BEHIND THE AB 32 LAWSUIT: A Call for More Responsible Environmental Policy
A Conversation with Alegría De La Cruz- Legal Director- Center on Race, Poverty and the Environment, and Rafael Aguilera, Principal- Verde Group. Monday, April 11, 2011.
*Rafael Aguilera: Principal of the Verde Group, has been a constant in the California climate change policy debate and a key advocate for climate justice. Aguilera helped negotiate the final language of AB 32 with the California Legislature and stakeholders. He will discuss the letter and sprit of the law, and provide a progress report on CARB’s implementation of the law. Aguilera is a Co-Founder of the Verde Group, the first Latino-owned consulting firm focused on representing the environmental and public health needs of vulnerable communities in the development of state-wide policy. He served as a Governor’s Appointee to the California Climate Adaptation Advisory Committee and is a nation-wide public speaker on climate justice. Aguilera holds dual B.A.’s in Economics and Environmental Science from UC Santa Cruz.
*Alegría De La Cruz: Legal Director at Center on Race, Poverty & the Environment, represents the community-based organizations who worked tirelessly to support the development and passage of AB 32- California’s 2006 climate change bill –in a legal challenge to California Air Resources Board (CARB) climate action plan for AB 32 implementation. The legal challenge claims that CARB unfairly burdened low-income communities and communities of color in its implementation plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and erroneously adopted a scoping plan.
The lawsuit further challenges CARB for non-compliance with the California Environmental Quality Act and for violation of AB32’s statutory mandates. De La Cruz will further discuss the litigants’ challenges. De La Cruz holds a B.A. in History from Yale University and a J.D. from UC Berkeley’s Boalt Hall where she also received the prestigious Henderson Social Justice Award.
Made Possible By:
The Goldman School of Public Policy, the Graduate Assembly, the Goldman
Latino Speaker Series and the Environmental Policy Group
00AB32panel4-11-11.mp3 - 1 hour 25 min
01AB32interviewCARBmemberDR.mp3 - 5 min 48 seconds
02 AB32interview.Rafael.mp3 - 7 min 25 second
03 AlegriaInterview.mp3 - 24 minutes/18 sec