Welcome to the Yolo County Climate Action & Sustainability Newsletter! We are excited to share updates from our climate action and adaptation planning (CAAP) process, countywide sustainability efforts, upcoming events, and sustainability resources as we work to meet our goal of achieving a carbon negative footprint by 2030.

We are now on social media! Be sure to follow us on Instagram and Facebook for more updates on our CAAP process.

If you have resources or events you would like to be featured on the newsletter, submit them via email to sustainability@yolocounty.org for consideration.

The February YCCAC Virtual Meeting is a great opportunity to hear more about our 2030 Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP) and provide your input on critical components of our planning process. View the Zoom link here to join our monthly meeting and view the Agenda and Meeting Materials.

🌱 Do you work in the climate adaptation space? Do you have a project, program, or idea that you want to share with the larger California adaptation community? Submit a session proposal for the 2023 California Adaptation Forum (CAF)! The 2023 CAF is now accepting session proposals to help shape a dynamic program. CAF organizers hope to feature a dynamic and diverse program that is responsive to the needs of California’s growing community of climate leaders. Submit your proposal on CAF’s website by Friday, March 10^th!  

🌱 Yolo County’s Health and Human Services Department’s new Community Advisory Program (CAP) has entered  Part 2: Development of the 2023-2026 Yolo County Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) to improve community health. Selected Community Advisors are joining representatives from government, healthcare, and community-based organizations to develop CHIP by (1) identifying priority locations and communities, (2) selecting the County’s top health needs to work on, (3) building goals for improving top health needs, and (4) developing strategies to achieve goals. Learn more about the CHIP here.

🌱 YoloBus is seeking community feedback! The Yolo Transportation District (YTD) is seeking feedback from the Woodland community on transportation improvement efforts in the city. The five-minute-long survey will provide YTD with insights on how to improve transportation options and transit more accessible for all residents. Additionally, survey participants will have the opportunity to enter a raffle to win a $50 gift card.

🌱 The City of Woodland is encouraging people to apply to several job positions currently available. A full list of job openings is available by visiting calopps.org/city-of-woodland.

February 3, 2023          Shonna McDaniels: The Black Woman Experience | YoloArts’ Gallery 625 Court St, Woodland, CA 95776

Pop by Gallery 625 during regular hours of operation, Monday – Friday from 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM, to view the artwork of Shonna McDaniels, founder of Sojourner Truth Art Museum. McDaniels preserves Black history and celebrates the accomplishments of African American people and their legacy through her artwork. For more information, contact YoloArts at 530-309-6464 or ya@yoloarts.org.

February 25, 2023       Woodland Farmer’s Market Paint and Sip Fundraiser | 2:00 PM | 1221 Harter Ave, Woodland, CA 95776

Support the Woodland Farmer’s Market and kids programs by attending the Woodland Farmer’s Market Paint and Sip Fundraiser at the HIVE Tasting Room and Kitchen. Tickets are $45 and include one drink. To sign-up, Venmo @TheWoodlandFarmersMarket or contact Sonia at 530-304-4563 for more information.

February 25-26, 2023  2023 Caypay Valley Almond Festival | Saturday, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM & Sunday 8:00 AM – 4:00 PM | 17001 Yolo Avenue, Esparto, CA 95627

The 108 year old Almond Festival is back for 2023! This festival is a two-day event featuring music in the park, local non-profit organizations, a bake-off contest, artisans, food, and more! For more information, go to https://capayvalleygrown.net/?event=almond-festival and espartoregionalchamber.com/sunday-events for more upcoming events.

February 27, 2023        Yolo County Climate Action Commission (YCCAC) Virtual Meeting | 4:00 PM – 6:30 PM | Join via Zoom

Join us at the February YCCAC Meeting to hear more about our 2030 Climate Action Plan and provide your input on critical components of our planning process. View the agenda and meeting materials at the top of this email.

February 28, 2023      The California Training Institute: Parental Resilience | 10:00 AM | Join via Zoom registration: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMpdO-urD4uHdUP-R1HVAwWCR0WXe38WU7i

Join CalTRIN in a session on Parental Resilience! Participants are able to join the webinar or workshop which are both designed for child- and family-serving professionals at all levels of Protective Factor knowledge or experience to develop skills regarding parental resilience.

March 11, 2023            Woodland Arbor Day | 8:30 AM – 12:00 PM | 1925 Branigan Ave., Woodland

The Woodland Tree Foundation is a non-profit organization run by volunteers dedicated to improving Woodland through the planting of trees. Their motto is Building Community Through Canopy. Woodland Tree Foundation will be recruiting volunteers to plant many trees throughout Woodland on Woodland Arbor Day to achieve three goals: Educate, Plant, and Partner.

April 15, 2023               Northern Valley Indian Health’s Community Health Fair | 10 AM – 2 PM | 1280 E. Gibson Rd., Woodland, CA 95776

The NVIH Community Health Fair is an opportunity for your organization to engage with the local community while increasing health awareness and resilience. To book a table at the Community Health Fair, contact wdldoutreach@nvih.org to confirm your logo and request a table before March 15^th. Community members will have access to health screenings & education resources to promote healthy living, join raffles, and receive swag items, and more!

🌱 Disaster Support (All States):

The United States Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) Disaster Distress Helpline: If you’ve experienced a natural or human-caused disaster, you can call or text the SAMHSA Disaster Distress Helpline’s toll-free number 1-800-985-5990 and receive immediate counseling. This free, confidential, multilingual crisis support service is available to anyone experiencing distress as a result of natural or human-caused disaster. People who call and text are connected to trained, caring professionals from crisis counseling centers in the network.

SAMHSA Disaster Resources for Service Providers and other Professionals: SAMHSA also offers disaster support resources and technical assistance for behavioral health providers, first responders, and other professionals. Please visit:

• SAMHSA Disaster Behavioral Health Resources
• SAMHSA Disaster Technical Assistance Center

Center for the Study of Traumatic Stress (CSTS): CSTS is a federal academic-based organization dedicated to advancing trauma-informed knowledge, leadership and methodologies. CSTS offers free fact sheets and resources for victims, family members, first responders, and community leaders.

🌱 New and recent books about climate and environmental justice.  In observance of Black History Month, Yale Climate Connections is following up its January bookshelf on climate advocacy with a selection of new titles on climate and environmental justice. Collectively, these 12 books argue that the only sustainable future is a fair and equitable one—and that climate activism must also engage in social activism.

🌱 A recording of the City of Davis Celebration of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. is available online. The event centered Environmental Justice as a civil right and featured Laurissa M. Wells, MPA, NAACP Environmental Justice Chair and Senior Director of VisionsOne Environmental Equity & Policy (VEEP) as a keynote speaker.  

🌱 The Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRG) program provides grants to states, territories, tribes, air pollution control agencies, and local governments to develop and implement plans for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and other harmful air pollutants. The EPA will hold a series of webinars about the CPRG program on March 2 and March 7. Registration is required.

🌱 The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is making up to $7.5 million available for grants for urban agriculture and innovative production. These competitive grants will support the development of urban agriculture and innovative production projects through two categories: Planning Projects and Implementation Projects. USDA will accept applications on Grants.gov until 11:59 PM EST on March 27, 2023.

🌱The United Nations System Staff College (UNSSC) is offering FREE Sustainability courses.  See how UNSSC can help you advance your professional development and unleash your potential to foster a more peaceful, sustainable, and equitable future. Available courses on Sustainability include:

Sustainable Lifestyles- This 3-hour online course explores Sustainable Lifestyles in the context of the 2030 Agenda, advancing the understanding of how lifestyle choices impact the world around us and how we can find ways for everyone to live better and lighter.

Digital4Sustainability Learning Path- This 3-hour online course explores the transformational role digital solutions and innovations can play in advancing environmental and social sustainability. In particular, how can digital technologies power the green transition, and how can the digital transition be green?

Resource Efficiency- This 3-hour self-paced e-learning course introduces the key concepts of Resource Efficiency, how to measure it, and why it is important in the context of sustainable development, as well as policy pathways for promoting Resource Efficiency with a focus on Asia and the Pacific.

Environmental SDG Indicators- This self-paced e-learning course provides an overview of the importance of monitoring the environmental dimension of development, the linkage with existing statistical frameworks and how to use environmental statistics in decision making. It also provides a brief overview of all 25 Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) indicators under United Nations Environmental Programme (UNEP) custodianship.

The Net-Zero Standard- This 20-minute, interactive e-learning course delivered by the UN Global Compact Academy and the Science Based Targets initiative provides an overview of the Net-Zero Standard and guidance on how to set science-based net-zero targets consistent with limiting global temperature rise to not exceed 1.5C.

 The Sustainable Development Goals Primer- This 3.5-hour course aims to establish a common base of understanding and approach for the UN system in supporting the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is meant to inform the programs and actions of all UN entities, including their engagement with government and civil society partners.  

The Youth, Peace and Security Primer- This online course aims to establish a common understanding and approach for the UN system in implementing the Youth, Peace and Security Agenda. It is meant to inform the programs and actions of all UN entities working with and for youth in peace and security.

🌱 Frontier Energy is conducting a non-scientific survey for people that own an EV and had a power outage during the storms last month. They want to know about the actual, recent experience from current EV drivers about how they did or didn’t charge their EVs and if power outages changed your opinion or behavior. The survey doesn’t ask for any identifying information. If this applies to you or someone you know, please take the survey and share the link with other EV drivers, on your social media channels, and with your other networks. https://forms.gle/WAHdSzMYY3o9zjJC6.

🌱 The USDA NRCS Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) provides financial and technical assistance to help farmers, ranchers and other agricultural producers to implement conservation practices that improve soil, water, air, plant and animal resources on their land. The EQIP program is voluntary, and it is open to all eligible agricultural producers, including beginning, socially disadvantaged, limited resource and veteran farmers and ranchers. 

🌱 The NAACP has two surveys available. The Climate Justice Initiative survey aims to gather information and perspectives on how climate change disproportionately affects communities of color and other marginalized groups, and how the NAACP can best address these issues through its advocacy and policy work. The Survey of African American’s and Other People of Color in Sacramento, California asks for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color in the Sacramento region to respond to specific issues and challenges currently facing these communities in the area, and how the NAACP can best support and advocate for them.

🌱 Carbon Sequestration and Subsidence Reversal in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Suisun Bay: Management Opportunities for Climate Mitigation and Adaptation. This study assesses nature-based solutions to climate mitigation and adaptation in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and Suisun Bay and made the following conclusions: (1) Restoring aquatic habitats in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta can reduce current greenhouse gas emissions, while providing additional ecosystem benefits to wildlife and water management. (2) Hydraulic management (through agriculture, subsidence reversal, and tidal reconnection) is the dominant pathway to increased carbon sequestration and reduced methane emissions. (3) The largest uncertainties in 40-year (market-based) climate mitigation estimates derive from uncertainties in flow and water operations, which drive projections of aquatic habitat extent and condition.

🌱 This LA study worked to unpack previous Disadvantaged Community (DAC) outreach efforts and conduct needs assessments. The study found that DAC communities are often poorly described, and that a single-indicator system is not sufficient in identifying and understanding disadvantaged communities. The study outlines a multi-indicator assessment tool that helps better describe disadvantaged communities so that engagement efforts can be properly designed.

🌱 Two Articles Regarding the Toxic Train Wreck in East Palestine, Ohio:

As reports of health problems near a toxic train wreck pile up, Ohio sets up a clinic while federal help gets into gear. More than two weeks after a toxic train wreck unleashed plumes of black smoke, contaminated the soil and fueled anxiety in East Palestine, Ohio, residents have reported a growing number of ailments.  Now, the state will open a health clinic for residents who worry their symptoms might be linked to the February 3 derailment of a Norfolk Southern freight train and the subsequent release of the toxic chemical vinyl chloride.

The Ohio Derailment Lays Bare the Hellish Plastic Crisis. Events in East Palestine are a stark reminder that plastic is destroying the planet from its production, to its use, to its disposal.

🌱 Indoor Pollutant Concentrations Are Significantly Lower in Homes Without a Gas Stove, Nonprofit Finds. A pilot program in New York City found that public-housing apartments that replaced their gas stoves with electric alternatives saw an improvement in indoor air quality.

🌱 An Old Railway Running Through Singapore is Now a Thriving Nature Reserve. A former railway line running through the heart of Singapore has turned into one of its biggest conservation success stories, marking a departure from the more manicured approach to nature the city-state is known for.

🌱 Can air pollution make you depressed? Public health experts explain worrying new data. Only three percent of the world’s cities meet World Health Organization air quality standards. Still, questions remain about how hazardous it is to be exposed to air pollutants for many years. Two new studies suggest there is a link between long-term exposure to multiple air pollutants and detrimental mental health effects.