Kate Wright is the Executive Director of Climate Mayors — a growing network of nearly 500 U.S. mayors who have committed to accelerating equitable climate action in cities. Kate is responsible for the strategic direction of this network, including helping cities implement bold policies and programs, supporting equitable climate action by the Federal Administration and Congress, and building initiatives to reduce greenhouse gas emissions while advancing economic growth and environmental justice. Her past experience with CivicWell also centered around helping communities build climate resilience through execution of programs in clean mobility, sustainable water management, renewable energy, and affordable housing – programs which reach and benefit the communities and students served by the California Community Colleges. 

Kate’s expertise and ability to help forge regional and federal connections will be an asset to the Foundation, and the Chancellor’s Office, and will help us even further leverage the community colleges' deep reach into communities to advance climate adaptation and mitigation efforts. Most recently, we established a “Center for Climate Futures” which aims to take a broad and inclusive approach to leveraging the reach of the community college system for climate adaptation and mitigation. This includes efforts like the Resilient Careers in Forestry project, which leverages funds from the U.S. Economic Development Administration to train up a more responsive fire and forestry workforce to prevent catastrophic wildfires, help develop more resilient economies in more vulnerable communities, and ultimately achieve the state’s one million-acre annual restoration target by 2025. Additionally, FoundationCCC’s Student Disaster Relief Fund has dispersed $100,00 over the past few months to students impacted by climate-related natural catastrophes such as wildfire, flooding, and extreme snow events.