Sustainable Environment Institute
Los Angeles Community College District
Spring, 2023 and SEI events and resources for the coming academic year.
This fall the SEI is offering a series of seminars and events related to the Climate Crisis and what is happening locally, regionally, and globally to confront this pivotal moment in the existence of the human species. The next in the series is scheduled for February 23rd. It is focused on efforts to remove the funding of fossil fuels in banking and pension funds . We will interview people with some experience in pension funds and climate action .
Find out more about the items below in the newsletter coming out Feb 22.
Finance and Fossil Fuels: a Panel- banking defunding and divestment from carbon burning
Feb 23rd 11:30 am-1:00 pm
This lively panel will give LACCD community the opportunity to gain a more clear understanding of the money behind fossil fuels, what are the implications and what are the options. Please join George Leddy as moderator, with guests Sharon Hendricks CalSTRs board member representing Community Colleges, Andrew and So and so representing Fossil Free CA
A new effort is underway to divest California’s giant pension funds from fossil fuels. And given that the committee chairman who blocked passage last year has retired to become a sheriff, it has a real chance of passing! As Fossil Free California put it: If passed, this critical bill would protect the retirement savings of California’s teachers, firefighters, and state workers from being used to finance oil, gas, and coal.
The SEI’s own Xiao Behlendorf has prepared a webpage via the LA Valley College library that hosts resources for faculty and students in confronting this challenge. Beginning with a useful definition of this phenomenon, the site offers links to book titles and short reviews as well as articles. There are podcasts and videos as well as links to local environmental organizations where students can volunteer, intern, and even get paid positions. Most importantly, the page offers several organizations that can help people facing a mental health crisis. The tab on Climate Crisis Conversations hosts 17 of them running from 30 minutes to 1 hour. The TED talk on mental health is also very well selected.
Recently the national availability of an emergency phone number, 988, is now national service for the most immediate help in a crisis. The issue is also getting attention in the LACCD so that Student Health services on each campus are stepping up their capacity to help students distressed by the tsunami of bad news. The SEI will host a roundtable of sorts on November 10 as part of the Professional Development College series of Summer/Fall talks. See other article here on the planned schedule for these talks.
George Leddy
Beth Abels
Xiao Behlendorf
David Beaulieu
February 22, 2023