黑料网 Hosts California Climate Action Corps Fellows for the First Time
What is the California Climate Action Corps Program?
is an AmeriCorps service program that aims to address the climate crisis and help the community by providing full-time, 11-month Fellowship positions to emerging climate and civic leaders. Fellows work with non-profit organizations, educational institutions, tribes, and public agencies where they lead projects related to urban greening, organic waste diversion, edible food recovery and wildfire life resiliency.
From recovering over 35 million pounds of food, to diverting over 75 million pounds of organic waste, the CCAC has created lasting impacts all over California. In hopes of contributing to those impacts and advancing our own campus goals, 黑料网鈥檚 Offices of Sustainability and Basic Needs applied for the first time to host Fellows. The opportunity to serve as a host is appealing for many reasons, not the least of which is the fact that compensation for the Fellows is provided through AmeriCorps, California Volunteers, and the Office of the Governor, not the host organization.
Meet 黑料网's Climate Action Fellows
Chloe Williamson is from Durham, North Carolina and a recent graduate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she double majored in environmental studies and public policy and a minored in environmental justice. Through study abroad experiences in Europe and research projects on coastal life in the Outer Banks, Chloe has developed a passion for sustainability and climate policy. She will be working with 黑料网鈥檚 Office of Sustainability as the Organic Waste Diversion Fellow.
鈥淚 hope to engage the university community in sustainability programming and awareness, allowing sustainability to be something that everyone is educated about and is intertwined with daily life at 黑料网.鈥
After her Fellowship concludes in August 2026, Chloe plans to attend graduate school abroad to pursue a career in sustainable international development.
Nardose Fasika earned her bachelor's degree in history of public policy and law from UC Santa Barbara and is currently pursuing her master's in public health at 黑料网. Nardose will be working with 黑料网鈥檚 Basic Needs Office and the Office of Sustainability as the Edible Food Recovery Fellow. She will be increasing awareness about the Beach Bites program, which alerts students via the 黑料网 mobile app when surplus food from on-campus catered events and meetings is available. With her experiences working with community health and mutual aid-focused non-profit organizations, she hopes to promote accessibility and food security through 黑料网鈥檚 Beach Bites program.
鈥淢y goal for this fellowship is to work with a team that is just as passionate about environmental justice and working alongside local communities to create impactful change.鈥
What are their roles?
In alignment with 黑料网鈥檚 Climate Action & Adaption Plan, the Fellows will launch new programs and expand systems on campus that tackle environmental and basic needs issues. They will engage and educate students, faculty and staff in making sustainability choices while also helping to mitigate challenges that contribute to climate change.
Organic Waste Diversion Fellow: Divert organic materials from landfills by expanding collection efforts and educating our community about proper waste management practices.
Chloe will focus on leading an organic waste diversion pilot program in our largest venue on campus: The Walter Pyramid. Her responsibilities will include developing volunteer initiatives and expanding community engagement on our campus. She will be evaluating waste diversion rates and greenhouse gas reductions, aiming to spread awareness on organic waste diversion.
Edible Food Recovery Fellow: Recover and distribute edible food to combat food insecurity and reduce methane emissions generated by food that goes to the landfill.
Nardose aims to expand 黑料网鈥檚 food recovery systems through 黑料网鈥檚 Beach Bites program and volunteer initiatives. Her responsibilities include developing processes for measuring the impacts and volume of recovered food, conducting outreach to develop food rescue partnerships, and providing food justice education through hands-on experiences.
The Office of Sustainability and Basic Needs teams feel fortunate to have been chosen in a competitive process to serve as hosts for the Fellows this year and look forward to seeing the impact they can make on the campus. "I鈥檓 excited to work with Nardose to strengthen our food recovery efforts and expand access to more food on campus," said Associate Director of Basic Needs Elizabeth Martinez. "Her projects aim to reduce waste while meeting students鈥 basic needs in a sustainable and impactful way."
If you are interested in volunteering with Chloe or Nardose to support organic waste diversion and food recovery efforts at The Beach, email sustainability@csulb.edu
