As part of a historic partnership between the University of California and the state of California, UC today announced it is awarding over $80 million in climate action grants. The grants will spur implementation of solutions that directly address state climate priorities.

Four UC Davis projects are among the grantees. They include:

• “Aligning Goals for Solar Energy, Biodiversity Conservation, and Environmental Justice in California” led by Rebecca R. Hernandez of the Land, Air and Water Resources department. ($2,000,000)
• “Resilient and Equitable Urban Stream Corridors,” led by Gregory Pasternack of the Land, Air and Water Resources department. ($2,000,000)
• “Exposure Assessment, Health Monitoring, and Cancer Control in Wildland Firefighters,” led by Shehnaz K. Hussain of the Public Health Sciences department and Comprehensive Cancer Center. ($1,997,940)
• “Planning Landscape Resilience for California Indian Allotment Lands,” led by Beth Rose Middleton Manning of the Native American Studies department. ($1,602,917) 

Advancing California’s climate goals

The California Climate Action Seed Grants and Matching Grants will fund 38 projects that collectively involve more than 130 community, industry, tribal, and public agencies, as well as 12 UC locations, 11 California State University (CSU) campuses and two private universities.

Seed grants were awarded to 34 teams totaling $56.2 million. Four teams received matching grants totaling $26.9 million to support larger projects that could leverage additional funding from non-state sources. The $83.l million total is part of $185 million allocated by the state for UC climate initiatives advancing progress toward California’s climate goals.

“As the state’s preeminent research institution, the University of California is proud to partner with the state to pursue our shared climate goals,” said UC President Michael V. Drake, M.D. “The innovations catalyzed by the Climate Action awards will make all of our communities safer, more sustainable, and more resilient. I am grateful to the state Legislature and Gov. Newsom for providing funding to support this critical research on climate change in California.”

“With these investments, California is harnessing the ingenuity of our world-renowned universities and people to deliver climate action across our state,” said Governor Gavin Newsom. “California is leading the charge in tapping our natural resources to protect our people, our communities, and our planet.”

The Seed and Matching Grant projects will mitigate wildfire risks, combat soil degradation and erosion, address water management in the state, and create land stewardship partnerships led by Indigenous communities. The selected projects aim to improve the health of farmworkers; increase resilience of state water and power systems; and identify innovative nature-based solutions toward biodiversity degradation, sea level rise, and wildfire risk.

Other projects align with the state’s solar and conservation goals and adapt community evacuation preparations to accommodate the rising prevalence of electric vehicles. These two-year grants cover every region of the state.

Two of the largest grants were awarded to projects that aim to broaden community involvement in the management of California’s lands and waters. With a $5.5 million grant, one project will form a Wildland-Urban Interface Climate Action Network (WUICAN) of tribes, community groups, universities, and land managers to collaborate with agencies on methods to protect landscapes from catastrophic climate events. And with a nearly $8.2 million grant, the COEQWAL (COllaboratory for EQuity in Water ALlocations) project will develop new water planning tools to advance sustainable, inclusive, and equitable water distribution for California’s nearly 40 million people.

"The scale of these grants will produce tangible improvements in the lives of Californians," said UC Provost and Executive Vice President of Academic Affairs Katherine Newman. "These awards put UC's world-class research into action and show what we can accomplish when California's universities and diverse communities come together."

The grant awards align with state priorities to advance climate resilience and social equity, particularly in communities where the effects of climate change are felt most acutely. These state priorities align with UC’s long record of initiatives to mitigate the impacts of climate change. The selected projects use both high-tech and people-centered solutions to the climate crisis and include a broad range of community voices.

Acting on climate

"The governor and the legislature approved $185 million in funding to UC for climate action as part of the 2022-23 State Budget Act. UC quickly launched the initiative, issuing a request for proposals for the Seed and Matching grants in December 2022.

Researchers affiliated with California-based four-year academic institutions were encouraged to apply, particularly those whose research or projects provide real-world solutions and support policies to tackle the existential threat of climate change in partnership with California communities. The application and review process was administered by the University of California Office of the President Research Grants Program Office. Awardees were chosen through rigorous peer review. Successful applications are expected to engage communities, take a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach, and generate tangible outcomes.

Recognizing the historic opportunity to leverage this investment to strengthen community participation in shaping climate solutions, the state’s Strategic Growth Council is providing funds to the University to supplement the Seed and Matching Grants. The Community-Engaged S/Hero Award Supplements will provide 10 projects with $20,000 each to identify best practices for engaging communities around climate risks, and to provide leadership, resources, and counsel to all climate award teams on community engagement.

“The persistent climate challenges faced by California have put the state in ‘code red’ emergency status,” said Theresa Maldonado, UC Vice President for Research & Innovation. “Making California truly resilient requires thoughtful partnerships and full engagement of every sector of society. These awards reflect the brain trust and united voices across the state to achieve collective impact.”

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