Hopeful, Emerging, Ambitious, and Transformative (H.E.A.T.). These are some of the words that come to mind when we think about the next generation of climate leaders.
The challenges facing emerging climate leaders are unique and extraordinary, and that is why we launched a recurring event for like-minded individuals, regardless of industry background, to come together and share innovative ideas for tackling the climate crisis. We call it the H.E.A.T. Happy Hour.
Emcee for the Night
Climate Resolve Advisory Board Member
A California native, Melissa Gutiérrez was born and raised in Pico Rivera. She studied geochemistry at Caltech and further honed her expertise around environmental science and policy, receiving her master’s from Johns Hopkins University.
As a dynamic force in the field, Gutiérrez’s mission is to create a more equitable future where sustainability and environmental preservation go hand in hand. Currently, she is making strides as a key member of the innovative carbon sequestration startup Calcarea. The Caltech-based company is developing groundbreaking work focused on oceanic carbon capture. Calcarea aims to amplify natural carbon processing systems to preserve marine biodiversity and reduce ocean acidification.
At Calcarea, Melissa combines her technical skills, academic insights, and commitment to environmental justice as she and her team develop scalable solutions to transform the shipping industry. In her personal time, Gutiérrez enjoys playing video and board games, staying active, and cooking.
Keynote Speakers
Grants and Proposals Manager
Climate Resolve
Samantha Nuno, born and raised in the Northeast San Fernando Valley, has personally seen how wildfires and extreme heat affect communities of color, many of which are already overburdened by high levels of air pollution. Her upbringing inspired her passion for climate resilience and environmental justice within her academic and professional career.
Samantha graduated summa cum laude from UCLA in 2022 with a Master’s degree in Public Policy as well as cum laude from Scripps College in 2018 with a Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Analysis. In her Master’s Program, she explored courses and knowledge from interdisciplinary fields like sustainable science, community engagement, economics, policy, urban planning, and law, which have inspired her interdisciplinary approach in her career.
At Climate Resolve, Samantha writes grant proposals and accesses new funding opportunities and relationships. She is particularly excited about supporting the Ready for Tomorrow program, which is Climate Resolve’s grant writing assistance program that connects disadvantaged communities (DACs) and disadvantaged vulnerable communities (DVCs) in SoCal to climate planning research, funding, and resources.
Previously, Samantha spent her summer 2021 as a Luskin Intern at Climate Resolve and later was contracted by Climate Resolve as a Grant Writing Consultant for applications to the California Resilience Challenge (CRC) grant and the EJ4Climate Grant. Before that, Samantha worked at the Luskin Center for Innovation (LCI) as a Luskin Fellow as well as an administrative intern at Culver City’s Transportation Department. During her LCI fellowship, she worked on the climate adaptation team assisting in research related to how the climate crisis (specifically extreme heat) impacts vulnerable populations and informs policy to increase community resilience.
Samantha aspires to work towards an anti-racist and climate-just future that is rooted in principles of abolition, environmental justice, and intersectional feminism. During her free time, you can find Samantha laying on the beach, picking up a new sports hobby, trying a new BIPOC-owned restaurant, or catching a jazz or punk live show.
Senior Technical Manager
Climate Resolve
Kristopher (Kris) Eclarino is dedicated to advancing environmental equity and protecting vulnerable communities in the Los Angeles region from the impacts of climate change. He attributes his strong passion for working in the climate and environmental field to his first-hand experience with poor air quality while growing up in the Los Angeles region and from hearing stories about his parent’s home country, the Philippines, and how it has become more prone to stronger, more frequent typhoons due to anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions.
At Climate Resolve, he supports the organization’s programmatic activities through research, quantitative analysis, and written reports. He is the Project Manager of Climate Resolve’s Ready for Tomorrow (RfT) program which connects disadvantaged communities (as defined by CalEnviroScreen 4.0), in Southern California, to climate planning research, funding, and resources. Under RfT, he also leads the Grant Writing Assistance Program, which provides grant writing assistance to municipalities in pursuit of federal, state, and foundation grants for climate planning.
In addition to this work, he utilizes his technical research background throughout his other work by using R, STATA, and ArcGIS to analyze downscaled climate change projections to produce maps, spreadsheets, and graphs. In 2021, he co-authored a National Academy of Medicine report with the UCLA Center for Healthy Climate Solutions on the mental health impacts of wildfire smoke, solastalgia and mental health, and the mental health impacts of wildfire smoke on non-traditional firefighters.
Before working at Climate Resolve, he served as a fellow for the Mayor’s Office of Los Angeles, where he worked to localize the United Nations Sustainable Development Climate Action goals. He has also worked in Washington, D.C. for the United States House of Representatives, Committee on Energy and Commerce, where he assisted staff on health, environmental, and energy issues. Kris holds a Master of Public Policy from the University of California, Los Angeles. He currently lives in Los Feliz and enjoys spending his spare time attending shows across the multiple music venues in Los Angeles and spending quality time with Ellie (his precious brown tabby cat).
MUSICAL GUEST
CATERING BY
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
For more information, please contact the Development Team
development@climateresolve.org
(213) 468-1957
COVID-19: Climate Resolve and our events team will be following of-the-moment COVID safety guidelines to provide our attendees with the most comfortable and enjoyable experience possible. We’re excited about gathering safely to celebrate a better future together!