University of California, Berkeley
EN-10: Community Partnerships

The Berkeley Climate Action Coalition (BCAC), formed in 2012 and sponsored by the Ecology Center and the City of Berkeley, is a strong and growing network of local organizations and community members joining together to help implement the City of Berkeley’s ambitious, 40-year Climate Action Plan. The BCAC is unique in its mission and its commitment to include and engage residents, non-profits, the City of Berkeley, neighborhood groups, faith based organizations, schools, businesses, UC Berkeley and others locally in the global challenge of mitigating climate disruption. The BCAC initiates projects that address climate change on a wide variety of issues — energy, water, food, waste, the built environment, and transit. We are working toward a future that includes clean air and water, energy efficient housing, and food, energy and transportation that is local, affordable, accessible and safe.

The BCAC has been instrumental in the progress of the community choice energy coming to Alameda County, piloting parklets in Berkeley, convening a number of events to engage and educate the community on the physical, economic and social impacts of climate change and local solutions, helping to get energy efficiency and solar services to multi-family housing residents, and much more. In 2020, Berkeley City Council approved the implementation of an Adopt-a-Spot program that will allow residents to formally adopt traffic triangles and circle. By adopting these spaces, students and residents will be able to increase the curb appeal of their neighborhoods by increasing urban biodiversity and creating a healthier environment. The program comes four years after Berkeley Partners for Parks (BPFP) President Steere co-wrote a letter on behalf of the Berkeley Climate Action Coalition and BPFP urging the city to implement citizen-based climate action initiatives, one of which was Adopt-a-Spot.

UC Berkeley has been engaged with the coalition since its inception, and continues to participate on its steering committee. BCAC offers the campus an opportunity to work more closely with the broader Berkeley community on the issues important to all of us.

https://ecologycenter.org/climatecoalition/

Student Environmental Resource Center (SERC) has partnered with GRID Alternatives to provide an annual UC Berkeley Solar Spring Break Team since spring 2014. GRID Alternatives’ Solar Spring Break helps college students spend their spring break installing solar panels on qualifying homes in underrepresented communities. These clean energy systems provide needed financial savings for residents, while lowering greenhouse gas emissions. Every Solar Spring Break project hosts 10-12 college students traveling to one of GRID Alternatives’ regional offices in California, New York or Nicaragua. Staff time is allocated to this partnership as material support.

GRID Alternatives teaches participants how to install a residential solar panel system through hands-on experience and trainings. Their licensed solar panel installers will lead participants through all aspects of the installation process, from start to finish.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions, GRID Alternatives is currently not holding the Solar Spring Break program, but SERC has continued to uphold the values of the previous Solar Spring Break program in various ways, including the formation of a new student-led DeCal course. Renewable Energy and Environmental Justice DeCal: SERC will be hosting a brand new 1-unit DeCal in spring 2021 on the connection between clean energy and a just society.

https://serc.berkeley.edu/solar-spring-break/

UC Berkeley became a member of the Green Sports Alliance in May 2014 through the sponsorship of the Beverage Alliance. The Pac-12 Conference is the only NCAA conference to have all member institutions also be members of the Green Sports Alliance. To this end, the Pac-12 Conference members and the Green Sports Alliance established the Pac-12 Sustainability Group in October 2014. The Student Environmental Resource Center and Cal Zero Waste serve as the UC Berkeley representatives in the Pac-12 Sustainability Group. Staff time is allocated to this partnership as material support.

During each football and basketball season, Pac-12 campuses compete with each other in pursuit of a zero waste home game in each season. Zero Waste is an effective tool to fully engage the athletes, faculty, staff, students, fans, and the community at the athletic venue to show active commitment to zero waste and sustainability. The zero waste competitions have continued to grow and is now in its fourth year with all Pac-12 campuses participating. In the 2019-20 Football season Zero Waste Challenge, UC Berkeley won "Most Improved." University of California, Berkeley was selected as both the overall winner (92.1% diversion rate) as well as winner of the student-athlete engagement category in the Pac-12 Zero Waste Challenge for the 2018-19 basketball season. UC Berkeley was also awarded first place in the 2017-18 and 2016-17 Basketball season Zero Waste Challenges, with a 95.7% and 94% diversion rate, respectively.

https://serc.berkeley.edu/athletics-sustainability-program/
https://pac-12.com/team-green/pac-12-zero-waste-challenge

Healthy Beverage Initiative (HBI)
The goals of the UC Healthy Beverage Initiative (HBI), via the Healthy Campus Network, are to provide the opportunity for UC campuses to make strides towards reducing sugar sweetened beverage (SSB) sales and to provide and promote tap water as a healthy alternative. Thanks to funding from the Healthy Beverage Initiative, the Green Initiative Fund (TGIF), departments and new construction budgets, refill stations can be found near building entrances in many campus buildings.

https://uhs.berkeley.edu/healthybeverageinitiative

The information in this field was provided by the UC Berkeley Office of Sustainability and the Student Environmental Resource Center.