Background

The Community Environmental Council (CEC) advances rapid and equitable solutions to the climate crisis – including ambitious zero carbon goals, drawdown of excess carbon, and protection against the impacts of climate change. CEC was recognized as a 2020 California Nonprofit of the Year and a City of Santa Barbara Climate Hero and is led by CEO Sigrid Wright who was recently named 2022 Congressional Woman of the Year. CEC has worked since 1970 to incubate and innovate real-life environmental solutions that directly affect the California Central Coast. Our programs lead to clean vehicles, solar energy, resilient food systems, and reduction of single-use plastic.

Historically as an oil region, California’s Central Coast has endured devastating spills that have had global impacts. Today, the Central Coast is on the climate frontlines, with frequent megadroughts, gigafires, mudslides, heat domes, and more. Compounding these climate crises are environmental inequities: marked by Santa Barbara County’s poverty rate (the fourth highest in the state), and Ventura County’s unrelenting rate of warming (faster than any other county in the lower 48 states). The Community Environmental Council is working to rapidly flip that script from fossil fuel dependence and legacy pollution, to climate innovation and resilience. To do this, we are building collective power to test, incubate and scale community-led solutions.

In recent years, we’ve collaborated across the community helping to ensure that 1.4 million residents have access to 100% renewable electricity; inspiring more than 15,000 people to adopt electric vehicles and e-bikes; and prompting over 1,600 home renters to take advantage of energy upgrades. Our programs are inclusive, justice-oriented, and center low- and moderate income residents. We believe that working together, we can fully engage everyone living on California’s Central Coast.

Through this Request for Proposals (RFP), Community Environmental Council (CEC) is seeking to work with a consultant to develop a Climate Justice Framework that guides organizational decision making in a way that will advance equitable outcomes for communities in Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. The framework should be rooted in anti-racism, anti-oppression, indigenous sovereignty, reparations, and BIPOC liberation, because the collective benefits of prioritizing these core values creates a more just climate future for us all. The framework should outline a path to achieving CEC’s mission with these priorities at the forefront of our actions.

Overview

The purpose of this RFP is to select one or more consultants that are available and ready to provide all of the services listed under the Potential Scope of Work to CEC, upon request. 

Interested parties, including individuals or organizations, are encouraged to submit a response that meets the requirements described below by Friday, September 1, 2023.

Scope of Work

Phase 1: Establish climate justice values and definitions & agree upon framework’s goals

1. Facilitate discussions to reach collective agreement on the proposed core values listed below:

• Recognition of the intersection of impacts, systems and movements; and that some communities are disproportionately and compoundingly burdened by climate change; the approach must be intersectional if the goal is to be equitable and just; and impacted communities must be able to lead with their priorities and by their own agency

Phase 1 Deliverables:

• 3-4 facilitated conversations with staff, board and CEC’s DEIJ Committee

• Climate Justice Values Statement (public and internal versions)

Phase 2: Interview key Climate Justice stakeholders to establish regional priorities.

1. Work with the CEC team to identify and solicit input from 4-6 key external stakeholders and partners, including Rooted Language Justice and the Central Coast Climate Justice Network.

Phase 2 Deliverables:

• 4-6 interviews with key external stakeholders 

• Written summary of insights and recommendations from stakeholders

Phase 3: Develop individualized action plans for up to 7 CEC programs (Climate Leadership, Climate Mitigation, Climate Policy, Climate Resilience, Climate Justice, Communications, and Development) and 1 organizational plan to develop and achieve climate justice goals.  

1. Design a process and plan for engaging with CEC programs to assess readiness, needs, barriers and opportunities.

2. Develop up to 7 action plans for individual programs with a combination of short term and long term actions. Possible tasks include:

1. Develop an action plan template 

2. Develop 4-5 priority action steps for each team that can be incorporated into annual work plans

3. Identify potential metrics

3. Assemble a cohesive organization-wide action plan with a combination of short term and long term actions. Possible tasks include:

1. Develop 4-5 priority action steps for year 1 implementation organization wide

2. Identify potential metrics

4. With CEC leadership, determine how we will define success, at what intervals we will assess progress, a process for addressing gaps/shortfalls, and who oversees the process.

Phase 3 Deliverables:

• 7-10 facilitated discussions with internal stakeholders for 7 program teams 

• Completed action plans with strategies, timelines and metrics for the organization, including detailed plans for 7 programs

(Optional) Phase 4: Create an internal brief that establishes the need and audience

1. Work with CEC team to establish research parameters and define scope of the internal brief

2. Pull from existing studies and materials to develop a snapshot of climate justice vulnerabilities, needs and opportunities for Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. The snapshot should provide historical context, a glossary of terms, and demographic information about populations and communities in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties. Information may come from sources such as:  

1. Fund for Santa Barbara’s Towards a Just and Equitable Central Coast

2. Specific neighborhoods and communities identified in CalEnviroScreen 4.0

3. Existing City and County plans, such as 

1. County of Santa Barbara: EJ Element; Hazard Mitigation Plan

2. County of Ventura: General Plan

3. Compile or curate existing resources that can be shared with CEC Staff & Board  

Phase 4 Deliverables:

• 8-10 page white paper or brief that includes highlights as identified above, as well as a glossary of terms and resources page

Proposal Requirements

1. Cover Letter (maximum 2 pages):

1. Direct us to your summary of qualifications if already listed on a website OR briefly describe relevant qualifications and experience of the organization and/or its team members, including:

1. Proven commitment to and work experience in developing diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice plans, actions, and values for organizations.

2. Years of professional experience in your field of work.

3. Relevant regional (California Central Coast) and/or local (Ventura, Santa Barbara County) work experience.

4. Demonstrated experience managing and coordinating multiple stakeholders to achieve a common goal.

5. Any previous experience with environmental organizational development.

6. Strong written and verbal communications to a diverse audience in both English and Spanish.

7. (If applicable) Demonstrated work experience, and/or certification in facilitating participant-driven research, collaborative decision making, and/or community-led solutions design.

2. Describe your availability and capacity to complete this project over the next 12 months, beginning in Fall/Winter of 2023.

2. Scope of Work with proposed timeline and budget not to exceed $45,000 for Phases 1-3, or $50,000 for Phases 1-4. 

3. Resume for you as an individual; or if this is for an agency, resume of Key Team Members

Proposal Selection Process:

The CEC will review and evaluate proposals and make selections based on the ability of providers to support the potential scope of work with the priority equity and justice lens. Selected teams will receive a request for a brief interview. All proposers will receive response by email, regardless of selection, no later than September 3, 2023. All proposers will be placed on CEC’s list of equity consultants for reference on future projects and opportunities.

Questions

Questions in response to this RFP should be directed to Jennifer Hernandez, Director of Climate Justice, at jhernandez@cecmail.org or at (805) 730-0210 by Wednesday, September 6, 2023.

Submission Instructions

Proposals in response to this RFP should be submitted by email to Jennifer Hernandez, Director of Climate Justice, at jhernandez@cecmail.org no later than Friday, September 8, 2023.