Summer 2023 Fellow: Alessandra Mohar ’26
Office Description
The San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) is a State of California government agency located in the City of San Francisco with regulatory and planning responsibilities over San Francisco Bay, the Suisun Marsh, and along the Bay Area’s nine-county shoreline. BCDC is guided in its actions by state and federal laws and its regulatory policies. BCDC protects hundreds of miles of shoreline, collaborates with local, regional, state and federal agencies, and helps develop the San Francisco Bay Trail and the San Francisco Bay Area Water Trail. Finally, BCDC leads the Bay Area’s regional rising sea level adaptation planning.
Description of the Work
The Intern will assist the Environmental Justice team at BCDC with the implementation of our Racial Equity Action Plan and help us coordinate equity in shoreline adaptation planning in our Bay Adapt and Regional Shoreline Adaptation Plan. This will include working on the logistics for the Shoreline Leadership Academy, a resident shoreline training program. The intern will assist in doing research, developing presentations, coordinating logistics, setting up meetings. Work could also include outreach to local communities, assistance in evaluating permits, and/or developing or interpreting policy.
Desired Skills
- An understanding of Environmental Justice and Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) principles.
- Ability to: Reason logically, write effectively, conduct research, analyze situations accurately, and adopt an effective course of action; establish and maintain cooperative relations with those contacted in the work.
- An individual with high potential and the desire to learn more about San Francisco Bay, climate change, shoreline conservation and development, and how governments work.
- Interest in learning about general concepts and principals involved in environmental justice and equity issues, including community outreach and engagement strategies.
- Familiarity and/or general knowledge of vulnerable communities in the Bay Area and working with low-income, diverse populations.
