Volume 3, Issue 8 | Winter 2020-21
happy holidays from env red card
Dear Friends:

I'm sure there were many points during the semester when you thought we'd never get to the end of 2020. Well, we've done it, and I do mean we! There is no way most of us could have completed the coursework and other related activities without a joint, collaborative and supportive team of fellow students, faculty and staff. I always feel lucky – really fortunate to be in ENV. I spend my days surrounded by creative, talented people who care about each other. My hope is that you feel the same way.

Many of you invited me to join your final reviews, presentations and course critiques. Your work was very impressive, which would have been no small feat during a normal academic year given our programs’ high standards. But in a year of virtual learning, working and designing, what you accomplished is remarkable in its creativity; it demonstrates your ability to translate ideas and emotions into visual form. As creative people, you were forced into online instruction – and you rose to the opportunity. Thank you! From my perspective, the work reflects the commitment each of you have to your studies, profession and futures.

The new year holds much promise.

From a public health perspective, options are surfacing that may protect us against COVID-19. It will be awhile until we settle into the next new “normal”, and as you know Spring semester will again be conducted online. Leaders of our university and the CSU system will be discussing and deciding how to move forward in ways that prioritize the safety and wellbeing of all.
 
As you build on skills you have already mastered, the next stage of our social, professional and academic evolution may present itself. I don't know what it will be, but I'm pretty sure it will include an exploration and reexamination of what has worked and which areas need the work. Will there be less driving, more connecting with our immediate surroundings? Will the difficult conversations and self-reflection of our disciplines translate to greater, broader and more inclusive collaborations as we respond to climate change and our social responsibilities to one another and our communities? How we use our privilege as designers, thinkers and educators may result in new ways of living. Creativity is our commodity in ENV.

Thank you, and please be well during the holiday season.


With great appreciation,
Lauren
Lauren Weiss Bricker, Ph.D.
Interim Dean
College of Environmental Design
cal poly pomona updates
Most classes and services are remote/virtual in the winter intercession and spring term.

  • Campus closure: Dec. 25 to Jan. 1.

  • To reduce COVID-19 exposure risks, the university will restrict campus access from Dec. 28 to Feb. 8 to authorized employees performing essential in-person duties.

  • Enjoy Winter Break, Safely. President Soraya M. Coley says campus leaders will communicate decisions about spring break and Fall 2021.

  • Planning a visit to campus? Faculty, students and staff must first complete this checklist.

  • Follow CPP on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram (@calpolypomona).
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env updates
Find news and updates in the College of Environmental Design's news section.

  • Buildings 1, 2, 3, 7, 13, 89 and 209 are closed and locked until further notice. Studios and classrooms should not be accessed at this time.

  • Faculty and staff are advised to review the Dec. 4 email from college leadership about new procedures on reporting COVID-19 cases.


  • Follow ENV on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn (@cppenv). ENV Student Success Advising Center is on Instagram (@cpp_envadvising).
interdepartmental | stay in the know
Ricardo Lara Linear Park SWA Group
Ricardo Lara Park youth gardening group
LANDSCAPE ARCHITECTURE
Assistant Professor Claire Latané, and students Jose Guadalupe Gutierrez ('24, MLA) Jose Reynoso ('21, BSLA) were selected by the Landscape Architecture Foundation to participate in the 2021 Case Study Investigation (CSI) Program. They join nine other international university faculty-student teams that will assess the environmental, social and economic benefits of high-performing landscape projects. Their findings will culminate in Case Study Briefs that will be published in the award-winning Landscape Performance Series website and database of more than 150 projects.

The Cal Poly Pomona team will be assessing Ricardo Lara Linear Park in the City of Lynwood. SWA Group transformed five acres of vacant lots into a mile-long park along an embankment along the 105 Freeway. In addition to providing multiple outdoor public spaces, the park also filters stormwater runoff and seeks to improve air quality. Latané, Gutierrez and Reynoso will conduct their work from February through early August.
2021 Dale Prize winners Miguel Vasquez and Dr Nisha Botchwey
URBAN AND REGIONAL PLANNING
The department this week announced the winners of the 2021 William R. and June Dale Prize for Excellence in Urban and Regional Planning. The 2021 theme is "Planning in the Pandemic: Public Health and Social Justice."

Practitioner Prize: Miguel Angel Vazquez, AICP. Vazquez is the Healthy Communities Urban Planner at Riverside University Health System-Public Health. He has served in planning and public health organizations in the private, public and military sectors for nearly 20 years.

Scholar Prize: Nisha Botchwey, Ph.D., MCRP, MPH. Botchwey is Associate Dean of Academic Programs at Georgia Institute of Technology. Botchwey's research focuses on health and the built environment, health equity, community engagement, and data dashboards for evidence-based planning and practice.

Vazquez and Botchwey will participate in a March 3 colloquium to present their work in the field, and then spend March 3-4 interacting with students in classes and through various events. The 2021 program will be fully virtual.
Alex Armendariz Presidents Scholar 2020 21
REGENERATIVE STUDIES
Alex Armedariz ('24, master's in regenerative studies) talks about his research on food sovereignty for indigenous communities in a President's Scholar profile published this week. He is co-founder of the American Indian Science and Engineering Society and the Native American Student Association, and a board member of the Lyle Center Sustainability Student Association.

“The connection between people, language, science and humanity matters a lot," he said. "Cal Poly Pomona’s regenerative studies program remarries those relationships and tries to bring it back together, which means a lot for me as a student and as a Native American.”
salares andinos
Assistant Professor James Blair wraps up the year with several achievements from his research and advocacy work.

He authored a chapter ("Extractivismo del Litio y el Problema de la Escala: Acción Climática Global y Justicia Ambiental Local/ "Lithium Extractivism and the Problem of Scale: Global Climate Action and Local Environmental Justice") in "Salares Andinos (Andean Salt Flats)," a Spanish-language book launched together with the documentary "El agua vale más que el litio (Water is worth more than lithium)" in a Dec. 17 international webinar.

Read the book's English introduction here and Blair's chapter here.

Blair is also working on a forthcoming report for the Natural Resources Defense Council on lithium extraction in South America. Additionally, he contributed to the writing and editing process of the NRDC issue brief "Hydro-Highway Robbery: Reguemos Chile Would Benefit Agribusinesses at the Expense of the Environment, Small Farmers, and Indigenous Peoples."
with gratitude | retirements
teresa castaneda laura fujimoto hernandez edna quichocho paul tran
Teresa Castaneda (1996-2008, 2011-2021)
  • Student Success Center, College of Environmental Design
  • Department of Mathematics and Statistics, College of Science
  • Registrar's Office
  • University Housing Services
Email your appreciation to [email protected].

Laura Fujimoto-Hernandez (1986-2020)
  • Dean's Office/Department of Urban and Regional Planning, College of Environmental Design
  • Office of the Associate Provost, Division of Academic Affairs
  • Department of Mathematics and Statistics/Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, College of Science
Email your appreciation to [email protected].

Edna Quichocho (1989-2020)
  • Instructional Services, College of Environmental Design
Email your appreciation to [email protected].

Paul Tran (1988-2020)
  • Information Technology Consultant (ENV Liaison), Academic Technology
  • CAI Lab, College of Environmental Design
Email your appreciation to [email protected].
img | stories in pictures
FALL 2020 DEMO REELS | Watch a compilation of motion graphics clips from Professor Anthony Acock's 4D Workshop (VCD 4341) featuring works by seniors Michelangelo Barbic, Emma Wahlstrom, Dorothy Kim, Jesus Saldivar, Justin Hong, Anastasia Ramirez and Aaron Avila.
opportunities | your professional development
architects foundation diversity advancement scholarship image of three students
ARCHITECTS FOUNDATION SCHOLARSHIPS | Apply by Jan. 15




santa ana watershed project authority logo
WATER RESOURCES PLANNING INTERNSHIP | Apply by Jan. 15

The Santa Ana Watershed Project Authority (SAWPA) has an internship open to students majoring in environmental science, civil engineering, water resource planning, or related technical fields. The position is part-time ($15/hour) with full-time status available during summer months and/or part-time during the school year with a total limit of 12 months. Work hours are flexible.

Duties include assisting staff in evaluating, planning, and developing a variety of water resources and environmental planning studies and projects (regional water resource studies, watershed management programs, managing data, creating presentations, and helping with grant applications).

Send resumes to Mark Norton, Water Resources and Planning Manager, at [email protected].
save the date 9th annual research scholarship and creative activities conference march 6 2021
9TH ANNUAL STUDENT RSCA | Apply by Jan. 27

The 2021 Student Research, Scholarship & Creative Activities Conference is fully virtual in 2021. The program will feature oral, performance and poster presentations; and a creative works showcase highlighting artwork, prototypes and design projects.

File your application here.
LPA Interdisciplinary Diversity Scholarship Program
LPA INTERDISCIPLINARY DIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIP | Apply by Jan. 29

LPA, Inc. and Scholarship America launched the LPA Interdisciplinary Diversity Scholarship. a new program for high school seniors from under-represented groups considering careers in the design professions. The application deadline is Jan. 29 by 3 p.m. (CST).

Awardees receive a $5,000 annual scholarship for up to five years, renewable until a bachelor's degree is earned in majors associated with the design and building industry (architecture, landscape architecture, interior architecture/design, architectural engineering, civil engineering, etc.).

Find the eligibility requirements here.
alumni | designing the future
CPP Undergraduate Student Reseacher Daniel Aley bw portrait
Daniel Aley ('19, graphic design; minor in computer information systems) is a member of the Peraton Deep Space Operations team recognized at the 2020 NASA Honor Awards for its role in providing telecommunications services for all deep space missions conducted by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

As a UI/UX design engineer, Aley designs, researches and manages the production of internal software, processes and services used by the NASA/JPL's Deep Space Network Operations and Maintenance Program.

Aley's student activities poised him for a career at the intersection of design, visual communication and computer systems. As an Undergraduate Student Researcher, he conducted cognitive and behavioral studies to interpret learning models and information retention on mobile applications. For more than two years he was the Visual Design Lead for CPP NASA Business Startup Program, collaborating with business administration and engineering students and faculty to design products for commercial use by NASA. Aley was also the web and graphic designer of the Cal Poly Pomona Liquid Rocket Lab, developing the organization's visual identity and designing related branded collateral such as logos, decals and banners.
don brinkerhoff bw photo courtesy of lifescapes international
Lifescapes International Inc. CEO/founder Don Brinkerhoff ('52, ornamental horticulture) last week celebrated his milestone 90th birthday.

Brinkerhoff cultivated an award-winning legacy in his 65 years in the landscape architecture industry. He was the first landscape designer inducted into the American Gaming Association’s Hall of Fame alongside Frank Sinatra and casino mogul Steve Wynn for designing 17 casino resorts on the Las Vegas Strip, and redesigning the world-famous Las Vegas Boulevard in 1995. His firm has designed hundreds of projects worldwide – from master-planned communities and parks, to golf courses, retail, mixed use, masterplanned and multifamily communities, to mega-resorts.

Learn more about Brinkerhoff's career and his philanthropic endeavors in ENV here.
ON THE GRID is produced by the College of Environmental Design (ENV) at Cal Poly Pomona.
Masthead design by Maribel Ruiz ('22, architecture).
Send your news, announcements and upcoming (virtual) events to [email protected].