NEWS RELEASE
Mayor’s Press Office
mayorspressoffice@sfgov.org

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, April 3, 2024    

Mayor Breed Kicks off Earth Month and Celebrates San Francisco's Global Environmental Leadership
The Mayor recognized four women Climate Heroes for their positive impacts on the local environmental movement 

SAN FRANCISCO – Mayor London N. Breed today joined the San Francisco Environment Department (SFE), SFPUC General Manager Dennis Herrera, elected and City leaders, and community environmental advocates to celebrate the beginning of Earth Month at City Hall. At the inaugural event, the Mayor honored four local women for their contributions to the environmental movement in San Francisco.

Additionally, Climatebase, the host and partner of ‘SF Climate Week,’ highlighted the upcoming public events and volunteer opportunities occurring across San Francisco. This year marks the 2nd annual SF Climate Week, organized in partnership with SFE. The event also featured two local San Francisco innovators, Bi-Rite, a San Francisco Green Business since 2009, and Epic Cleantec, a local water recycling company.

San Francisco remains a committed and innovative environmental leader on the global stage. As a member of C40 Cities and the World Economic Forum’s Nature Positive Cities, the City regularly collaborates with cities around the world to collectively meet the ambitious carbon reduction goals aligned with the Paris Agreement.

San Francisco is also considered one of the nation’s successful green business cities because it has one of the highest average funding raised by headquartered sustainability companies. The average amount of investment raised by sustainability companies in San Francisco was $78.4 million. In a December 2022 report from Promo Leaf, using Crunchbase and U.S. Census Bureau data, San Francisco was one of the top 10 cities in the United States with the highest concentration of sustainability companies at 45.4 companies per 100,000 residents.

“For decades, San Francisco has been at the forefront of the environmental movement which means we earned our right to celebrate,” said Mayor London Breed. “From our first-in-the-nation composting program to our groundbreaking clean energy programs and investments in environmental justice, San Franciscans have a lot to be proud of. We also know we have a long road ahead to achieve our bold carbon reduction goals, and it’s going to take all of us to do our part. Thank you to the four women we honor today who have risen to the challenge and showcased how we can all build a more resilient future together.” 

The individuals recognized today by Mayor Breed are: 

• Frances Yee, Co-owner of Dee Dee Boutique in Chinatown. Dee Dee Boutique is a retail beauty store, a San Francisco Legacy Business, and Chinatown’s first Certified Green Business under the San Francisco Green Business Program and a CleanPowerSF SuperGreen customer as a result of Frances’s leadership.
• Julia Collins, Founder and CEO of Planet FWD and Moonshot Snacks. Julia is a San Francisco native and entrepreneur working to address the climate crisis through food. She is the first Black woman to co-found a unicorn company.
• Claire Amable, Director of Advocacy at the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. Claire is a Tenderloin born-and-raised youth and transit justice advocate working in the City’s historically underserved communities for a more resilient, low-carbon City.
• Vanessa Louise Carter, Environmental Literacy and Climate Resilience Program Administrator at the San Francisco Unified School District. Vanessa has spearheaded and managed numerous fellowships and programs for students, including the City’s first-ever Climate Action Fellowship for high school students to increase local climate literacy and youth leadership.

“San Francisco’s innovative spirit and community-driven approach exemplify how local action can inspire global change,” said Tyrone Jue Director of the San Francisco Environment Department. “As we observe SF Climate Week and Earth Day, we not only celebrate our City’s unwavering commitment to sustainability, but also recognize our role in cultivating a greener and healthier city and planet.” 

Getting Involved this Earth Month 

Earth Month celebrations in San Francisco include the 2nd Annual Climate Week. SF Climate Week (April 21-27) will emphasize the role of unity, innovation, community, and technology in creating a sustainable future among individuals, businesses, community organizations, and entrepreneurs.  

The inaugural SF Climate Week in 2023 was one of the largest climate gatherings in the world. This year’s programming will include more events and more opportunities to get involved as a way to build a larger coalition to advance climate action. 

"Our team at Climatebase is thrilled to organize San Francisco Climate Week for the second year in a row to showcase our community’s ambition and commitment towards addressing the urgent challenges of climate change, both locally and globally,” said Evan Hynes, CEO and Co-founder of Climatebase. “In 2023, the first annual SF Climate Week was a tremendous success and attracted more than 7,000 attendees across over 100 events.” 

SF Climate Week 2024 will play a crucial role in advancing discussions and actions on climate change. Events are scheduled throughout the day and across the City. From fireside chats to social events or industry panels, there are several ways San Franciscans can join the climate action movement, including scheduled runs, nature hikes, bike tours, and multiple opportunities to appreciate the rich biodiversity that San Francisco has to offer. Additionally, there will be entrepreneur round tables, with opportunities to connect with venture capitalists to pitch climate tech solutions and business plans.   

San Francisco’s Continued Environmental Progress 

Throughout her tenure at City Hall, Mayor Breed has championed groundbreaking environmental legislation that has helped secure the City’s position as a global environmental leader. 

As former Supervisor, she successfully passed the strongest Styrofoam ban in the country and legislation to create the City’s first prescription drug take-back program. In 2021, Mayor Breed released an updated Climate Action Plan with 174 implementable actions to achieve a bold new goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2040. Uniquely embedded in this plan is a framework that centers social and racial equity to address the disproportionate impacts of climate change on the City’s vulnerable populations and ensure environmental benefits to all residents. 

The Mayor has also spearheaded San Francisco’s community choice public power program, CleanPowerSF, that now serves renewable, affordable and accessible energy to over 385,000 customers across San Francisco.  

As of 2020, San Francisco’s population has grown 21% since 1990 and, over that time, the City’s overall emissions have decreased 48%. Today, the City continues to aggressively pursue climate mitigation and adaptation strategies that help meet bold environmental goals. Most notably: 

• In 2023, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission’s (SFPUC) awarded $9 million under its green infrastructure grant program to construct seven climate-resilient projects, including rain gardens and permeable pavements, aimed at reducing nearly 6.3 million gallons of stormwater annually- equivalent to over 12 Olympic-size swimming pools. 
• Similarly, under the SFPUC’s onsite water recycling program, San Francisco now boasts 40 operational onsite reuse systems, supplying water for toilet flushing, irrigation and cooling towers, with an additional 66 systems in planning. In 2023 alone, the estimated potable water savings amounted to approximately 46.7 million gallons, equivalent to the yearly water usage of approximately 3,000 residents.
• San Francisco has diverted about 140,000 pounds of prescription drugs from being dumped improperly into landfills, the Bay and ocean since the drug take back program’s inception. This initiative continues to be used as a model across the country.  
• In January, the San Francisco Port Authority and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers announced a major milestone in the San Francisco Waterfront Flood Study: the release of the Draft Plan, which proposes flood defenses and nature-based solutions to address sea level rise along 7.5-miles from Aquatic Park to Heron’s Head Park.  
• Since 2023, the San Francisco Environment Department has secured over $45.8 million in external funding sources (mostly grants) to fund an array of climate action initiatives that are helping to eliminate emissions from the City’s buildings, reduce food waste, get the City closer to its Zero Waste goals, and put more money back into people’s pockets with energy efficiency programs.  
• Similarly, last year the Department of the Environment awarded its first-ever Climate Action Plan Community Grants totaling over $900,000. The grants support building electrification, emissions reduction, urban greening, composting, waste and toxics reduction, environmental justice, and youth engagement in community. 
• Over the last year, the San Francisco Recreation and Parks Department planted over 1,500 trees in parks thanks to a $2 million grant from the USDA. With more than 95% of green waste from City parks being composted and reused in soil, the Department remains a national leader in sustainability.  
• The San Francisco Municipal Transportation Agency (SFMTA) continues to work towards an all-electric and 100% zero-emission Muni fleet, while Muni Metro light rail vehicles, cable cars, trolleybuses and street cars are zero-emission and run on 100% renewable hydropower- making Muni one of the greenest fleets of any major City in North America. 
• Last November, San Francisco Public Works launched its first fully owned and operated Street Tree Nursery in the South of Market as part of a partnership with Caltrans to improve the City’s local ecosystems and urban canopy.  
• In 2019, San Francisco created ClimateSF to bring key City agencies together whose services could be critically impacted by climate change. These agencies are taking collective action through planning, policy, and guidance, championing a coordinated vision on climate resilience that streamlines City responses and promotes an equitable, safe, and healthy city for generations to come. 

More information on the Mayor’s Climate Action Plan may be found here.  

For opportunities related to Earth Month and SF Climate Week, please visit sfclimateweek.org.