California Strategic Growth Council
Newsletter
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The California Strategic Growth Council (SGC) is a cabinet-level body tasked with coordinating and working collaboratively with public agencies, communities, and stakeholders to support healthy, thriving, and resilient communities for all.
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Farewell to Saharnaz Mirzazad
Saharnaz Mirzazad, previously SGC's Deputy Director of Community Investment & Planning, has been appointed to Chief Deputy Director for Climate and Planning at the Governor's Office of Planning and Research. Saharnaz joined SGC in 2018 to lead the development of the nationally recognized Transformative Climate Communities program. Grounded in her experiences working with historically disinvested communities across California, she brings to OPR a wealth of knowledge, passion, and leadership in climate resilience and equity.
As Deputy Director of Community Investment & Planning, Saharnaz oversaw a portfolio of over $2 billion dollars of state investments in affordable housing, climate resiliency, and safer transportation that prioritized environmental justice, public health, and community engagement. She collaborated with stakeholders to champion the innovation and growth of the Affordable Housing & Sustainable Communities Program, Sustainable Agricultural Lands Conservation Program, and Transformative Climate Communities Program, and to launch Community Resiliency Centers Program.
SGC looks forward to continuing to work with Saharnaz as OPR Director and SGC Chair Sam Assefa's SGC Council Designee, to advance Governor Newsom’s policies and programs to make California more resilient and equitable for all. Please join us in welcoming her during the October 27 SGC Council Meeting.
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Governor Newsom Signed AB 156
SGC welcomes the Governor’s signing of Assembly Bill 156! The bill pilots advanced payment as a strategy to increase funding access to lower-resourced organizations and communities. We know that a reimbursement-only model for grants and State contracts can limit participation of small businesses, community-based organizations, California Native American Tribes, and others. Advanced payment allows grantees to receive payment for grant-related activities in advance without fronting all the costs beforehand.
SGC worked internally with our colleagues across the Council and Department of Finance to make Advanced Payment a more viable option for many grant programs, including Transformative Climate Communities. These efforts were initiated in part due to the Council’s leadership in passing a first-of-its-kind resolution committed to advancing capacity building and removing barriers to critical funding. We look forward to seeing how this pilot increases access and builds transformative projects. This is equity in action!
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SGC Celebrates Racial Equity Implementation —
and What's Next
In April 2019, SGC became the first interagency State government organization in the U.S. to adopt a public Racial Equity Action Plan (REAP). It is a strategic plan and statement of intent that guides SGC’s Vision for Racial Equity: All people in California live in healthy, thriving, and resilient communities regardless of race.
REAP took shape by staff participation in the Capitol Collaborative on Race & Equity training program for California State government, hosted by our partners at the Public Health Institute. It outlines a three-year plan beginning in 2019 and ending in 2022 with concrete actions for the Council, SGC Leadership, and staff to advance racial equity in our organization, operations, programs, and policies.
At the October 27, 2022, Council Meeting, Health and Equity Program staff and the SGC Deputy Director on Equity and Government Transformation will give a progress update of REAP implementation accomplishments. Council members will reflect on SGC’s REAP, as well as their agencies’ racial equity advancement initiatives and Governor Gavin Newsom's recent executive order on advancing equity in State government.
The work continues! Staff and Leadership are hard at work brainstorming new and revised actions for a revised 2023-2025 REAP. Join the Council meeting on 10/27 and check out the action plan to learn more.
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Health In All Policies Task Force Hosts Community Safety and Violence Prevention Roundtable
On October 12, the interagency Health in All Policies (HiAP) Task Force hosted its first convening of the Safe & Equitable Communities Roundtable. Representatives from over 12 California State departments and agencies met to discuss their efforts to promote safety and violence prevention strategies in California communities and identify areas for collaboration.
One of the highlights from the meeting was a presentation and interactive exercise led by Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ) and Everyday Peace Indicators, community partners who have been working in Oakland to develop community-driven indicators to inform policy development and assess policy implementation. Participants also used the meeting time to discuss future content and direction for the roundtable. The HiAP Task Force will continue to convene the routable on a quarterly basis, the next meeting scheduled for early 2023.
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Join SGC's Council Meeting October 27 |
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Join us for our next California Strategic Growth Council meeting, happening October 27 at 1:00 pm. The meeting will take place at the California Environmental Protection Agency building in the Sierra Hearing Room.
The Council will vote on recommended awards for Round 4 of the Transformative Climate Communities Program, which funds community-led planning and infrastructure projects to achieve major environmental, health, and economic benefits in California’s most disadvantaged communities. Additional meeting agenda items include:
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1. Land Equity Task Force Action & Discussion. The Land Equity Task Force will address historical inequities of land access across CA.
2. REAP Discussion. SGC Council Members will discuss how their agencies have advanced racial equity via the SGC Racial Equity Resolution.
3. Priority 3 Discussion. With the State’s recent action on housing, climate change, and equity, Council Members will discuss how we can increase access to these opportunities.
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AHSC Draft Round 7 Guidelines Available |
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The AHSC Draft Round 7 Guidelines, along with a Summary of Key Changes, Change Log, and strikethrough version (released 10/7), are now available at the AHSC Guidelines webpage. The Draft AHSC Benefits Calculator Tool, Draft Quantification Methodology, and Draft User Guide will also be available for comment via the AHSC Guidelines webpage.
The entire AHSC team has undertaken a large-scale stakeholder engagement process to help inform and develop updates to the program. We are requesting your continued support by reviewing the documents and providing Public Comment on the changes by 5:00 PM on Monday, October 31, 2022.
The SGC AHSC Team will also be hosting three in-person workshops, as well as one virtual statewide workshop in late October, to present key changes and host a Q&A. The in-person workshops will be held in Davis, Fresno, and San Diego. Please RSVP for any of the meetings you wish to attend but note that the same information will be shared at all four meetings. More information on all four events, including an RSVP link, can be found on our Eventbrite page.
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October 20, 2022 1-2:30 PM: Virtual (Statewide)
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October 24, 2022 10-11:30 AM: Creekside Apartments, Davis, CA (Northern)
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October 25, 2022 9-10:30 AM: Annadale Commons, Fresno, CA (Central)
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October 26, 2022 1:45-3:00 PM: SANDAG, San Diego (Southern)
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TCC Kicks Off Round 5 Technical Assistance with Workshops for Tribal Communities, Unincorporated Communities, and Rural Communities |
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In preparation for the next funding cycle of TCC, technical assistance will be offered to help applicants prepare competitive Round 5 Planning or Implementation Grant Applications in early 2023. This technical assistance will be provided in the form of workshops, tailored resources, and other guidance from now until February 2023.
Technical assistance will kick off in October with two audience-specific workshops, which will cover the program framework and requirements, as well as guidelines to develop a competitive application. Attendees will be invited to share their perspectives, experiences, and feedback on the program. Additional events for all audiences are forthcoming.
Friday, October 28, 2-3:30 p.m.
Wednesday, October 26, 1-2:30 p.m.
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Video of CCR Round Table at UC Merced |
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In August, the Climate Change Research Program hosted a Research Round Table at UC Merced to provide insight into CCR’s research model and encourage the meaningful collaboration with frontline communities in California throughout the research process. Check out the recording on SGC’s YouTube channel here.
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Extreme Heat Symposium
OPR and the California Natural Resources Agency are hosting the Extreme Heat Symposium! It will take place next week on October 18 from 9:00 a.m to 3:30 p.m.
California’s best climate science predicts that every corner of our state will be impacted by higher average temperatures and more frequent and severe heat waves in the upcoming years. Extreme heat threatens public health and safety, economic prosperity, communities, and natural systems, and poses profoundly disproportionate consequences for the most vulnerable among us. Join leaders from across government, industry, academia, and communities for a forward-looking conversation about extreme heat trends and challenges as well as innovative solutions to address its wide-reaching impacts.
The Symposium aims to inform extreme heat adaptation decision-making and actions across sectors and regions, including implementation of California’s Extreme Heat Action Plan and state programs like the Governor’s Office of Planning and Research’s Extreme Heat and Community Resilience Program. Following the Symposium, a synopsis will be released highlighting key takeaways from the event.
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Ecomotive ZEV USA Tour
The Ecomotive ZEV USA tour, a project by students from the Eindhoven University of Technology in the Netherlands, made it onto CNN. OPR/EU Climate KIC supported the California leg of their tour, which was Project #9 of the 2022 Action Plan from the MOU signed at COP26 last year.
In addition to attending the first OPR/EU Climate KIC Climate Conference in Sacramento last month, the students traveled across California to Gonzales, Greenfield, Rio Linda, Fresno City College, and UC Merced to talk to community groups about ZEV and climate change.
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Sacramento, CA 95814
(916) 322-2318
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