To: Board of Supervisors
From: Sustainability Committee
Report Title: At-Large Sustainability Commission Member Appointments
☒Recommendation of the County Administrator ☐ Recommendation of Board Committee
RECOMMENDATIONS:
APPOINT Luz Gomez to Community Group Seat #1, Sarah Foster to Environmental Justice Seat #2, Jamie Duran to Commercial Business Seat #1, and Devin Jackson to Education or Research Institution Seat to serve on the Sustainability Commission for a term ending March 31, 2029.
FISCAL IMPACT:
None to the County. Appointments to the Sustainability Commission are voluntary.
BACKGROUND:
On November 15, 2016, the Board of Supervisors (Board) approved the creation of a Contra Costa County Sustainability Commission. The purpose of the Commission is to:
• Advise the Board and staff on successful implementation of the Climate Action and Adaptation Plan (CAAP), including suggestions on how that work can be performed more efficiently and effectively.
• Advise the Board on opportunities to realize equity and fairness across the diverse communities of Contra Costa County in sustainability programs that support the CAAP.
• Advise the Board on how to better engage Contra Costa County residents and businesses on sustainability issues and implementation of the CAAP.
The Commission is comprised of twelve (12) members and five alternates. This includes five District representatives and District alternates from each Supervisor District nominated by individual members of the Board of Supervisors as well as the following seven (7) At-Large seats:
• Two members representing community groups whose mission includes sustainability and/or environmental issues ("At-Large, Community");
• Two members representing commercial groups or organizations whose business focuses on sustainability and/or environmental issues ("At-Large, Business"); and
• Two members representing environmental justice issues and who live in frontline, or “disadvantaged” communities, and who reflect the geographic diversity of the County ("At-Large, Environmental Justice"); and
• One member representing Education or a Research Institution.
The term for each seat is four years with about half the seats expiring every two years to allow for continuity of the Commission.
The Board of Supervisors directed the Sustainability Committee review and interview applicants for At-Large Sustainability Commission seats and recommend candidates when seats become vacant. There are four (4) At-Large seats that expire on March 31, 2025. The Department of Conservation and Development (DCD) advertised the opportunities to serve starting on December 17, 2024, and accepted applications through January 19, 2025.
On February 10, 2025, the Sustainability Committee <https://contra-costa.legistar.com/LegislationDetail.aspx?ID=7129327&GUID=B6595D0D-E8BB-4996-B0D1-6315A802953C&FullText=1> interviewed eight (8) applicants and selected the following individuals for the four (4) At-Large Sustainability Commission member seats that expire on March 31, 2025:
• Incumbent, Luz Gomez, Community Group Seat #1,
• Incumbent, Sarah Foster, Environmental Justice Seat #2,
• Jamie Duran, Commercial Business Seat #1, and
• Devin Jackson, Education or Research Institution Seat
The term for these seats will end on March 31, 2029.
CONSEQUENCE OF NEGATIVE ACTION:
Four (4) of the twelve (12) Sustainability Commission member seats would be vacant beginning April 1, 2025.