Past Projects

The team has created a partnership with the local Chino Basin Water Conservation District to develop a policy digest to be distributed to the Chino Basin constituency. Through this project, students investigated the impact of state and local level water policy on the nearby community. For example, the team investigated the rationale for Senate Bill 814 regarding excessive water use and the likely effects of the bill.

The team worked with the City of Claremont and various interested parties to develop business education material related to new California policy regarding food waste recycling. The team created a guide to educate businesses on the new regulations and the necessary steps for compliance.

The team analyzed the history of an issue and presented both sides of an argument from a neutral perspective. The goal of the project was to provide the public with an impartial analyses on the issues for more informed voting on complicated and highly contentious environmental legislations. Specifically, they presented three ballot measures: the ballot measure on whether the city of Claremont, CA should proceed with an eminent domain case to attain the city’s water rights; the Alaskan ballot measure on whether mining should take place in Bristol Bay; and, lastly, the measure in Massachusetts on whether the state should enhance the number of bottles that can be recycled. The team produced a short report and video for each measure, presented on YouTube, the website, and social media outlets.

The team collaborated with local elementary and middle schools to create an hour long presentation and project for students to enhance their knowledge on environmental issues and policy. They worked with fifth and sixth grade students, teachers, and principals to create a project where they educated the students on important environmental legislations through a presentation and project for the students. In addition, they engaged eighth grade students, teachers, and principals to create a curriculum-based lecture on the scientific component of climate change.

The team entered into a paid consulting contract with PaintCare, Inc., a non-profit organization which aids paint manufacturers in operating paint stewardship programs in US states that have paint stewardship laws. The team delivered a report to PaintCare assessing multiple strategies for promoting responsible paint purchases and disposal.

The team partnered with the Orange County Sustainability Collaborative to investigate the obstacles that prevent companies from engaging in environmental initiatives. Instead of focusing on leading sustainable companies throughout the county, the project had a comprehensive scope that embodied companies that exhibit a range of sustainability initiatives. Through surveys, internet research, and interviews, the analysts gathered information to protect the environment by consulting with companies to help them overcome these obstacles. At the end of the academic year, the Center published a report on their findings and strategies for addressing issues that companies face in implementing sustainable business practices. By interacting with a variety of entities, including companies and non-profits, the team gained consulting experience and a keen sense of what effective project management requires.

The team focused on the electronics industry due to the complexities of its corresponding recycling industry, toxicity of E-waste, lack of transparency in E-waste disposal and recycling, and general overall ineffectiveness of electronics recycling programs. The research analysts developed a model that would determine optimal consumer incentives for optimizing electronics recycling rates, using Monte Carlo and sensitivity analysis techniques. Through this project, students improved their quantitative problem solving and analysis skills, especially with respect to environmental issues.

Team is a new team at the REC in 2019. The team was founded with the goal of providing fieldwork opportunities to the REC and addressing a mixture of scientific research and policy objectives to promote collaboration between disciplines at the REC.

This semester, the team has been working on analyzing water quality on Mount Baldy and compiling a guide for citizen stream teams, testing soil across the Claremont Colleges for carbon storage to further the body of environmental landscaping research.

The team will be assisting the Pacific Crest Trail Association and the Forest Service by performing a gap analysis of current policy on the Pacific Crest Trail. Next semester, the team plans to continue taking samples on Mount Baldy and across the campuses and will begin providing recommendations and drafting policy for the PCTA and Forest Service.

Considering that there is a growing voice for solar energy from the student body and other interest groups, the Sustainable Business Practices team seeks to identify and analyze on-campus solar energy initiatives across the 5Cs through this project. The research revolves around previous and on-going attempts to increase solar energy, the obstacles to adopting solar energy, and factors that have contributed to the implementation of solar energy among the 5Cs. Analysts are talking to key stakeholders, analyzing previous data, and working on a synthesis report. In addition, after reviewing CMC’s reasons for not having solar energy, the team will discuss whether and how CMC could proceed with on-campus solar in the near future.

Having met with contacts from the City of Ontario, the Sustainable Business Practices team is iterating on the proposal for a project in the upcoming spring semester. Through this project, the team will analyze how the City can promote sustainable business development through its new logistics and e-commerce incubator program.

The team is working with Jon Roberts of EARTH + Associates and the International Rural Development Center to develop Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to assess performance for sustainable development projects in rural China. We are conducting a literature review of current KPI methodologies to recommend a list of KPIs for the organization to use in modeling development scenarios. The team is understanding the trade-offs of economic growth and environmental degradation and metrics to determine the effectiveness of development projects.

The team is performing financial analysis and preparing investor presentations for a solar-based micro-grid social enterprise in India called Grassroots and Rural Innovative Development (GRID). GRID provides solar-PV powered lighting and water purification technology in India’s rural areas, where 300 million people lack access to electricity. The team is learning about developmental challenges in rural India and how decentralized renewable energy development can act as a solution. More specifically, the team is learning how to ensure environmentally and financially sustainable development and methodology to calculate financial metrics like Internal Rate of Return (IRR), Net Present Value (NPV), and Payback Period.

The project involves mapping land use of industrial wheat farming and organic wheat farming for the Honore Farm and Mill, which is owned by a church in Northern California. They have examined the carbon sequestration differences between conventional and organic wheat and the client, Elizabeth DeRuff, will present findings at the triennial Episcopal Conference in July 2018.

The team is working with EARTH + Associates and the International Rural Development Center on assessing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) for sustainable development projects in rural China. They are conducting a literature review of current KPI methodologies and the project will focus on the trade-offs of urban-based development in terms of quality of life, socio-economic, and environmental impacts.

The Natural Sciences team will be building off the skills and experience gained from the Mark Keppel High School air quality analysis project and undertaking a larger project that would include all PurpleAir sensors currently active within the cities of Alhambra and Monterey Park. This project is being done in collaboration with the Asian Pacific Islander Foreward Movement, and the South Coast Air Quality Management District along with support from the QCL and professors at the Claremont Colleges. The project will attempt to discover patterns in the air quality data and will hopefully provide results that can be used to inform policy decisions in the future.

In collaboration with the Policy and Outreach team, we will be creating a specific air quality lesson for a sixth grade class at Chaparral Elementary School. We will also be implementing a campaign that pushes for the creation of an Idle-Free zone at the school and will be involving students in the process. The goal of the project is to inform students about how every day actions influence air quality in their community and what they can do to help.

A few members of our team are working with Professor Branwen Williams to analyze the nutrient isotope levels of deep-sea corals found in the Channel Islands off the coast of Southern California. This will provide insight into the location and temporal changes of coral nutrient sources. Nutrient mapping through isoscapes is valuable when addressing changes in the composition of the sea floor, coral health, and even oceanic current disruptions, possibly linked to a changing climate.

In collaboration with Professor Branwen Williams–Associate Professor of Environmental Science, W. M. Keck Science Department–we are creating a map of nutrient sources in the Channel Islands of Southern California. Upon receiving deep-sea coral samples, isotopic data will be collected via wet-lab methods. To understand the nutrient dynamics in the Channel Islands, we will create an isoscape: a spatial prediction of isotopic ratios based off geographic location.

Mapping Dana Glacier: Through photo documentation, GPS monitoring, and mountaineering, we will collect information on size, magnitude, and location of glaciers on the eastern border of Yoesmite National Park. The data will inform predictions on the lifespan of the glaciers.

Outdoor Environmental Education: We will create and implement an environmental education curriculum for Mono Lake Committee’s Oudoor Education Center program, a summer experience which teaches Los Angeles high school students about the science, policy, and history of their water.

Temperature monitoring of Grant Lake Reservoir: At Grant Lake Reservoir and Rush Creek, the largest tributary to Mono Lake, we will collect temperature and oxygen concentration data at various water body and shoreline locations. We will analyze the effect of temperature on the health of the water body, data which will guide policy that monitors the Department of Water and Power (LADWP) water diversions to LA. This temperature monitoring will be a model for other locations nationwide that will be affected by climate change and the scarcity of water.

In partnership with the Asian Pacific Islander Forward Movement (APIFM), we are synthesizing an air quality report for San Gabriel Valley using PurpleAir sensor data. This project aims to analyze the associations of air quality with various socioeconomic, health, and environmental factors. At Fremont Elementary School, we will study the impacts of car idling, freeway proximity, and air quality on the respiratory health of children. The final report will be presented to San Gabriel City Council to encourage regulation of air quality policy.

The team assisted in a lab based research project with Professor Branwen Williams, an Associate Professor of Environmental Science.  The project aims to determine ages, growth rates, and climate reconstruction from deep-sea Primnoidae corals collected offshore Monterey Bay, CA and the Gulf of Alaska.  Professor Williams has asked the team to (1) execute laboratory methods on counting coral bands, (2) prepare coral samples for radiocarbon dating, (3) synthesize data to compare methods of dating, and (4) conclude growth rates and their implications on the surrounding environment.  This research will help to provide these corals with a protection plan if necessary.

The team has been asked by the Big Bear Valley Trails Foundation to gather specific data regarding the trail users. Specifically, the Foundation would like to know detailed information about visitor demographics and the economic value associated with each trail. With this information, the team hoped to demonstrate the need for the creation of more system trails and to justify the need for more funding.

In partnership with Keck Science Professor Branwen Williams, the team studied the various methods of dating coral samples. From this data, the growth rates for coral species off the coast of California and the Gulf of Alaska was determined. If certain coral species grow more slowly or are more susceptible to ocean acidification, they will need stricter policies regarding their protection and the REC hopes to bridge the gap between science and policy and assist in creating a report to fulfill this goal.

The team created a report that gave a wholesome understanding of the trees in the city of Claremont. With drought and pests affecting many of the trees in southern California, it is important to have a list of suitable alternative trees that can replace the dying ones. Additionally, suggestions and information for programs that support the integration of more drought-tolerant and pest-resistant trees were included.

For the past year, the consulting team worked with CMC to create an annual sustainability report, and the goal is to complete the report by the end of this academic year.  This semester, the team is expanded the project to help CMC report to the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE) to get a Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS) rating for sustainability.

The REC consulting team is analyzed the economic viability of a day-long guided tour program for the Mono Lake Committee.  This project could be expanded to address a larger research question of what non-national park ecotourism destinations can offer to visitors that national parks cannot.

In collaboration with Harvey Mudd and Pomona experts, an REC team collected information on existing water reclamation projects and explored grants and loans that have been available for such projects.

The team produced the first comprehensive CMC annual environmental in collaboration with the CMC Facilities Department.   In addition to summarizing the trends in energy use, water, waste, landscaping and more, the CMC Sustainability Highlights report chronicled CMC’s impressive progress, despite major expansion of the campus.  Further refinements are possible, and the annual reports can be the base for periodic environmental plans.

The Consulting Team provided Pilgrim Place, a local retirement community, with guidance on publishing their inaugural sustainability report. The REC had been working with Pilgrim Place since the spring of 2013, and the partnership culminated in Pilgrim Place publishing their first sustainability report, which outlined energy and water use, waste management, and sustainability initiatives. The Consulting Team plans to partner with more local organizations to produce similar reports in the future.

The team began working with the City of Claremont in the fall of 2013 to create a survey that would capture residents’ opinions on sustainability initiatives. The survey gathered information about household energy retrofits, energy use, waste management, water use, and other key elements of the City’s sustainability plan.

The team is working toward building a web app that tells California homeowners what payback period they should expect in switching to solar. Right now, the mathematical model is all finished and the team is working on coding the back end of the app. After the back end is done, the team will complete the presentation and front end of the app, as well as rollout so that as many people as possible will benefit from this tool.

The team is writing a white paper for CLGP, a Claremont based nonprofit that seeks to use new solar panel technology to localize manufacturing and production of renewable energy. The white paper we are working towards will describe how CLGP can interact with the Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) structure. CCAs are a quickly growing energy distribution model that allows cities to access renewable energy and reduce energy prices. The white paper will describe how CCAs and CLGP can work together to reach California’s carbon goals and for a greener energy grid. Right now, we are writing the rough draft of the paper and hope to finish the draft before the end of the semester.

The passage of an environmental regulation is only the first step towards meaningfully changing the way an industry operates. The enforcement of regulations is an equally important part of this process, yet it is not scrutinized under the public eye to the same extent as the legislation itself. The Energy Team is writing a report and filming an informational video meant to educate the public about the complexity of the enforcement of environmental regulations, and on some of the ways that companies fail to comply with them.

A cursory Google search will procure several different examples of online calculators meant to estimate the potential savings for a homeowner purchasing a rooftop solar array. However, these existing calculators fail to be transparent about their model, and most of them immediately link to Solar Company websites, bringing their objectivity into question for many people. The Energy Team is creating a calculator of this type which will be embedded in the REC website, and will provide an estimation of the payback period of a solar array given a house’s address and monthly electricity bill. The REC calculator will not resemble a sales pitch like many others, and will have a breakdown of its underlying model to provide a trustworthy estimation for its user.

The team conducted an energy audit of the Kenmore Residence of the Immaculate Heart Community. Dr. Angie Dickson of the IHC asked the Energy Analysis team to make recommendations on energy usage, water usage, landscaping, and residential purchasing. The IHC believes that the greatest moral issue of today is the destruction of the earth, especially its effect on the poor and disenfranchised. One of their primary goals as an organization is stewardship for the environment, and therefore want to limit their environmental impact.

Tim O’Connor (Director of California Oil & Gas, EDF) and Irene Burga (Oil & Gas Associate, EDF) have contacted the Energy Analysis and Environmental Governance team managers to work on a project the EDF has been pursuing. The EDF would like to have the LA City Council pass ordinances/resolutions relating to the installation of continuous monitoring devices at Los Angeles-area oil production sites. This will aid in the understanding of the causes of ambient pollution, which is already being measured. To begin tackling the LA City Council, the REC has been tasked with targeting Culver City first as an initial stepping stone to garner support for greater pollution monitoring at oil facilities. The REC wrote a resolution and will engage in developing community engagement strategies and local-level municipal outreach.

Mt. San Antionio Gardens Energy Audit Report

The Energy Analysis team is continued its partnership with Mt. San Antonio Gardens, a 31-acre, 500-residence retirement home in Claremont and Pomona. This year, they assessed the upfront cost, energy savings, and ROI of insulating the residential units using various insulating materials. The team also measured light levels in large common areas to optimize artificial lighting usage, collected data on usage of commercial ice machines around the campus, and researched different types of efficient hot water heaters for residential units.

The Desert Renewable Energy Conservation Plan is a proposal for a utility-scale solar project in the Mojave Desert. Using ArcGIS mapping, the team visually displayed critical habitats of five endangered species that live in the Mojave Desert, overlaid with plans for area of the solar facility to see how it will affect the Mojave’s endangered species. The team composed a report summarizing their findings on compliance with the Endangered Species Act. The team also engaged in conversations with the Center for Biological Diversity, the Nature Conservancy, and the Amargosa Conservancy for expert opinions to include in the report.

As the one-year mark approaches for the Claremont Energy Challenge, the team evaluated the milestones reached thus far to see if the Challenge is on track to meet its goals. To gain a deeper understanding of the Challenge’s significance, the team analyzed its accomplishments in the context of the Claremont Sustainable City Plan and various statewide legislative goals.

The Energy Analysis team helped Mt. San Antonio Gardens, a local retirement community, evaluate and improve the campus’ energy usage. Because of time and labor restraints, the team analyzed a few key categories of energy usage such as insulation, HVAC systems, and outdoor lighting, working closely with the Gardens staff and residents to establish an energy benchmark and provide recommendations for energy reduction. The team chose two project areas on which they focused their analysis: HVAC systems and solar arrays.

REC students have taken the leading role in recruiting, organizing, and guiding the 5C students to work with city leaders, the Claremont Colleges faculty, and Claremont residents on this initiative, named the Claremont Energy Challenge. Claremont was named semi-finalist in this national energy-saving competition to win the $5 million prize.

The City of Claremont launched a city-wide initiative named the Claremont Energy Challenge whose goal is to educate and involved every sector and demographic within the community in the many benefits of energy efficiency and connect residents with rebates, financing, grants and other available resources. The Energy Analysis team worked with community members on this project in a variety of capacities. They helped to organize student interns across the Claremont Colleges to increase student involvement. The community-centered focus of this project necessitated reaching all demographics, so they utilized behavioral psychology to compose targeted marketing strategies. Furthermore, a variety of tools such as GIS, financial analysis, and others were used to compile the outreach materials needed to make this project a success.

The Environmental Governance team has partnered with the Council for Watershed Health (CWH), a nonprofit dedicated to citizen awareness and environmental stewardship of the Los Angeles River Watershed and its tributaries. Working with the CWH, the team will be working to create a holistic report card for scoring the health of the watershed. Using a wide variety of datasets and past research on projects within the scope of the watershed, the team will formulate a set of indicators for potential scoring of the LA river and its inflows for presentation to the CWH.

The team worked to conceptualize the forces behind corporate social responsibility (CSR) projects focused on the environment. The group produced a report on the motivating factors and outcomes of CSR initiatives in southern California. By examining the work of firms above and beyond their regulatory mandates, the team hoped to uncover the best practices for encouraging more environmentally related CSR projects by firms in the area.

The team finished a report on electronic recycling program efficiency in the United States. By examining state-run e-waste programs across the nation, the team was able to discern the best practices for facilitating higher rates of electronic waste recycling for end-of-life processes for consumer goods. The report focuses on an analysis of factors that influence state programs’ efficiency in pounds recycled annually per consumer in the state.

The team continued its progress in mapping the water-pricing structures and rates across California.  More complete information about water rates across the huge number of water districts has been secured, and the team statistically analyzed the relationships between rates and water uses.

The team developed a revenue-and-cost model for various scenarios of the value of vouchers that electronics manufacturers might consider offering to determine to degree to which greater initial sales and/or customer loyalty could offset the lower revenues per unit. Additionally, they collected the data on the limited experiences of take-back programs for cellphones and computers and ran preliminary Monte Carlo simulations of the results.

The team developed pre- and post-intervention surveys to determine the scope of considerations that citizens use to assess the risks and opportunities of particular energy sources, with a specific focus on hydraulic fracturing (“fracking”). The intervention consisted of presentations by four Claremont Colleges faculty members on various energy sources. The panel focused on whether exposure to the advantages and disadvantages of multiple sources would induce broader evaluation of fracking through the consideration of relative risks compared to other energy sources. A report was created on the analysis of the findings.

The team examined the pricing structures that California water districts are using and constructed the distribution of increasing block and flat rate pricing systems that residential customers face. They selected a statistically significant sample of California water districts, called the organizations to collect pricing and consumption data, as well as other relevant information, and constructed a model that will be used to analyze the impacts of the type of pricing structure and the marginal price of water on consumption levels. Ultimately, the goal was to reveal current trends in pricing structures, uncover the drivers that cause districts to use each of these pricing structures, and analyze the subsequent implications for water use and conservation.

The team researched existing groundwater regulation at the state, county, and city levels and constructed a report summarizing the current governance structure in this policy area. They identified conflict areas that have arisen from governance issues through a case study evaluation of recent and ongoing groundwater litigation. Through a close examination of these conflicts, they analyzed the state’s problematic approach to groundwater management and identify specific areas for policy improvements.

The team provided an overview report of the current graywater governance structure in California. They interviewed various stakeholders, uncovered roadblocks that prevented increased use of graywater systems, and identified suggestions for policy changes that would enable greater wastewater reuse at the local level.

The Risk and Resilience team at the Roberts Environmental Center is analyzing the disparities that residents of unincorporated territories face in the wake of California wildfires. These communities, also known as Census Designated Places (CDPs), are typically low-income, have older populations, and are largely uninsured. Our team is building a mapping tool that displays wildfire-related policies across California as well as wildfire-driven migration risk potential. Additionally, an extensive outreach campaign will not only support this research, but amplify the voices of those who feel forgotten.

View the report

The NGO-Corporate Partnerships team has researched partnerships between different stakeholders, including public-private partnerships. In February 2018, the team organized a conference that brought together experts from nonprofit organizations, multinational corporations, and government agencies. This year, the team is continuing to research what factors make partnerships successful and facilitating relationships between NGOs and corporations in southern California.

The NGO-Corporate Partnerships explored strategies for partnership possibilities and worked to preempt risks that partnerships between NGOs and corporations can face. In the 2017-2018 academic year, the NGO-Corporate Partnerships team organized the Partnerships Conference on February 23-24, 2018, which brought together leaders from corporations, environmental NGOs, and government to examine the rationales and opportunities for mutually beneficial partnerships. Panelists included a senior VP from Wells Fargo, The Director of Corporate and Foundational Relations for The Nature Conservancy, and more. Attendees came from a variety of backgrounds, including nonprofits like GRID Alternatives and financial institutes like Capital Group.

In the previous year, the team completed a guide for corporate executives to understand the considerations necessary to decide whether and how to seek partnerships with environmental NGOs and the arrangements of such partnerships. This year, the team planned a conference for early spring 2017 to bring together key figures from the corporation, environmental NGO and academia worlds to discuss the benefits and challenges of a partnership. The conference will ideally serve as a catalyst to spur both corporations and NGOs to pursue partnerships, the development of which the team will serve as a third party consultant and facilitator.

In the previous year, the team completed a guide for corporate executives to understand the considerations necessary to decide whether and how to seek partnerships with environmental NGOs and the arrangements of such partnerships. This year, the team planned a conference for early spring 2017 to bring together key figures from the corporation, environmental NGO and academia worlds to discuss the benefits and challenges of a partnership. The conference will ideally serve as a catalyst to spur both corporations and NGOs to pursue partnerships, the development of which the team will serve as a third party consultant and facilitator.

The team completed and published a guide for corporate executives to understand the considerations necessary to decide whether and how to seek partnerships with environmental NGOs and the arrangements of such partnerships, and vice versa. The analysts also held a task force conference at Claremont McKenna College in the spring.

The team organized a careers conference for all 5-C students that brought in representatives of environmental groups, consulting firms, law firms, and government agencies. The event also offered panel discussions on various aspects of environmental jobs and issues.

The team has completed a guide for corporate executives to understand the considerations necessary to decide whether and how to seek partnerships with environmental NGOs and the arrangements of such partnerships. The draft reports of the team over the past two years have been essential for the work of an international task force working in parallel with the REC.