Author: Bonnie Betts

Join us at the Capitol for NCRA’s Advocacy Day 2026

You are invited to join us on June 17 for our 3rd annual Advocacy Day in over a decade!

Free for members, $70 for non-members, which includes a one-year membership, and $25 for students/teachers/low-income non-members (which includes a 6-month membership).

⚠️ATTN Members: Please contact the office for the registration code.⚠️

RSVP Here.

This interactive event runs from 9am – 4:30pm, including lunch and a light breakfast. Optional no-host happy hour following our legislative visits.

The 2026 program includes presentations from Joanne Brasch, Director of Advocacy and Outreach, California Product Stewardship Council (CPSC) and Krystal Raynes, Policy Associate, Californians Against Waste (CAW), and more.

Topics include legislation basics, EPR and how to lobby effectively. We’ll also go over NCRA’s priority bills for the day and “role play” practice meetings with legislators and their staff. After lunch we’ll have meetings with legislative staff members or perhaps legislators!

Visit our Legislative Tracker for a brief overview of what’s on our radar.

Let us know who your legislators are. You can look up yours here.

Please also join us for CalRecycle Day if you are able! We’ll be attending (and speaking at, if comfortable!) a CalRecycle meeting on Tuesday, June 16th, 10-11:30am. Other opportunities for the day may include no-host group lunch and dinner/happy hour, legislative visits for experienced advocates, remote work time, CalRecycle rulemaking workshop for AB 2440, and more.

If you are interested in helping with the planning, contact Bailey Hall and Gwynn Mackellen via the website contact page.

During registration, please confirm: -Acceptance of membership options -City of residence (to make sure we’ve asked your representatives for meetings!) -Interest in attending pre-event CalRecycle meeting with other NCRA Members the day before – Tuesday, June 16th. -Any dietary restrictions (Vegetarian, Vegan, Gluten Free, Allergies, etc.) -Carpooling plans

Carpooling encouraged! Consider taking the Amtrak or other transit options.

Carpooling may be available. Need a carpool or able to provide a ride? Sign up here.

⚠️Cancellation allowed no less than 24 hours before the start of the event.

From Tailgate to Table, 4/26

View the Recording

From Tailgate to Table: Food Recovery from the Recent Super Bowl Tailgates – Join our Zero Food Waste Committee for its next webinar happening on Friday, April 10, from 1-2 pm.

Panelists:
Regina Harmon, CEO, Food Recovery Network
Erin Price, Director of Stakeholder Engagement, Food Recovery Network

Free event and open to everyone! Register via https://lnkd.in/ggP5vepk

This webinar is co-hosted by Zero Waste USA, California Resource Recovery Association, and Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) Goldrush Chapter

DEI Salon: Equitable Collaboration and Community Engagement!

Video Recording

Andrea Deleon at the City of San Diego will be part of the conversation on environmental equity, community leadership, and why frontline voices must guide climate solutions.

Join us for a discussion on how climate change and environmental policies disproportionately affect BIPOC and/or low-income communities, and why it is important to engage and involve those communities in creating and shaping programs as we work together towards a Zero Waste future.

Featured Speakers:
Mike Lok – Field Director with AAPIs for Civic Empowerment Education Fund (AAPI FORCE-EF)

Andrea Deleon – Deputy Director of Environmental Services Department, Waste Reduction Division at the City of San Diego

Green Love! Craft while networking with NCRA Members | 1/31/26 @3-5PM

Unleash your creativity and network with like-minded industry professionals! Bring your craft materials to create heartfelt love cards and letters alongside fellow NCRA members and friends, Saturday, January 31, 2026, 3-5 pm! FREE to RSVP!

Please bring your creativity and supplies (cardstock, stickers, scissors, glue, etc.) There will be light snacks and hot cocoa. BYO drinks and desserts to share.  You are welcome to bring food to share, although not obligated. Please bring your own water bottle and drinks (both alcoholic and non-alcoholic). All are welcome!

San Francisco Presidio – Sports Basement

610 Old Mason St, San Francisco, CA 94129, USA

3-5 PM Pacific ✅ Secure Parking 

RSVP

Gwynn Mackellen, 2026-2027

Gwynn Mackellen has been a NCRA board member since 2026 and serves as Co-Chair of our Legislative Committee. She launched NCRA’s Advocacy Day in Sacramento in 2024 with board member Bailey Hall and other volunteers, an annual event which builds our power at the state level, and provides opportunities to create connections with other members and elected officials.

Gwynn got her start in zero waste at the San Francisco Green Festival in 2004, sorting compost, recycle, and trash and then began to volunteer with the San Francisco Department of the Environment, which she continued for ten years. Eventually she decided to make this a career, after working in politics and community development. 

She has lived in California most of her adult life and is a Recycling Program Specialist for City of Oakland; she has also worked part-time as a Supervisor for Race to Zero Waste since 2017. In addition, her experience in the industry has included working for a hauler, consulting, and leading waste reduction projects at Portland International Airport.

Gwynn holds two associate’s degrees, a bachelor’s in Political Science, and a master’s in Urban and Regional Planning.

If you would like to join the Legislative Committee or attend Advocacy Day, you can reach out to her via the Office.