Environmental Justice - Get Involved
"Illustrating Regeneration" created by Professor Rachel Beth Egenhoefer,
Department of Art + Architecture
How to Support Environmental Justice Everyday
We can all become advocates and allies in this fight to ensure there's a redistribution of decision-making power back to vulnerable communities that are systematically impacted by environmental racism. We have provided a list of opportunities available at USF and in our community to either help you get started or to continue on the environmental justice journey.
Please review the list here.
- USF provides one paid day of leave per year to participate in a USF Day of Mission Integration and Community Engagement.
- All members of the USF and surrounding community are invited to join our weekly Garden Harvest Days on Thursdays, 11 am - 3 pm. Whether you are a seasoned pro or merely gardening curious, join us to learn new skills and meet new friends. And for your labor, you can go home with a bag full of fresh, organic produce from the garden.
- Borrow seeds from the USF Seed Library
Volunteer for a local organization:
- Join Baykeeper's 2024 Clean Bay Challenge.
- Keep SF clean with Refuse Refuse: A grassroots volunteer effort dedicated to trash-free neighborhoods.
- Public Works has many opportunities for volunteers to clean and green San Francisco.
- Together SF: A recurring opportunity to help keep Ocean Beach clean. Every Saturday, 10am-12pm.
- Volunteer in a local SF park. Volunteers participate in a variety of park maintenance projects, including weeding, planting, mulching, habitat restoration, trash pickup, painting, and trail work.
- Volunteer opportunities at Golden Gate National Recreation Area are as diverse and abundant as the natural and cultural resources of the park.
- OneTam
- San Bruno Mountain Watch
- Surfrider Foundation
- Sutro Stewards
- 350 Bay Area
Challenge Yourself
- Go waste free by refusing single-use disposables and choosing reusable options whenever and wherever possible
- Go plastic free! Here are 100 ways. Refusing single-use plastic products is a great start. When considering options, glass, aluminum, and stainless steel are more easily recycled than plastic. Sustainable materials such as bamboo and hemp are compostable and rapidly renewable.
- Personal challenge: Can you reduce your meat consumption by one day a week? More? Try Meatless Monday or go Vegan before 6. Guide to ideas on CO2 impact,
Recycling
- SF Residents, Hilltop and Downtown campus employees can refer to sfrecycles.org. SF residents can request a free compost pail.
- Recycling and Composting information for residents in:
- Avoid wishcycling! Recycle and compost according to what is locally accepted by your community's resource recover program:
Home
- Conserve water with these easy tips! Upgrade your fixtures with water saving devices:
- Consider switching to 100% renewable electricity at home through your local Community Choice Aggregation program.
- Own your own home? Consider replacing old gas appliances with efficient, all-electric appliances and apply for home and electrification rebates through BayREN.
Commute, Cars, and Travel
- Bike or take public transportation. Rather than purchasing a personal vehicle, use a car share option, if you only drive occasionally.
- If you do purchase a personal vehicle, consider an electric vehicle or plug-in hybrid. You may qualify for federal income tax credits as well as state and local rebates. PG&E offers a helpful electric vehicle comparison tool as well as a map of public charging stations in the Bay Area.
- Consider buying carbon offsets when you travel.
Community
- Sign up for a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). Marin's CERT signup here, SF Neighborhood Emergency Response Team
- Support Cafe Ohlone