Environmental Justice Program Organizational Development

Changing an agency’s culture and operations is challenging, but the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission (BCDC) has embraced it.

The beautiful San Francisco Bay faces growing environmental challenges: extreme weather, sea level rise, droughts that reduce the snowpack, and habitat degradation. BCDC is the regulatory agency tasked with safeguarding and enhancing the Bay Area’s 660-mile Coastal Zone, protecting natural resources, improving public access and mitigating the impacts of climate change.

BCDC collaborates with a broad network—local governments, environmental organizations, the private sector and community groups. Like many public agencies, BCDC prioritizes advancing equity and environmental justice and is committed to engaging those communities most affected by environmental injustices. The agency’s Environmental Justice (EJ) Advisors Program, launched in 2021, is designed to integrate their voices in BCDC decision-making processes.

MIG, along with subconsultant Benchmarq, helped evaluate the EJ Advisors Program, assessing the program’s successes and challenges after two years, clarifying the roles of EJ Advisors to better support BCDC’s policies, and strengthening relationships among EJ Advisors, staff and Commissioners. It also addressed power dynamics within the program and provided strategic recommendations to enhance the Program’s alignment with BCDC’s mission and overall impact.

The six-month assessment employed a mixed-methods approach, including document reviews, comparative analyses, interviews, focus groups and interactive workshops.

BCDC staff and EJ Advisors have now aligned their annual work plans—an important step toward proactive collaboration, because previously EJ Advisors were just reacting to already well-formed projects. Now, they can embed environmental justice considerations early on. And BCDC has a renewed commitment to improving community engagement across all of its efforts, ensuring more meaningful involvement in the agency’s future work.

The findings and recommendations in the analysis report will guide the agency in refining the EJ Advisors Program, enhancing its effectiveness, and ensuring that BCDC continues to center environmental justice in its planning and policy efforts.