About Us
Californians leading the way
Californians share a strong commitment to protecting biodiversity, strengthening climate resilience, expanding nature-based solutions, and enhancing access for all to nature's benefits. California residents understand that our unique natural heritage, from our towering redwood trees to our soaring condors, cannot be replaced once they are gone. These large-scale, linked challenges impact our health, well-being, and economic integrity and require collaboration, capacity building, and knowledge sharing amongst an alliance of partners to address.
CalGBA’s History
CalGBA (formerly the California Global Biodiversity Working Group) launched in 2020 when a coalition of over 30 organizations and environmental leaders successfully advocated for the State of California to become a UN Convention on Biological Diversity (UNCBD) observer.
After California gained observer status, CalGBA grew its membership, hosted workshops to engage and educate Californians around participation in the CBD, provided input to the California Natural Resources Agency (CNRA) on their CBD contributions, and partnered with the state and organizations to organize a strong presence at the CBD COP15 in Montreal, Canada in 2022. An extended delegation of over 50 Californians including local and state government, elected officials, community led nonprofits, and NGOs attended COP15, which resulted in agreements to raise state and local ambition for integrating biodiversity into policies and planning.
In 2024, after launching our story map that links biodiversity projects across the state with the 23 Targets of the Global Biodiversity Framework, CalGBA attended the CBD’s 16th Conference of Parties (COP16) in Cali, Colombia, taking a lead role in coordinating over 100 delegates from California to collaborate on engagement while at COP16. CalGBA also extended our network well beyond California to engage other states, subnational governments and nationwide and global organizations. This expanded work continues today as CalGBA prepares for COP17 in Armenia in 2026.
Mission
The California Global Biodiversity Alliance (CalGBA) is a California-based network of state agency representatives, elected officials, NGOs, academics and community and environmental justice groups advocating for strong participation in and implementation of the UN Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and its Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF) at all levels. The Alliance builds coalitions and promotes collaboration amongst local, state, national, tribal and global biodiversity leaders in California, the United States, and around the world in order to overcome critical biodiversity and climate change challenges for people and planet.
Vision
Collaboration and connection for biodiversity at the local, national, and global levels fosters a future where people and the planet flourish.
Objectives
Increase mainstreaming and integration of biodiversity objectives in policies and planning at all levels of decision making and governance, including through direct awareness-raising with elected officials.
Engage CGBWG members and partners with the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework.
Build super coalitions composed of state representatives, NGOs, academic institutions, municipalities, tribal governments and community organizations to connect with the KMGBF, thus raising ambition for local, state and federal action.
Generate understanding and acceptance of the linkages between biodiversity loss, climate change and impacts on human health.
Supplement the inconsistency of federal leadership by building power at all levels through organizing, education, and collaboration inclusive of the fight against extractive industries as this pertains to the UN Convention on Biological Diversity and the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KMGBF).
Steering Committee
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Rosalind Helfand, PAJE Consulting (CalGBA Co-Founder)
Rosalind, based in Los Angeles, is an independent expert on local to global environmental and social policy, strategy, and advocacy, and collaborates with civil society, NGOs, governments and coalitions to create and implement innovative, connected policies and programs. -
Mike Young, California Environmental Voters (CalGBA Co-Founder)
Mike is EnviroVoters' Senior Political and Organizing Director with nearly 20 years of experience in electoral campaigns and grassroots organizing. He builds strategic relationships to identify and support environmental leaders while holding legislators accountable to community concerns. -
Liz Chamberlin, PhD, Point Blue Conservation Science
Liz is Point Blue’s Director of Innovation and co-leader of The Roots Program, a statewide initiative supported by the California Wildlife Conservation Board promoting community-centered wildlife habitat restoration on California’s working landscapes. -
Tracy Farrell, PhD
Tracy is the North America Regional Director for the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and CEO of IUCN-US. She brings extensive experience in developing, leading, and overseeing global initiatives in conservation and sustainable development. -
Sarojini Lall
Sarojini is a public affairs professional who has worked in nonprofits, state government and on city commissions, with a particular focus on building sustainable, resilient communities. Sarojini has a Master’s Degree in cultural theory from Goldsmiths College, University of London, and is passionate about wildlife conservation. -
Wendy-Sue Rosen, California Environmental Voters
Wendy is a long-time California Environmental Voters board member and a land use and environmental policy consultant focusing on natural resource protection, public right of access to recreational trails, the preservation of open space, and fire risk reduction within wildland and wildland urban interface areas. -
Scott Webb, Resource Renewal Institute
Scott is RRI’s Director of Advocacy and Engagement with a diverse background in environmental advocacy. He has led successful campaigns for ocean and watershed protection, organized electoral efforts in Arizona, worked internationally on clean water access, and empowered youth through environmental education. -
Sam Young
Sam is an Environmental Consultant with 15 years of experience in natural resource management in public, private, and NGO sectors. He is a Certified Consulting Botanist, and has been passionate about putting “think globally, act locally” into action since his time as an Environment, Energy, and Economics Fellow with the Duke University Sanford School of Public Policy in Geneva, Switzerland. When he is not working for the environment, he is enjoying it through SCUBA diving, hiking, and camping.
