Host: City of La Mesa
Openings: 2
Project Focus: Climate Adaptation (e.g., sea level rise planning, environmental justice, climate migration planning), Climate Mitigation, Energy Efficiency, Renewable Energy, Transportation / Mobility,Urban Planning, Waste Management, Water Management
Skills Needed: Community Engagement, Project Management, Stakeholder Engagement, Technical Writing,

Remote or On-Site Placement

Hybrid – The Fellows will be on a hybrid schedule and work remotely and on site. Since the City is hosting two Fellows, it is ideal for both Fellows to work the hybrid schedule so they can have in person experiences together.

Service Needs & Plans

The City of La Mesa adopted a Climate Action Plan (CAP) in 2018, which establishes a long-range roadmap to reduce community wide greenhouse gas emissions in the categories of energy, water, solid waste, transportation, and green infrastructure. There are full time staff members, Environmental Program Manager and Administrative Analyst, tasked with implementing the 23 measures and 142 key actions in the CAP. The City of La Mesa is currently going through a comprehensive CAP update. The Fellows would work on a variety of projects and programs related to climate action, energy, water, solid waste, transportation, green infrastructure (trees), community engagement, and environmental justice.

Project Description

The City of La Mesa is applying for two Fellows:

1) Climate Action Plan: Transportation and 2) Climate Action Plan: Community Engagement.

All of the projects listed below are key actions in La Mesa’s Climate Action Plan.

The Transportation Fellow will focus on supporting ongoing transportation measures and key actions in the CAP and also initiate ones that haven’t been started. There are two projects that the Fellow would lead. 1) La Mesa Transportation Demand Management (TDM). This project would task the Fellow with educating the community about TDM and work with City staff to implement TDM strategies. 2) La Mesa Electric Vehicle Fleet Transition and Public Education. This will include working on the ongoing transition of the City’s municipal fleet to electric in preparation for State requirements and also create resources for residents who are interested in learning more about EV’s and also for businesses who would like to expand their EV charging infrastructure.

The Community Engagement Fellow will focus on supporting education and outreach efforts of all CAP categories geared towards residents and businesses. There are 2 projects the Fellow would lead. 1) CAP and Youth Engagement. This would include authoring a strategy/guide for the City to reference with resources on how to engage with La Mesa’s youth community with the CAP including. 2) La Mesa Green Business Network. The City has a partnership with the San Diego Regional Green Business Network to implement the regional program to La Mesa businesses. The Community Engagement Fellow would work directly with the San Diego Regional Green Business Network to implement the California Green Business Program with the businesses and connect them to resources to save energy, water, etc and expand the La Mesa Green Business Network.

Desired Skills

Communication
Self-motivated
Team player

Organization & Workplace Highlights

This Fellowship would be based at City Hall and will have the opportunity to work remotely and in the office (hybrid schedule). City Hall has a 9/80 work schedule, meaning the Fellows would work eight, nine hour days (with 1 hour lunch), with every other Friday off and the working Friday is an 8 hour day. The City of La Mesa is committed to Environmental Justice and is currently working on incorporating EJ into the Climate Action Plan update. Working as a Fellow with the City of La Mesa is a great professional development experience as it is centrally located in San Diego County and CAP staff directly work with sustainability staff from other cities in addition to working with utility and community partners such as SDG&E, SDCP, Helix Water District, EDCO, and many more. The CAP Team is comprised of two full time staff, one of which is a CivicSpark alumni.

Community Highlights

The City of La Mesa is located in San Diego County, just 10 miles east of Downtown San Diego and 14 miles east from the Pacific Ocean. With only about 60,000 residents in 9 square miles, La Mesa has a small town feel and values community, safety, affordability, and environmental sustainability. La Mesa Boulevard is constantly busy with open shops and restaurants that serve the local community and is walking distance from City Hall. There is also a farmer’s market every Friday the provides local produce and community connection.