October Newsletter

Highlights – CASM in the Community – Climate Corps Club Friday Oct 3: Free Urth Caffé Treats & Fun Climate Action – CASM Picnic October 5th, other upcoming events
CASM IN THE COMMUNITY
This month, CASM: Participated in Circular SoCal: An Expert-Level Conversation on Circularity Tabled at the first Sun Day of Action, centering the clean energy transition Supported Santa Monica’s application to state of CA for grant funds to support design of the Great Park Promoted the Make Polluters Pay bill to SM City Council, asking that they pass a resolution in support of this state legislation. Wrote a letter supporting campaign to oppose further widening of the 405 in the Sepulveda Pass in lieu of designating more express lanes. Submitted comment re EPA Endangerment finding Met with the new city manager to get to know CASM and welcome and learn more about city goals under new leadership. ️Continued our campaign to encourage SMC to strengthen its climate policies. We are encouraged that the school has augmented its sustainability team by adding an experienced consultant to help develop its climate plan. College leadership is also focusing on the school’s important energy contracts. The college is one of our community’s largest energy consumers.

Sun Day of Action, Photo by Kent Strumpell Meanwhile, in the community… On September 5, Climate Action Santa Monica youth had their first meeting of the school year at Yoga-urt! Sixteen passionate students showed up for the two hour meeting to learn more about the Climate Corps Club and to discuss local climate issues. We played games, brainstormed projects that promote sustainable transportation, and discussed what environmental topics we feel passionate about. Overall, this was an incredibly strong start to the Climate Corps Club as we transition into the school year. We are excited to continue advocating with our new members through efforts such as: supporting climate literacy efforts, sharing resources through tabling, and speaking at City Council! – Sarrie Thompson, New West Charter High School Senior, Climate Corps Club President Catch us at the cafe And the Market We’ll be at Urth Cafe on Main Street on October 3rd at 4:30pm for our next club meetup, and at Main Street Farmers Market on Sunday Oct 5th with an activity to engage local people at the farmers market, encouraging their sustainable commute. New students are welcome to join!


Speaking of school commutes, Makeda Bullock Floyd, CASM’s Program Lead presented at the most recent GoSamo TMO meeting, sharing about Samohi registration tabling over the past three years. Some key takeaways: Students were asked “Would you be willing to commit as much as possible to using a different mode to get to school other than driving alone or having parents drop you off.” This year, CASM was joined by representatives from LA Metro, BBB, and GoSaMo, providing multi-level support to the students; this support allowed students to receive a TAP card on site, removing the barrier of applying and retrieving their card at a second location. This year GoSaMo had 16 trip planning sessions and other impactful engagement. CASM also reported engagement at a deeper level of impact. 2023 – 2025 data shows students preferred mode of travel to school: Carpool, bus, walk, bike (from most to least selected) Insights from 2023 results show that on average only 50% of students prefer their current commute modes. Potential solutions include continued improvement of BBB frequency (which is already taking effect), carpool support/matching, and new infrastructure, education, events, and materials.
UPCOMING EVENTS
CASM Climate Corps Club Friday Oct 3rd, 4:30 – 6:30 pm Urth Caffe 2327 Main Street Santa Monica, CA 90405 CASM Picnic on the Planet Sunday Oct 5th, 4:30 – 6:30 pm Main Street Farmers Market 2640 Main St, Santa Monica, CA 90404 COMMUNITY Gather & Grow: Remembering: Songs of Home, Stories of the Heart Saturday, Oct. 4, 4pm 1130 Lincoln Blvd This biweekly series at Christine Emerson Reed Park invites families to enjoy hands-on artmaking, live music and interactive performances. Week Without Driving (9/29-10/5) Challenge yourself, your team, and your employees to go without driving for a week and experience how accessible and inclusive our communities can be without reliance on cars. Rideshare Month (October) Join the movement to reduce traffic and pollution by choosing carpools, vanpools, or shared rides throughout the month of October. Rideshare Week (10/6-10/10) Discover a better way to commute by leaving the solo drive behind and trying carpooling, vanpooling, biking, or transit. Bike it! Walk it! Bus it! Week (10/6-10/10) K-12 students attending school in Santa Monica can ride Big Blue Bus FREE this week. Families are encouraged to forgo driving in favor of eco-friendly modes of transportation such as walking, biking or taking transit. Vermicomposting!! Turn Your Kitchen Scraps into Plant Food Saturday, October 11, 2025, 9 – 11 am Main Street Community Garden 2318 Main Street, Santa Monica 90405 Oh My Gourd!!! Saturday, October 18, 2025, 9 – 11 am Ishihara Park Learning Garden 2909 Exposition Blvd, Santa Monica, 90404 Laboratory for the Future: Composting session: Feed the Soil! Saturday, October 18, 2025, 11 am – 12:30 pm Ishihara Park Learning Garden 2909 Exposition Blvd, Santa Monica, 90404 Main Street Block Party PLEASE NOTE DATE CHANGE Sunday, Oct. 19, 12 pm – 7 pm Main Street Come to Main Street for live music, outdoor art displays and free activities for all ages. The city’s Office of Sustainability and the Environment will host kids’ activities and sustainable giveaways! Off the Hook Sustainable Seafood Festival Sunday, Oct. 19, 4 – 7 pm Santa Monica Pier A (sea) foodie’s dream, this beloved festival features the city’s best chefs and restaurants showcasing their favorite underwater ingredients. Enjoy seafood, drinks, live music and games in this celebration to benefit Heal the Bay. Preparing Your Winter Garden! Saturday, October 25, 2025, 9 – 11 am Marine Park Community Garden 1406 Marine Street, Santa Monica, 90405
News & Action
Environmentally minded Accountant Needed Do you have accounting skills and an interest in climate? CASM is looking for a volunteer treasurer. We already have a fiscal agent that handles government filings, audits, and day-to-day bookkeeping. However, we need to share and analyze the information, submit quarterly invoices for contracts and also develop and submit budgets and reports to funders. Must understand accounting and cash flow and be able to work with spreadsheets. This is a great way to put your expertise to work, and to make a local difference on globally important issues. Meet and work with fun and interesting people. The estimated work is 6-8 hours per month. Please email climateactionsantamonica@gmail.com. Read the 2025 Climate Action and Adaptation Plan Progress Report Santa Monica joins 29-city lawsuit to protect federal emergency and disaster fundingThe suit challenges the Trump administration’s attempt to impose conditions on federal emergency and disaster preparedness funds
What’s in Our Playlist?
This month, we have Makeda’s pick, Human Kind by AHI. I picked this song because this is what I want and need more of in my life, and what I’d like to see in the world. And because it brings me so much joy to listen to 🙂 DM us your pick @climateactionsm on Instagram or email casmclimatecorps@gmail.com and we can feature it next month!

Looking for your Climate Action Superpower? Spoiler – it’s the overlap between what brings you joy and what the world needs. Check out Dr. Ayana Elizabeth Johnson’s venn diagram and TED talk.

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