SCAEEPA Community Outreach

Focus on Our Next Generation

SCCAEPA’s outreach activities has focused on the younger generations, bridging knowledge between the established and the developing, and fostering our green environment through educating the younger generations.

SCCAEPA and The Broader Community

SCCAEPA outreach activities to the broader community includes two notable examples:  the California Native Plant and You (CANAPY) outreach series from 2016-2019, and the LAEF webinar series which commenced during the COVID pandemic.  

CANAPY

Through CANAPY, SCCAEPA developed brochures promoting the use of California native plants and sharing expert knowledge about where to find these plants and how to take care of them.  The brochures were distributed through local libraries, water agencies, and various SCCAEPA events.  The CANAPY series also included a “Native Plants Are Best” workshop, held at the California Botanic Gardens in Claremont.

This outreach series promoted awareness of California native plants, and built the bridge between environmental professionals and local individuals and communities, aiming for providing water conservation solutions. 

Webinar Series

Since the pandemic, SCCAEPA hosted and co-hosted various webinars for our members and the broader community.  In addition to the LAEF webinar series, SCCAEPA co-hosted a webinar in 2020 on wildlife conservation, together with the Chinese-American Engineers and Scientists Association of Southern California (CESASC).  In the webinar, the famed conservationist Xing Ba and Professor Xudong Jia with the California State University at Northridge shared their expertise on the conservation of African lions and California mountain lions.

Student Scholarship Programs

This program was established in 2006 to encourage environmental research by college students. Over the past five years, the Scholarship Committee has reviewed many applications from over 16 universities and awarded more than 13 scholarships to students transcending international borders and on diverse topics related to water, soil/sediment, air, and energy.  Some awardees have gone on to become professors in universities themselves to educate the next generation; and yet others are working directly on environmental solutions in private or public sectors.

 

Environmental Justice Grant Proposals

In 2020, SCCAEPA collaborated with the San Gabriel Educational Foundation (SEF) to apply for the CalEPA Environmental Justice (EJ) Small Grant with a focus on “Building Resilient Communities”.  We proposed a bilingual and multi-phased program on green infrastructure design, which would involve knowledge sharing through lectures and a hands-on demonstration project for students to showcase their creativity and learning outcomes.  The proposal was supported by the Jefferson Middle School in the San Gabriel Valley and the local school district, with additional community outreach events planned for all eight schools within the school district which serves approximately 5,300 students in total.  While the proposal was not funded in 2020, we are building upon the effort and applying for more grants in 2021 to continue our goal of involving our younger generation in environmental awareness and identifying solutions.

SCCAEPA-AEC Environmental Summer Camp

In summer 2021, SCCAEPA launched the first SCCAEPA-AEC Environmental Summer Camp in close collaboration with the American Educated Chinese (AEC) Foundation. Mentored by the camp coaches, middle- and high-school students attended lectures and field trips, conducted research, and presented their end-of-camp research or design products, on five different topics:

  1. Surface water management;
  2. Microalgae and water treatment;
  3. Methane in ground water;
  4. Water conservation, California native plants, and you,
  5. Contaminants of emerging concerns – per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS).

  SCCAEPA members volunteered as camp coaches and judges.  Students demonstrated amazing leadership and passion for environmental issues.

Participation in Local Education Programs

SCCAEPA members have been actively involving in local educational STEM programs: 

  • Early in 2021, the Future City Competition, which is a project-based learning program where middle-school students imagine, research, design, and build cities of the future.
  • SCCAEPA’s sister organization, the Chinese Institute of Engineers (CIE) – SoCal Chapter, a local sister organization, organized the regional competition. SCCAEPA Board Members Dr.  Wei Li and Dr. Elaine Shen made major contributions in coordinating the event logistics, and volunteered as a competition judge, respectively.