City of Chula Vista Planning Commission
Oscar J Romo
Resume
Dear Ladies and Sirs,
Please consider my application as a member of the Planning Commission. I have been a resident of Chula Vista since 1980 where I have raised my children and grandchildren . During these forty-two-years since I moved from Europe, I have been involved in the region’s urban planning as a member of SANDAG, the Urban Land Institute , and as a Lecturer in the Urban Studies and Planning Program at UC San Diego, as a planning contractor for US Aid and as a researcher for the Urban and Environmental Department at The Northern Border College in Tijuana. My expertise has giving me the privilege of working for the governments of Canada, Mexico, different countries in Europe, Central and South America.
In the environmental field, I have been a recipient of multiple grants to develop projects for federal, state, and local agencies like the US EPA, US Aid, California Coastal Commission, California Coastal Conserva ncy, San Diego Water Board, San Diego County Water Authority, North American Development Bank, City of Chula Vista, City of Imperial Beach, City of San Diego, and several national and international foundations. I also had the great honor of working in close cooperation with internationally recognized scientists, conservationists, and decision makers, in the common quest of conserving our natural resources, the implementation of sustainable practices, and the expansion of environmental education as a tool to enhance conservation practices.
During my 50 years as a college professor and scholar, I successfully contributed to the education of thousands of students, and develop ed several papers in urban planning, resource conservation, environmental legislation, environmental infrastructure, and international cooperation. In fact first urban planning award was issued in 1974 by the La Salle University for my work documenting pre-Columbian planning practices.
Besides, my connection with the City of Chula Vista has been long and diverse; in 1998 I became a member of the City’s Border Environment Commerce Alliance (BECA), where in addition to my private practice I helped developing strategies for climate change adaptation and collaborated in the preparation of the report “Public Participation and Climate Change” published by a regional consortium of agencies and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Admi nistration in March 2002. Later In 2012 I joined the Resource Conservation Commission , which I reformed into the Sustainability Commission where I proudly served for 8 years, and in 2019 got appointed to the Measure P Citizens Oversight Committee serving for 3 additional years. That direct participation with the City imbued me with fundamental values, and strategies relevant
• San Diego County Water Authority, Integrated Regional Water Management, Urban Disadvantage Communities Representative, and member of the pro ject review committee https://sdirwmp.org
• Executive Director of Alter Terra, an international non-profit organization www.alterterra.org • Ashoka Fellow www.ashoka.org
Honorary Positions
• Delegate to the U.N. Commission on Sustainable Development, 1994-2003 • Chair of the National Council on Sustainable Development, 1995 -2003 • Chair of the Border Environment Cooperation Commission, Advisory Board, 1995 -2003 • Liaison to the US Good Neighbor Environmental Board, 1995 -2003 • Delegate to the U.N. Sustainable Development Sum mit, Rio de Janeiro, 1992 • Delegate to the U.N. Sustainable Development Summit, Rio de Janeiro, 1997 • Delegate to the U.N. Sustainable Development Summit, Johannesburg, 2002 • Delegate to the World Water Forum, Mexico City, 2007
• Delegate to the World Water F orum, Istanbul, Turkey, 2009
Relevant Awards Received
• California State Parks “Managers Award” 2006
• City of Tijuana “Environmental Conservation Award” 2007 • NOAA, “Wetlands Conservation Award” 2007
• U.S. EPA, “Environmental Hero” 2007
• Urban Land Institute, “Smart Growth Award” 2008
• Urban Land Institute, “Visionary Award” 2009
• Urban Land Institute, “Best of the Decade, Smart Growth Award” 2010 • San Diego Coastkeepers, “Coastal Champion Award” 2012
Education
• La Salle University, Mexico City, Bachelor of Arts and Science in Architecture 1970 • University Complutense, Madrid, Spain, master’s in Urban Design 1972 • National Institute for Social Housing, Madrid Spain, master’s in social housing 1973 • La Salle University and Rosenbuelth Foundation, master’s in computer science 1976 • La Salle University, Mandeville Louisiana, PhD coursework, Environmental Sciences 1998 (No degree earned yet)