities. Published by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and the Urban Institute, this volume of essays challenges policymakers, funders and practitioners across sectors to rethink how they use data to address social issues such as poverty, health, and education. Click here to download a free copy.

Date: January 28, 2015

Time: 2:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Place: UC Davis Campus, Memorial Union King Room

Refreshments will be served.   

Event sponsored by the UCD Center for Regional Change and Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.  


 CCEP in the Media 

On December 1, Mindy Romero, Director of the CRC's California Civic Engagement Project (CCEP) was cited as a primary source in the Sacramento Bee's front-page article, "California's Record-Low Voter Turnout Stirs Anxiety." The article reported that "so-called 'low-information, low excitement' elections disproportionally affect Democratic constituencies - single women, young people, people of color and lower-income groups." These constituencies, Romero noted, "are growing, and as they become a larger proportion of the electorate, if they don't get the support they need, or the system doesn't adjust, it looks like it could have an impact on turnout rates. The electoral system will have to figure out better ways of mobilizing and engaging...folks by pulling them into the electorate." To read the full article, click here. For the latest on the CCEP's research, follow Mindy Romero on Twitter @MindySRomero.
 

Recent Reports, Research and Resources

Application Deadline Extended for 2015 Environmental Justice Small Grants

The deadline for submitting applications for the Environmental Protection Agency's 2015 Environmental Justice Small Grants (EJSG) Program has been extended to January 9, 2015. The EJSG Program provides funding for eligible applicants with projects that address local environmental and/or public health issues within an affected community. The EJSG Program is designed to help eligible non-profit organizations and tribal communities understand and address exposure to multiple environmental risks at the local level. This year's EJSG Program especially welcomes proposals supporting community-based preparedness and community climate resilience efforts. The total amount available for awards for the fiscal year 2015 is approximately $1.2 million. Deadline: January 9, 2015

 

The BUILD Health Challenge

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation announced its BUILD Health Challenge, a $7.5 million program designed to increase the number and effectiveness of community collaborations to improve health. The challenge will present two awards: one for planning and one for implementation. The awards are aimed at strengthening community partnerships in order to improve the health of low-income neighborhoods in cities with populations greater than 150,000. The foundation is especially interested in collaborative efforts that leverage leadership from public health departments, hospitals, health systems and community organizations. BUILD is an acronym for the core principles of the challenge: bold, upstream, integrated, local and data-driven. Application Deadline: January 16, 2015
 
 

Calendar of Events     

Upcoming Panel SJI Graduate Research Fellows

Please join five graduate research fellows for a Social Justice Initiative Mellon Project Panel including CRC Intern and Graduate Student Researcher Bidita Jawher Tithi.  The UCD Mellon Research Initiative "Social Justice, Culture, and (In)Security" was established in 2012 following the widely and diversely expressed social justice concerns arising from the UCD pepper spray incident of November 2011.

Date: December 12, 2014

Time: 1:00 pm - 4:00 pm

Place: UCD Campus, 3201 Hart Hall

Light refreshments provided.

 

Using TRI to Better Understand the Risks of Industrial Pollution

When analyzing the impacts of toxic releases on public health, it is critical to gauge the extent of communities' toxic exposure. Please join the Dillard University Deep South Center for Environmental Justice, and the Environmental Protection Agency's Toxics Release Inventory (TRI) Program for a free webinar entitled "Using the TRI to Better Understand Risks of Industrial Pollution." There will also be an overview of the TRI university challenge and information about how schools can get involved.

Date: Tuesday - December 16, 2014

Time: 9:00 am - 12:30 pm

Place: Webinar - registration is required.

 

New Partners for Smart Growth Conference: Registration Open

Registration is now open for the annual New Partners for Smart Growth Conference in Baltimore, Maryland. The conference is organized by the Local Government Commission. This conference will provide practitioners, activists, community leaders, and elected officials with practical tools and innovative strategies for creating great communities.

Date: January 29-31, 2015

Time: Schedule varies

Place: Baltimore, MD

Early bird registration rates are available until December 15, 2014. 

 

Job/Internship Opportunities     

Interdisciplinary Environmental Health and

Community-Engaged Research Professor

The Northeastern University Department of Health Sciences seeks an Associate/Full Professor and Environmental Health Scientist with a strong background in community-based participatory research, environmental justice, and social science-environmental health collaborations. The faculty member will be part of the Social Science Environmental Health Research Institute (SSEHRI), which specializes in collaborative research at the intersection of social science and environmental health science.  Evaluation of candidates will begin December 1, 2014 and applications will be accepted until the position is filled. See the job posting for full details.

 

Two Positions Open at TransForm

 TransForm is hiring immediately for their Summit and Advocacy Day Event Planner. The position combines event planning, community organizing, logistics, fundraising, state advocacy, and collaborating with caring folks of all walks of life. There is also a job opening for a Grants Manager out of the Oakland office. TransForm works to create world-class public transportation and walkable  communities in the Bay Area and beyond.
 
 

About The UC Davis Center for Regional Change

Launched in 2007, the CRC is a catalyst for innovative, collaborative, and action-oriented research. It brings together faculty and students from different disciplines, and builds bridges between university, policy, advocacy, business, philanthropy and other sectors.  The CRC's goal is to support the building of healthy, equitable, prosperous, and sustainable regions in California and beyond.  

 

Learn more! Visit the CRC website. To contact us directly, email [email protected] or  call us at (530) 752-3007.