Time

1:40 p.m. – 3:00 p.m

Location

1605 Tilia, Room 1103, West Village

Speaker(s)

Steven Cliff, Assistant Director, Sustainability, California Department of Transportation

Abstract

Over the past two years, Caltrans has been developing and implementing a strategic plan which includes a new mission and goals as part of a department wide effort to modernize. In particular, Caltrans’ new Sustainability, Livability and Economy goal represents a major shift away from its primary focus on highways to a vision of an efficient multimodal transportation system. Sustainability, livability, and the economy are central to improving the quality of life for Californians. This goal promotes communities, assists in the integration of a multimodal transportation system, improves both air and water quality, and helps California better address the challenges of climate change. To accomplish this goal, we focus on the impacts of transportation on California’s people, the planet, and prosperity. This presentation will detail the Caltrans strategic plan objectives, performance measures to evaluate progress and strategies for implementing the sustainability goal. In addition, new areas of innovation, stakeholder engagement and research needs for the department will be discussed.

Biographical Sketch

Steven Cliff is Assistant Director for Sustainability at the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans).  Governor Brown appointed Dr. Cliff to this position to make California a better place through a sustainable transportation system:  cleaner, and more livable, accessible, and prosperous.

Prior to his appointment at Caltrans, Dr. Cliff was Assistant Chief of the Stationary Source Division (SSD) at the California Air Resources Board (ARB).  As assistant chief in SSD, Dr. Cliff was responsible for development and implementation of the climate change program pursuant to the California Global Warming Solutions Act of 2006 (AB 32).  In this role, Dr. Cliff oversaw the California Greenhouse Gas Cap-and-Trade Program and led the adoption of the Climate change Scoping Plan.

Dr. Cliff has more than 20 years experience in global climate and air quality research and is a recognized expert on global air pollution transport.  Specifically, his research on air pollution carried by winds across the Pacific Ocean has been the subject of numerous research and news articles.  He earned his B.S. and Ph.D. degrees in Chemistry from the University of California, San Diego.  Dr. Cliff continues his work as a Research Professor in the Air Quality Research Center/Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis.