Forum Webinar Series

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Upcoming Webinars

Consumption Workgroup

The West Coast Climate and Materials Management Forum Consumption Workgroup is hosting a series of webinars in 2023 to dive into furthering sustainable production and consumption.

Please check back for information on future webinars and registration links.

 

Built Environment Workgroup

The Built Environment workgroup is hosting a series of webinars in the spring and summer of 2023 on initiatives to reduce carbon pollution from the manufacturing of building materials, which account for at least 8% of global climate pollution. These emissions, commonly referred to as “embodied carbon” are a growing focus of state and local policies that require better building design, material substitutions, and material reuse.

Please check back for information on future webinars and registration links.

 

Note: All webinars are free. Webinar recordings and presentations will be posted on this webpage within a few weeks after a live webinar.


Webinar Recordings and Files

2023 Roundup and 2024 Planning Meeting

Date: December 7, 2023

The Forum Leadership Team hosted a 90-minute membership meeting to converse on the status of ongoing work in several areas related to climate change and materials management, including updates on:

  • Climate Pollution Reduction Grants (CPRGs)
  • Consumption-based Emissions Inventories (CBEIs)
  • Legislation that has passed this year in support of climate change and materials management
  • New reports and resources released this year on climate change and materials management
  • Presenters included representatives from WA Department of Ecology, OR Department of Environmental Quality, StopWaste (Alameda County, CA), and the City of Seattle.

Recording: 2023 Roundup and 2024 Planning Meeting
Supporting Files: 2023 Roundup Meeting Presentation (PDF) (37 pp, 3.8 MB)

Achieving Zero Food Waste

Date: Wednesday September 13, 2023

Learn about the EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants, a new resource -- Achieving Zero Food Waste: A State Policy Toolkit, and how you can include food waste reduction in climate action plans. The EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grants funded by the Inflation Reduction Act provide support for states and metro-areas to reduce climate pollution, of which methane from wasted food is a major contributor. The State Policy Toolkit contains a range of tried and tested policy opportunities that states can use to prevent food waste and keep food waste out of landfills and incinerators. By including food waste in your climate action plan utilizing some of the suggestions in the toolkit you can potentially leverage grant funding. The webinar is hosted by EPA, West Coast Climate and Materials Management Forum, and Zero Food Waste Coalition.

Recording: Food Waste webinar recording
Supporting Files: Food Waste webinar presentation (PDF) (31 pp, 2.4 MB)

Built Environment Workgroup: Including Embodied Carbon in Climate Action Plans

Date: Tuesday June 6, 2023 9:30 - 11 am PDT

Who: State, Local, and Tribal Government

State and local governments are increasingly addressing climate pollution related to the sourcing and production of building materials. These “embodied carbon” emissions are often considered “Scope 3” emissions within traditional climate action planning, but represent a significant source that state and local government agencies can influence through codes and other policies. As a new cohort of states and metro regions develop climate action plans through EPA’s Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (www.epa.gov/inflation-reduction-act/climate-pollution-reduction-grants), there is a new opportunity for these cross-boundary emissions to be addressed through collaboration. This webinar presented information on the importance of embodied carbon, tools needed to estimate Scope 3 emissions, and introduced resources for potential embodied carbon reduction strategies. This webinar was presented in partnership with Carbon Leadership Forum, RMI, and New Buildings Institute and was the second in a series of four planned webinars.

Recording: View BE webinar recording (MP4) (458 MB)
Supporting Files: Embodied Carbon in CAPs slide deck (pdf)


Consumption Workgroup: Using Consumption-based Emissions Inventories: Programs and Projects

Date: Thursday April 27, 2023 9:30 - 11 am PDT

Who: State, Local, and Tribal Government

This webinar focused on the lessons learned from Consumption Based Emissions Inventories (CBEI) at the state, regional, and local levels of government. Hear and share experiences from those who have completed a CBEI on what comes next. Interact with a panel of representatives from Oregon DEQ, King County (WA), Albany (CA), and C40 to discuss lessons learned, successes, and obstacles as they seek to use their CBEI findings to implement sustainable production and consumption initiatives.

Recording: View CBEI webinar recording (MP4) (458 MB)


Built Environment Workgroup: West Coast state updates and federal funding overview

Date: March 20, 2023 1:00 - 2:30 pm PDT

Who: State, Local, and Tribal Government

What is the interplay between state and local government action on embodied carbon in the built environment? This webinar will present updates on state-level activity in Washington, Oregon, and California, and discuss opportunities for local governments to engage with legislation and other state actions. It will also provide an overview of new federal funding opportunities and introduce ideas for future webinars in this series.

Webinar Recordings:

Supporting files: Presentation slides (PDF) (56 pp, 5.5 MB)


Reducing Climate Impacts through Packaging EPR: Recycling and Beyond

Date: Wednesday November 16, 2022 12:00 PM EST

Who: State, Local, and Tribal Government and Academia employees

Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) for packaging is increasingly being considered in various parts of the United States. But the focus is often limited to recycling systems, and recycling has limited potential to address the threats of climate changes and plastic pollution. Policy could do more to engage producers in more meaningful and impactful solutions. This webinar introduces four emerging concepts that all aim to improve and expand upon existing policy proposals: funding prevention and reuse, prevention and reuse targets, impact evaluation and disclosure, and optimizing (as opposed to maximizing) recycling.

Webinar Recording: View packaging ERP webinar recording (MP4) (109 MB)

Supporting files: Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging: Ideas for Integrating Climate Mitigation (PDF) (4 pp, 152 KB)


West Coast Climate and Materials Management Forum - Spring Convening

Date: Tuesday, June 14, 2022, 11:00 am - 1:00 pm PT

Who: State, Local, and Tribal Government and Academia employees

The Forum is hosting an upcoming webinar to share the goals of the Forum, introduce current leadership, and get your input and participation in the Forum’s areas of focus. We look forward to hearing your voice and invite you to help shape the future of the West Coast Climate and Materials Management Forum.

Areas of focus that we will discuss are:

  • Reducing Consumption;
  • Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging;
  • Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Justice; and
  • Built Environment.

Webinar Recording: View webinar recording on YouTube

Supporting files: Presentation Slides (PDF)


Purchasing Standards for Low Carbon Concrete

Date: Wednesday, June 1, 2022 from 10:00 - 11:30 am (PT)

Summary: Concrete is a critical building material. However, the cement binder used in concrete is responsible for 8% of CO2 emissions. This webinar will explore concrete options with lower greenhouse gas emissions, and the growing number of purchasing specifications that state and local governments are using to give preference for these alternatives. The webinar will include about a half hour for Q&A. This webinar is co-hosted with NERC and NEWMOA.

Speakers:

  • Jordan Palmeri, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality – “Low Carbon Concrete: Lessons from Oregon”
  • Kate Simonen, University of Washington – “Buy Clean Policy & Low Carbon Concrete”
  • Dorian Bailey, The Port Authority of New York & New Jersey – “Clean Construction: Low Carbon Concrete”

Moderators: Terri Goldberg, Executive Director, NEWMOA; Theresa Blaine, Sustainable Materials Management, US Environmental Protection Agency

Webinar Recording: View webinar here

Supporting files: coming soon


Recycle Content Mandates: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly

Date: Thursday, January 6, 2022 from 9:30 - 11:00 am (PT)

Summary: Recycled content mandates are growing in popularity as a policy mechanism to engage producers in responsibility for recycling markets, sharing in the costs of a functioning recycling system, and reducing climate change impacts. But not all recycled content mandates are the same, and some have the potential for unintended consequences. This webinar will take a closer look at:

  • The state of California’s experience with several, very different recycled content mandates
  • Whether or how mandates might support, or conflict with, broader extended producer responsibility policies
  • Potential economic and environmental limitations of recycled content mandates, and some possible solutions

Speakers: Mark Murray, Executive Director, Californians Against Waste; Steve Alexander, President and CEO, Association of Plastics Recyclers; 
David Allaway, Senior Policy Analyst, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality.

Moderators: Terri Goldberg, Executive Director, NEWMOA; Lynn Rubinstein, Executive Director, NERC

Webinar recording: View the Recycled Content Mandates webinar

Supporting Files: Presentation slides (PDF)


Right to Repair Movement and Accessibility

Date: Thursday, September 30, 2021 from 9:30 - 11:00 am (PT)

Summary: As more people seek repair solutions to extend the useful life of products and equipment, they often discover that it’s not as easy as it should be. Many products are not designed for repair and access to replacement parts and trained repair technicians can be limited, making the process frustrating, time-consuming and expensive. The Right to Repair movement is dedicated to breaking down these barriers and making affordable repair more accessible, whether through repair professionals or DIY. We’ll learn more about this effort and some recent breakthroughs that could signal change ahead during this exciting webinar.

Speakers: Ashley Martinez, Free Geek; Kerry Maeve Sheehan and Kevin Purdy, iFixit; Moderated by Marie Diodati, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

Webinar recording: View the Right to Repair Movement and Accessibility webinar

Supporting Files: Presentation slides (PDF)


Food Waste Reduction and the Pacific Coast Collaborative

Date: Tuesday, June 8th, 2021 from 9:30 - 11:00 am (PT)

Summary: The Pacific Coast Collaborative (PCC) has launched the Pacific Coast Food Waste Commitment.  The Commitment is a voluntary effort for food retailers throughout the Pacific coast region to work together and with their suppliers to help cut the amount of food wasted in the region by 50% by the year 2030 – which is in line with the US EPA’s and the USDA’s US Food Loss and Waste 2030 Champions goal and Sustainable Development Goal 12.3 from the United Nations. We’ll learn more about this work and find out what opportunities there might be for local governments to engage.

Speakers: Elaine Blatt, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality; Mike Falconer Hall, UK Wrap; Dana Gunders, ReFED; Moderated by Janine Bogar, Washington Department of Ecology

Webinar recording: View the Food Waste Reduction and the Pacific Coast Collaborative webinar

Supporting Files: Presentation slides (PDF)


Research, Campaigns and More - the latest from Oregon's Work to Prevent the Wasting of Food

Date: Wednesday, September 30, 2020, 10:00 - 11:30 am (PST)

Summary: This webinar covers Oregon’s recent research (completed summer 2020) to identify effective messaging for households on preventing the wasting of food, how early phases of that research informed a COVID-19 “mini-campaign” on food waste prevention, and what’s next, now that the research phase is complete.  The webinar also covers Oregon’s recent lifecycle assessment study of the impacts of various food rescue channels, as well as previews plans for implementing Governor Kate Brown’s recent Executive Order on Climate that include direction to DEQ to reduce food waste in Oregon by half by 2030.

Speakers: Elaine Blatt, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality; Peter Canepa, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality; Moderated by Shannon Davis, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality

Webinar recording: View the Research, Campaigns and More - the latest from Oregon's Work to Prevent the Wasting of Food webinar

Supporting Files: Presentation slides (PDF)


Local Government Policies to Drive Low-Carbon Concrete

Date: Tuesday, February 4, 2020, 10:00 - 11:30am (PST)

Summary: Concrete is the most widely used construction material in the world and is responsible for 6-10% of global anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions*. Proven alternative technologies and practices are readily available in the marketplace that can reduce these emissions by more than half.  Attend this webinar to hear about three different strategies being used by local governments to drive demand for low-carbon concrete, and learn how you can do it, too. *Source: Architecture 2030 (https://materialspalette.org/concrete/).

Speakers: Jordan Palmeri, Oregon Department of Environmental Quality; Alice Zanmiller, Marin County; Karen Cook, Alameda County; Stacey Foreman, City of Portland; Moderated by Miya Kitahara, Stop Waste

Webinar Recording: View the Local Government Policies to Drive Low-Carbon Concrete webinar

Supporting Files: Presentation slides (PDF) (62 pp)


Archived Webinars

Content from past webinar series, including recordings and presentations can be found on the Forum Webinars webpage.

Webinars