Championing Environmental Leadership in Alameda County
Celebrated for the 23rd time, StopWaste held its annual awards ceremony at the June 12 board meeting where seven entities were recognized for their leadership and innovations in advancing environmental sustainability, waste prevention, and contributions to building healthy, climate resilient communities in Alameda County.
Some examples of the initiatives this year’s champions are leading in include engaging communities with sustainable, reusable foodware choices, recovering surplus food to nourish people, reimagining how we build homes in a way that is good for our health and the planet, and so much more.
The award winners and categories are:
Alameda Backyard Growers, Alameda – Excellence in Community Engagement
Community Action for a Sustainable Alameda (CASA) & OKAPI Reusables, Alameda – Excellence in Reusable Foodware Partnership
Oakland Unified School District, Oakland – Excellence in Sustainability at School
Veev by Lennar, Hayward – Excellence in Construction Innovation
Washington Health, Fremont – Excellence in Waste Prevention and Food Donation
Wingen Bakery & Restaurant, Livermore – Excellence in Sustainability at Work
Agency Goals and Focus Areas for FY 2026
The Fiscal Year 2026 budget outlines our focus areas and activities for the coming year. These include edible food recovery, compost and mulch market development, circularity in packaging and foodware, and advancing energy efficiency and clean energy transition, among other initiatives.
Our programs are based on the principle that equity and environmental stewardship are essential for thriving, sustainable communities. This budget reflects our commitment to these values and focuses on cultivating environmental stewardship, developing partnerships, and fostering innovation.
Rooted by our mission and vision, StopWaste’s work is guided by three overarching goals: striving for a healthy local food system, a thriving circular economy, and an innovative Bay Area construction sector. We use these long-term goals to inform our budget and help shape our strategies and programs.
StopWaste Recertified as a California Green Business
We are proud to join over 4,000 businesses across California that are committed to making our communities healthier and more livable by conserving resources. For an entity to be certified, they must meet high sustainability standards in multiple areas of focus including energy conservation, efficient water use, pollution prevention, waste prevention and diversion, and others. In addition to successfully meeting the standard for certification, it is part of our workplace culture to continually seek and implement environmentally conscientious practices that prioritize the well-being of our staff while reducing our environmental impact. StopWaste was first certified in 2008 and remains dedicated to maintaining our status for the California Green Business program. Learn about the various practices we’ve implemented in the workplace to earn and maintain our status throughout the years.
Bay Area Energy Efficiency and Electrification Strides
This year’s report celebrates major strides in energy efficiency and electrification across all nine Bay Area counties. Promoting BayREN’s 10 programs throughout Alameda County is a key role our Agency plays that supports our goal of advancing energy and resource efficiency in the built environment to prevent waste, fight climate change, and improve the health of our communities.
In addition to local promotion and garnering participation in BayREN’s programs across the residential, commercial, and public sectors, our Agency leads two of BayREN’s programs across all of the Bay Area: the Bay Area Multifamily Building Enhancements (BAMBE) program and the Green Labeling program. In 2024, the BAMBE program upgraded 38 properties, improving 916 housing units, disbursing $2.6M in rebates. The Green Labeling program has helped 4,855 local homeowners assess their home’s energy use via U.S. Department of Energy’s Home Energy Score and disbursed $1.1 million in rebates.
Employee Spotlight
Ben Cooper
Program Manager
Ben Cooper is a Program Manager on the Built Environment team where he has worked since 2017. He leads the BayREN Multifamily program and is enjoying his new title and role as a new dad. Ben has extensive experience in the built environment sector, having worked as an LED startup co-founder, an independent green building consultant, and a project manager for the San Francisco Environment Department implementing the BayREN multifamily programs. He grew up on the Peninsula and studied Economics with a focus in Environmental Resource at Pomona College.
What do you do at StopWaste?
I lead the BayREN multifamily program, which is my primary responsibility. The program works to install energy efficiency and electrification measures in existing multifamily buildings throughout the nine Bay Area counties aiming to reduce or stabilize energy consumption and utility bills and enhance the lives of the residents by improving thermal comfort, air quality, and the overall health and safety of their buildings.
Additionally, I manage a solar panel reuse grant and assist in managing the Agency property at Altamont Pass. I'm also the “defacto building systems maintenance” guy at the office. We recently upgraded our lighting, hot water, and HVAC systems, installing LEDs and replacing an old gas water heater and multiple gas HVAC units with new heat pumps.
How did you start your career in sustainability?
I grew up in an area where I could be outside all the time, and frolic on the Peninsula. I had access to open space, so my friends and I often found ourselves rolling around the hills and the oak-wooded grasslands of the Peninsula. I spent a lot of time hiking, camping, and backpacking with my family, too. That seeded a deep love and connection to the outdoors for me.
In college, I developed an interest in studying environment through the lens of architecture, economics, and policy. I remember the release of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report in 2007 - at the time I was taking environmental analysis classes from professor and friend Rick Hazlett. I had always been interested in the built environment and architecture, even interning as a green building intern at an architecture firm during the summers. After graduating, I worked at this architecture firm for a year before transitioning into green building consulting and working on a contract with Wes Sullens, under contract with StopWaste! This field allowed me to combine my interests in the built environment, nature, and climate change.
How has working at StopWaste impacted you?
I’m much more conscious of the amount of waste I generate. I’m also continually amazed and empowered by my colleagues’ commitment to what they do and the empathy, innovation, and wisdom they bring to their work. It is an honor and a blessing to be a part of the StopWaste family.
What’s a practice or motto you live by?
Progress not perfection!
Additionally, being a new dad deeply defines who I am right now. The best part about being a dad, especially at this early stage, is the constant reminder to be in the moment. Being present is one of the greatest lessons my son has taught me. That and the north star of imperfectly trying to be the person I want my son to be.
What do you enjoy doing outside of work?
I enjoy trail running and swimming. I especially enjoy trail running with my co-parented dog, Rio. One of my favorite trails is Point Pinole because a good portion of the trail is on undeveloped Bay coastline, and you can look across San Pablo Bay and see a lot of undeveloped parts of Marin County. It's just a really nice way to unplug and get away from the hustle and bustle.
Open water swimming, and just being in water in general, is something Shreya, my wife, and I really share a love of whether it’s in the Bay, the Pacific Ocean, Arabian Sea, lakes, rivers, streams—whatever it is—we love being in the water. There’s something spiritual about water. Just this past weekend, I took a dip in the Pacific Ocean; a good cold plunge is shocking yet refreshing experience much like restarting a computer instead of putting it to sleep (Shoutout to Mike ha).
I also enjoy spending quality time with my family and friends here in the Bay Area, enjoying the outdoors that the Bay has to offer, and the good food and produce we're so furtuante to have access to. Another big part of my life right now involves traveling to India to visit family. It’s been a blessing to be integrated into the family and exposed to new ways of living I never otherwise would have experienced. It’s given me a new lens on our work at StopWaste and also a deeper commitment towards our work.
