Stanford University
EN-10: Community Partnerships

In April 2015, Stanford announced that as a result of the four-year study of the university-owned Searsville Dam, the university had narrowed its options to two alternative approaches, both of which will improve fish passage, manage accumulated and future sediment and avoid an increase in upstream or downstream flood threats in the San Francisquito Creek watershed. The next step in determining the future of the dam is for the university to continue and extend discussions with local organizations to move through the environmental review process and formally discuss future changes. Many of these organizations, including the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the National Marine Fisheries Service, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife, the State Water Resources Board, the California Division of Safety of Dams, San Mateo County, and the San Francisquito Joint Powers Authority, have been involved in the study from the beginning, in addition to faculty experts, local non-profit organizations and community members. More information can be found at the following links:

https://news.stanford.edu/searsville/Searsville_Steering_Committee_Recommendations_April_2015.pdf
https://news.stanford.edu/2015/05/01/searsville-preferred-plan-050115/
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2012/march/searsville-dam-committee-030712.html
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/may/searsville-dam-study-051011.html
http://news.stanford.edu/news/2011/april/searsville-dam-study-040511.html

In relation to broader water conservation and flooding control efforts within the local communities surrounding Stanford, the university works closely with the San Francisquito Creek Joint Powers Authority (JPA). The JPA is developing a regional comprehensive plan for both the waters that flow into San Francisquito Creek and onto San Francisco Bay (its watershed) and the waters that threaten our communities from the Creek and from Bay tides (our floodplains). Within the context of this plan, the JPA is leading the local effort on four major projects. Working their way upstream from the Bay, they are planning, designing, and soon constructing capital projects to eliminate risk to over 8,400 properties and the need for many of them to pay premiums to the National Flood Insurance Program.

The Stanford-SFUSD partnership was created in 2009 to leverage the expertise and research capacities of Stanford’s Graduate School of Education to address the needs and challenges identified by district administrators in the San Francisco Unified School District. With the help of California Education Partners staff facilitating the relationships between Stanford and SFUSD, over half of the faculty in the Graduate School of Education (GSE) have been involved in this partnership. Between 2009-2015, there have been almost 50 Stanford-SFUSD projects completed and there are currently 34 active projects, which has resulted in over 100 related articles, briefs and reports. Project by project, the San Francisco administrators use the research findings from Stanford projects to improve teacher practices, leader practices and district policies with the ultimate goal of improving student achievement.

The partnership between Stanford’s Spanlang 13SL-Immigration and Citizenship class and IIBA pairs Stanford students with local adults in Redwood City who are studying for the U.S. Citizenship exam in Spanish. Working with these adults, students engage on civic issues and learn more about immigrants’ lives while improving their own Spanish. Created in 2011 by Stanford Professor Vivian Brates, this program has grown from a summer partnership to a year-long program. Since its creation, about 115 students have helped over 50 immigrants to pass the citizenship exam. In turn, the participants have shared their stories and helped Stanford students gain a better appreciation for the lives of immigrants in the Bay Area.

Stanford’s Office of Public Affairs initiated the Community Partnership Awards in 2004 to honor the valuable partnerships that exist between Stanford and its neighbors, and to celebrate community efforts that successfully tackle real work problems and advance the public good. Award winners are selected based on their initiative, leadership, and involvement in projects that embody the spirit of genuine partnership and benefit the overall community. In each case, the projects have resulted in collaboration and better understanding between Stanford and Bay Area Communities. Many of the partnerships that have been recognized over the years through the Community Partnership Awards have been sustainability related. The two examples listed above (Stanford Language Center/International Institute of the Bay Area and Stanford/San Francisco Unified School District) were both 2016 Community Partnership Award recipients. The full list of Community Partnership Award recipients can be found at the link below.

http://govcr.stanford.edu/community-partnerships/

Stanford also maintains many community partnerships outside of those that have been recognized through the Community Partnership Awards.

SUSTAINABLE CITIES CLASS
"Sustainable Cities" is a service-learning course offered through Stanford University’s Program on Urban Studies. Students learn and work collaboratively with Bay Area government agencies and community organizations to support their sustainability goals. Experiential learning outside the classroom allows students to serve the local community in achieving a more sustainable future. "Sustainable Cities" presents students with the opportunity to work hands-on in a professional environment with the close guidance of professional staff and Stanford faculty. Students select projects that fit their personal interests and skill sets and are matched with other students into project teams. The teams work diligently on the projects over ten weeks, and present their final products to key stakeholders and community members at the conclusion of the class. Some of these projects, such as the Downtown Redwood City Bike Parking Inventory and the Redwood City Bike Share Assessment have been successfully implemented. Past partners include Redwood City 2020, Joint Venture Silicon Valley, How Youth Perceive the Environment (HOPE), and more.

COMMUNITY ENVIRONMENTAL ACTION PARTNERSHIP
The City of Palo Alto and community groups created the Community Environmental Action Partnership (CEAP) in 2008 in accordance with the recommendations made by the City’s Green Ribbon Task Force and the Climate Protection Plan. CEAP's mission is to bring the various segments of the community together to share knowledge, build mutual understanding, leverage resources, and both create and implement innovative environmental solutions. CEAP goals include: identify and implement top-priority environmental initiatives with measurable objectives; educate and engage each segment of the community in environmental initiatives that fit their needs; create a vehicle for communication, education and awareness among the City and all segments of the community; leverage resources and actions among segments by aligning and coordinating efforts; connect with expertise, input and initiatives from the community and beyond to inform, improve and inspire innovative ideas and programs; and track and report progress to the community. The community is divided into eight segments and a “liaison” is appointed to each segment. The liaisons, which serve as an Executive Committee, meet monthly to share the accomplishments of the work done by the segments. Stanford is one of the segments and a liaison provides a conduit between the environmental and sustainability efforts of the university and the other CEAP segments.

SOLAR MARKET GARDEN PROJECT
The Solar Market Garden Project aims to bring solar-powered drip-irrigation systems to arid regions with endemic food shortages. In partnership with the Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF), which uses solar power to pump irrigation and drinking water in a set of rural villages in northern Benin, West Africa, this Center on Food Security and the Environment-sponsored project is spreading its technology into an increasing number of arid West African villages.
http://fsi.stanford.edu/research/solar_market_gardens_as_a_tool_for_rural_development/

DHAKA WATER PROJECT
Stanford’s Dhaka Water Project developed a device to disinfect drinking water without relying on electricity or moving parts. The in-line chlorinator is designed for low-income urban areas that rely on shared drinking water points. It is currently being distributed in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
http://stanforddhakawater.wordpress.com/about/

RE.SOURCE

The re.source project, led by two Civil and Environmental Engineering doctoral students and developed under the guidance of Jenna Davis, associate professor and fellow at the Woods Institute for the Environment, completed a pilot phase in 2013 in which it tested innovative toilet models and deployed them to 130 households in Haiti. The project started through seed funding through the Woods Institute's Mel Lane Grant Program and was awarded the highest recognition at Sustainable Silicon Valley's Water, Energy, and Smart Technology (WEST) Summit in May 2013.
http://resourcesanitation.com/about/

THE OSA AND GOLFITO INITIATIVE

The Osa and Golfito Initiative through the Woods Institute for the Environment is helping to facilitate the development of a strategy for sustainable human development and environmental stewardship in Costa Rica's ecologically sensitive Osa and Golfito region. Over the past year, INOGO (the program's acronym for its Spanish title) has produced five case studies on key issues in the Osa and Golfito region, including the potential impacts of a proposed hydroelectric dam and a proposed international airport, and the socioeconomic and biological impacts of expanding oil palm plantations.
http://inogo.stanford.edu/?language=en