Blog

Say aloha to Matthew Gonser, the County’s new Climate Resilience Officer.

Matthew Gonser has just been named Los Angeles County’s Climate Resilience Officer, working within the Chief Sustainability Office. 

How coastal cities can best protect themselves from sea-level rise

The ocean is moving in. But unlike most unwanted guests, sea level rise is here to stay.

Matthew King, a communications consultant for the Chief Sustainability Office, takes us on a guided tour of greater L.A.’s water future. In the coming weeks, we’ll take a detailed look at where our drinking water comes from and how we can secure more reliable, resilient supplies in the face of climate change.

Los Angeles’ Chief Sustainability Office is hard at work on its Urban Forestry Management Plan – a blueprint that will guide the planting of new trees and the protection of mature trees throughout the region.  This month the CSO begins hosting 25 public workshops so residents can help shape plans to better manage trees in their communities. Concurrently, the City of Los Angeles will be conducting 25 workshops in its various neighborhoods.

As temperatures soar, the Chief Sustainability Office has been tasked with putting together a comprehensive Heat Action Plan for the County.

If this summer’s record temperatures have taught us anything, it’s that hot weather is far more than an inconvenience: It’s a direct threat to our lives and livelihoods. The impacts to our economy are expansive, from business slowdowns to flight delays – but the impacts on health are particularly alarming.

Plans to equitably manage the tree canopy in greater L.A. are finally taking hold.

Having a healthy urban forest is an essential part of a healthy community. If spread equitably, a well-managed canopy cover can deliver healthier soils, biodiversity, habitats, shading from heat and greater community health and well-being. 

Walk on the Wild Side

L.A. is one of just 36 biodiversity hot-spots across the entire globe. Here’s what we’re doing to protect our special places.

Los Angeles County may be infamous for its sprawling maze of freeways and manicured lawns, but it’s also one of the most biologically diverse counties in the nation. 

To get a better handle on what all this plastic pollution means for L.A. County and how to reduce it, the County’s Board of Supervisors directed the Chief Sustainability Office last year to commission a data-driven analysis from UCLA researchers. The survey focused on the food-service sector, one of the biggest culprits when it comes to pollution.

A new Board motion moves LA County closer to 100% renewable energy Nearly all residents and businesses in unincorporated L.A. County receive 50% of their energy from renewable sources as part of the County’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions. At its Dec. 7 meeting, the L.A. County Board of Supervisors doubled down on this…

This week the Chief Sustainability Office issued a data-rich study about which L.A. neighborhoods are most vulnerable to 5 severe climate hazards — both today and by 2050. Here, Alison Frazzini, a County sustainability advisor and lead manager on the Climate Vulnerability Assessment, offers her take on how the findings can help us become more…

Remember those hot days last Labor Day weekend?  Who could forget!   Those hot, hot days led to electricity service disruptions across the state right when we were relying on electricity to keep us cool.  That meant inconvenience for some people and for others, some seriously dangerous conditions. Hot summers are nothing new in LA, but…

While we only had 28 days to highlight a few of our favorite Black leaders, there are millions more Black people who care about and are working hard every single day to ensure that communities are safe, healthy, and protected from the disproportionate impact of air and water pollution, toxic contamination, and climate change.

In 2020, many wondered if that vision could be possible as the country struggled through a pandemic and the simmering civil unrest due to centuries of unjust and racist policies that burden and kill low-income communities of color—especially Black communities.

L.A. County residents are not immune from energy disruptions. But the good news is that the state has enough energy to meet demand. It just needs to do a better job of managing the grid.

“Thousands have lived without love, not one without water,” W.H Auden once wrote. Science tells us water makes up about roughly two-thirds of our bodies, about the same amount of Earth itself.

To get a better handle on what all this plastic pollution means for L.A. County and how to reduce it, the County’s Board of Supervisors directed the Chief Sustainability Office last year to commission a data-driven analysis from UCLA researchers. The survey focused on the food-service sector, one of the biggest culprits when it comes to pollution.

With the coming of the New Year, many of us vow to make a fresh start, turn a corner or renew a forgotten commitment. After an indulgent holiday season, we make resolutions to live more wisely – whether it’s cutting down on sweets or putting money into savings.