San Diego Climate Week

About this episode

Erika Rodriguez discusses her journey into climate action and the inception of San Diego Climate Week.

Erika Rodriguez joins us to share the moment a Category 4 storm in Fiji pulled her into climate action—and how that experience helped spark San Diego Climate Week. We dig into what it takes to build a city-wide movement, how she measures success beyond a single week, and why her long-term hope is that someday, we won’t need a “Climate Week” at all! Tune in to hear why. Recorded live in the barn at Coastal Roots Farm in Encinitas during the inaugural San Diego Climate Week. CREDITS Guests: Erika Rodriguez Hosts: Molly Saruwatari & Saturn Salama Producers: Elden Cadena and Saturn Salama Editor: Elden Cadena Research: Molly Saruwatari & Saturn Salama Script: Molly Saruwatari & Saturn Salama Social Media: Molly Saruwatari Music: Marios Panousos Faculty Advisor: Anne Dabb Climate to Action: A CSUSM Student Podcast is an initiative of the CSUSM Climate Action and Sustainability Center. The podcast is advised by faculty from the Philosophy Department and the Environment Studies Program in the College of Humanities, Arts, Behavioral and Social Sciences. Climate to Action is produced at Inspiration Studios on the campus of California State University, San Marcos.

People in this episode

Hosts: Molly Saruwatari, Saturn Salama

Guest: Erika Rodriguez

Topics covered

• climate action
• community movement
• sustainability
• environmental awareness
• climate change

Keywords

• climate action
• San Diego Climate Week
• Erika Rodriguez
• community movement
• sustainability
• environmental awareness
• Fiji storm

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: CSUSM Climate Action and Sustainability Center, Coastal Roots Farm, California State University, San Marcos, Philosophy Department, Environment Studies Program

Places: San Diego, Fiji, Encinitas

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• Growing Climate Action on Campus with CSUSM’s Environmental Stewards Association · March 26, 2026 · 28 min
• Plastic Beach, Student Voices: Turning Plastic Pollution Into Climate Action · February 5, 2026 · 24 min
• Stories that Change Us: Environmental Literature and Cli-Fi · November 20, 2025 · 34 min
• Conservation and Climate Resilience · November 6, 2025 · 31 min