Creating new business and job opportunities while boosting efficient and low-carbon housing

by Miya Kitahara

StopWaste is a public agency with an unusual role in the San Francisco Bay Area. As a joint powers authority, collaboration is in our DNA. We bring together our member jurisdictions (including Alameda County and its 14 cities) to accomplish together what they might struggle to do alone. We were created in 1976 to address waste and over the decades have evolved our approach toward greater integration with other environmental and social issues so that we are more effective in our mission.

We were an early supporter of green building and its multi-benefit approach, which included C&D waste reduction. Over the decades, we have observed the practice evolve and have embraced embodied carbon – including as CLF sponsors since 2017 – because it both supports our member jurisdictions’ climate action efforts and aligns with our circular economy goals of material efficiency and reuse.

Editor's Note: Megan is a recent addition to the Carbon Leadership Forum staff, bringing her government and research experience to the Policy team at CLF to assist stakeholders in developing embodied carbon legislation.

by Megan Kalsman

“We can’t save the planet without uplifting the voices of its people, especially those most often unheard,” stated Leah Thomas in her book The Intersectional Environmentalist. I strive to frame my environmental and policy analysis work with an intersectional lens each day. Working with businesses on toxic chemical reduction, I experienced first-hand how commercial enterprises often want to do the right thing but must balance economics with social and environmental imperatives. Governments are empowered to legislate change and establish standards; however, companies must implement and abide by them.

I have seen how public-private partnerships can improve outcomes by understanding needs, identifying resources, and creating a shared vision. For instance, working with the nail salon community, we heard directly from stakeholders, business owners, and workers. As a result, we worked together to advocate for less-toxic chemicals in products, supported small businesses with a microloan program, and passed policies to translate product information sheets into multiple languages. I believe that inclusivity, equity, and diversity are the keys to solving complex problems sustainably.

Announcing the new MEP 2040 website!

The Carbon Leadership Forum issued the Challenge in the fall of 2021. A group of leaders from MEP firms responded to the Challenge and collectively established a Commitment for you to join. Moving forward, this group of leaders will be responsible for convening signatories around a common goal.

MEP 2040 signatories are publicly pledging their firms to decarbonize MEP systems, and committing themselves and their firms to collective action, supported by transparent data, rigorous science, careful engineering, and thoughtful collaboration.

As of the second week of June, 43 MEP firms have now signed the Commitment, along with 24 additional organizations signalling their support, including architectural, construction, and structural engineering firms, and NGOs such as the AIA, Architecture 2030, and the Passive House Network. 88 people joined the second MEP 2040 Quarterly Forum on June 9 with their fellow MEP signatory firms and supporting organizations. 

View the recording of the June 9 Quarterly Forum on the new MEP 2040 website, including reports from the Working Groups:

• Communications & Resources
• Data, Analysis & Reporting
• Partnerships
• Manufacturers & EPDs