As of 2023, Forbes ranked Atherton and Hillsborough as California’s two wealthiest cities. For the residents of North Central San Mateo, a small neighborhood in the city of San Mateo, and North Fair Oaks, an unincorporated area in San Mateo County, their only connection to this level of wealth is geographic proximity. Separated by mere blocks from Atherton or a short drive from Hillsborough, these communities are functionally separated by a wall of systemic environmental injustice. Despite working multiple jobs to fuel the regional economy, residents here bear a disproportionate burden of air population, heat waves, and infrastructure vulnerability.  

This structural environmental inequality compounds existing socioeconomic vulnerabilities. For families prioritizing daily survival, navigating complex environmental regulations or advocating for meaningful policy change is a near-impossible barrier. This is where El Concilio’s Climate Ambassadors Program (CAP) comes in. Designed for transformative capacity building, CAP equips frontline community members with the critical knowledge, tools, and confidence necessary to transform from vulnerable populations to active agents of change. 

Executive Director Ana Avendano states, “When participants gain critical knowledge about climate change, emergency preparedness, and local advocacy, they are equipped to champion environmental justice in their communities.” She envisions building additional cohorts and forging collaborative partnerships to maximize reach and impact.  

The five-class course is delivered exclusively in Spanish and is meticulously designed to be culturally and contextually relevant. The curriculum centers five major topics framed by the local community’s lived experience: basics of climate change, environmental justice, natural disaster preparedness, maintaining a healthy home environment, and civic engagement and advocacy. Through the advocacy component, the course encourages residents to see the value of civic engagement, grassroots organizing and collective action. In addition, the program is a vital workforce development pipeline, providing pathways for future employment as promotores (community health workers) for El Concilio or partnering local nonprofits. 

Since 2024, El Concilio has successfully executed three iterations of this course—two in North Fair Oaks and one in North Central San Mateo. Environmental Justice Program Coordinator Valeria Vega Yanez has served as lead facilitator, supported by Policy Program Manager Adriana Fernandez Arriaga, and Senior Manager of Impact and Innovation Hannah Doress. The program is supported by committed partners including Catholic Charities, San Mateo County’s Department of Environmental Health, and RethinkWaste. In a powerful demonstration of the program’s workforce goal, four previous graduates helped co-facilitate the most recent courses, embedding invaluable community connection, local knowledge, and earned leadership into the curriculum delivery.

Across the three cohorts, El Concilio has trained 34 committed Climate Ambassadors, creating powerful, localized infrastructure of leaders. Immediately following the conclusion of the North Central San Mateo cohort in May 2025, El Concilio hired one graduate as a promotora, achieving workforce development while expanding critically needed outreach and engagement in a previously underserved community. A second North Central San Mateo cohort will launch in the spring, and a north San Mateo County cohort is planned for next winter. 

Current work for the Climate Ready Ambassadors Program is sustained by the Bay Area Air District’s James Cary Smith Community Grant. The North Central San Mateo cohort was supported through County of San Mateo Measure K funds. By shifting the paradigm from vulnerability to self-determination, and by equipping residents with actionable knowledge, leadership opportunities, and pathways toward community-focused employment, El Concilio is ensuring that communities situated in the economic shadow of California’s wealthiest cities are not sidelined in essential conversations about climate resilience. The Climate Ready Ambassadors Program is a blueprint for grassroots organizing, creating space for residents to become advocates, organizers, and leaders who will shape a healthier, more equitable future for their communities.