Led by Santa Monica College (SMC), 13 California Community Colleges (CCC) partnered with AltaSea to create the Blue Economy and Climate Action Pathways (BECAP) certification program.
On Friday, April 19, SMC hosted the official BECAP conference and kickoff at the AltaSea warehouse at the Port of Los Angeles in San Pedro.
AltaSea is a company focused on creating an environment that fosters scientific collaboration, job creation, equity, and sustainability through the blue economy. Blue economy is a term used to describe economic progress and opportunity centered around ocean and sea conservation and sustainable development.
BECAP is a collaboration between the following CCCs: Santa Monica College, Los Angeles Harbor College, West Los Angeles College, East Los Angeles College, Long Beach City College, Citrus College, Los Angeles Valley College, Los Angeles Mission College, Mount San Antonio College, and Los Angeles Pierce. College, Pasadena City College, and Rio Hondo College.
BECAP’s mission is to create career-focused pathways and certificates for CCC students, guiding them to opportunities in emerging blue economy fields.
The conference was primarily attended by community college faculty, deans, and blue economy industry experts, including several students who formed panels.
The student committee was led by Laura Link, SMC Professor of Introduction to Aquaculture and Associate Director of Operations at Heal the Bay Aquarium. The panel consisted of four of her SMC students taking Introduction to Aquaculture: Ariana Kidd, Sean Moulin-Cortez, Jennifer Cole, Max Riley, and one Santa Monica High School student, Justin Green .
All SMC students shared that after taking Rink classes, they became more interested in pursuing careers related to aquaculture and environmental work.
Cole, an environmental science major, was particularly inspired by the chance to make positive change in a world where students feel they have little control over actually making change. “It’s time to look for hope” about the future of climate change, Cole said.
Kidd, a marine biology and sustainability major, is as focused on community well-being as she is on sustainability. “How can we not only feed ourselves better, but also better feed our communities?” Kidd said regarding sourcing food ethically through the blue economy.
According to Dr. Patricia Ramos, SMC Dean of Academic Affairs and member of the AltaSea Board of Directors, student feedback from both community college and high school students is essential to increasing the presence of the blue economy in education. She wants this pathway to be relevant and helpful to students.
Ramos and Dr. Steven Sedky, SMC’s interim associate director of career education, are at the forefront of SMC’s BECAP project. Mr. Ramos and Mr. Sedky have been working with him for four years on his BECAP implementation. Ramos hopes the curriculum will inspire students to enter the workforce as soon as possible.
According to Dr. Jade Clemons, director of AltaSea’s Blue Sustainability Economy Alliance, the core of the blue economy surrounds three main focus clusters: renewable agriculture, renewable energy, and BlueTech (underwater robotics). Clemmons said he hopes this partnership between the university and AltaSea will create lab space and internship opportunities for students investing in the field.
Ramos said he doesn’t want students to be limited to jobs in California or Altasy. She sees her BECAP as an opportunity for students to work at the U.S. Department of Energy and Agriculture.
Beyond impacting students, BECAP is already impacting professors and faculty as well. As the curriculum changes, the teaching methods of professors also change.
The areas most affected by the new curriculum are Marine Technology, Marine Technology, Diving and Underwater Safety, Oceanography, Environmental Technology, Electromechanical Technology, Small Business and Entrepreneurship, Welding Technology, Energy Systems Technology, Geographic Information Systems, Alternative fuels and advanced transportation technologies.
Faculty will need to accommodate three additional classes required for BECAP certification: Aquaculture Microbiology, Genetics, and Larval Production and Rearing.
“My office is supporting faculty in this development,” Ramos said.
Felice Kawal, director of sustainability at SMC, is one of the faculty members working closely with Ramos and Sedky.
Kawal said expanding the blue economy includes the use of offshore wind power, wave energy and hydrogen energy from the ocean.
He would like to see community college general education credits that align with BECAP ideals recognized. He said this would not be possible without the support of students who want to take classes on climate change.
Kawal said students should consult with faculty and administrators to help create a general education class on climate change. This process is similar to how ethnic studies becomes a general education class.
Ramos said of the implementation of BECAP, “It starts today.”