CivicSpark Fellows—Making the Central Valley More Sustainable

TOPICBringing New Economic Opportunities to Disadvantaged CommunitiesIN THIS EPISODE[02:04] Introduction of Trevor Wilson and Mitchelle De Leon.[03:05] Trevor and Mitchelle share what the CivicSpark AmeriCorps program is all about.[04:13] Mitchelle shares the moment he decided he wanted to become a CivicSpark fellow.[05:10] Trevor shares the moment he decided he wanted to become a CivicSpark fellow.[06:08] Trevor describes the application process.[07:27] Mitchelle explains his application experience.[07:41] Trevor describes his experience of what it’s like to be in the program.[09:13] Mitchelle shares his experience of being in the program.[10:37] Mitchelle explains the project he’s working on.[11:51] Trevor shares the project he’s working on.[12:53] Mitchelle and Trevor tell what’s next for each of them.[14:28] Trevor and Mitchelle describe how the CivicSpark experience has impacted them and how it will serve them in the future.[16:40] Trevor and Mitchelle share the advice they would give to someone who is interested in becoming a CivicSpark fellow.[18:57] Mitchelle and Trevor share one change that would lead to smarter, more sustainable, and more equitable communities.[19:59] Trevor and Mitchelle describe the action listeners can take to help build a more equitable and sustainable future.[20:53] Trevor and Mitchelle explain what California-San Joaquin Valley looks like 30 years from now.GUESTS Mitchelle De Leon recently graduated from California State University, Bakersfield with a Bachelor of Science in Economics and a concentration in Finance. During college, he engaged his fellow students on environmental justice issues in Kern County. He aspires to work on policies on state and federal levels, ensuring fair and equitable solutions to climate change. In 2016, he plans to start a nonprofit organization focused on building youth leaders’ capacity to address climate changeTrevor Wilson grew up in the middle of Michigan and moved on to Michigan State University, where he received a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations. He focused on renewable energy policy and sustainability. Trevor’s senior thesis paper was on Germany’s energy transition to renewables, leading him to a summer internship with an environmental protection organization in Berlin, Germany.ORGANIZATIONCivicSpark is a Governor’s Initiative AmeriCorps program dedicated to building capacity for local governments to address climate change and water management issues in California, administered by the Local Government Commission in partnership with the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research. The mission of CivicSpark is to build capacity for local governments to address climate change and water management needs.Each year, CivicSpark recruits 68 fellows—48 Climate Action Fellows, and 20 Water Action Fellows—who contribute over 65,000 hours to help California communities respond to climate change and water management needs. In collaboration with local government staff, CivicSpark fellows implement a needed climate or water-focused project, while also building long-term capacity to ensure the work is sustained after their service year is completed. Local governments get dedicated project support from a focused team of enthusiastic emerging professionals who receive specialized professional development and sector training.TAKEAWAY QUOTES“Fellows complete eleven months of service, working on a variety of climate-change-related projects, from developing climate action plans, increasing electric-vehicle...