2025: From Surf to Turf
On behalf of the CRRA Board of Directors & staff…
THANK YOU to all committee members, sponsors, exhibitors, volunteers, speakers, and attendees! CRRA 2025 was a huge success because of your amazing efforts.
2025 Speakers:
Chris Lopez
Supervisor, Monterey County District 3
Supervisor Chris Lopez lives in Greenfield, California with his wife Jazmin Lopez, five-year-old son Teo, and two-year old baby girl Inés. He was elected to succeed Supervisor Simon Salinas, representing Monterey County’s Third District, in June of 2018.
Supervisor Lopez was born and raised in Southern Monterey County. His parents, Vince and Tina Lopez raised their four children in King City, where they served as great role models as they were involved in nearly every community activity imaginable. Supervisor Lopez graduated from Claremont McKenna College, receiving his Bachelor of Arts with focus in the areas of International Relations and Economics in 2008. He met his wife when they founded Mariachi Serrano de Claremont as students. Supervisor Lopez spent time interning in Hong Kong, Hong Kong for the Pacific Basin Economic Council and in Guanajuato, Mexico for the CASAs Office of the Governor of the State of Guanajuato. (Read More)
Zoe Heller
Director, CalRecycle
Director Heller served as CalRecycle’s first deputy director over the Division of Circular Economy since May 2023. Prior to that, she helmed CalRecycle’s Division of Materials Management and Local Assistance. She previously served as CalRecycle’s deputy director over the Office of Policy.
Earlier in her career, Director Heller worked at the U.S. EPA’s Pacific Southwest Office for more than 10 years. She was also a manager for the Zero Waste section for three years and served as special assistant to the Regional Administrator, and an environmental protection specialist in the Environmental Justice program. Director Heller also served as a research and policy analyst at the Center for Neighborhood Technology in Chicago, Illinois.
Ms. Heller holds a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Policy from Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Florida, and a Master of Public Administration from Roosevelt University in Chicago, Illinois.
PANEL: “Stewarding the Land: Forest and Farms”
Moderated by John Davis, (Mojave Desert & Mountain Recycling Authority) this keynote panel will discuss human stewardship of nature's life cycles in both natural lands and agriculture. The discussion will be a blend of the Esselen Tribe’s knowledge, the Wildlands Conservancy’s approach, and Calla Rose’s regenerative organic material economies in a moderated discussion.
Calla Rose Ostrander
Climate Change Communicator, People, Food & Land Foundation
Calla Rose Ostrander is a Strategic Advisor to individuals and organizations dedicated to the well-being of people and planet. She specializes in climate change and agricultural policy, science communications and movement building. Since 2013 she has worked to support the advancement of carbon farming, compost production and climate beneficial material economies in California. In partnership with John Wick and the partner organizations of the Marin Carbon Project, Calla Rose has supported the successful scaling of regenerative agriculture to the state scale through strategic organization, economic development, local and state policy, and communications. (LinkedIn)
Tom Little Bear Nason
Tribal Chairman, The Esselen Tribe of Monterey County
Tom Little Bear Nason is the respected Tribal Chairman of the Esselen Tribe of Monterey County, a recognized band of Indigenous peoples whose ancestral homeland spans the rugged coastline and mountains of Big Sur, California. A direct descendant of the original Esselen people, Tom has dedicated his life to the preservation, restoration, and revitalization of Esselen culture, land, and language.
A cultural bearer, educator, and land steward, Tom Little Bear is deeply involved in traditional ceremony, ecological restoration, and tribal governance. He works closely with state and federal agencies, conservation partners, and other California tribes to advocate for Indigenous rights, environmental protection, and cultural heritage preservation.
Tom’s vision for the future is rooted in honoring the past. Through community programs, language revival efforts, youth education, and the development of ceremonial grounds, he continues to lead the Esselen people with humility, resilience, and an unwavering commitment to ancestral values.
Tim Krantz
Conservation Director, The Wildlands Conservancy and Professor Emeritus of Environmental Science, University of Redlands
Dr. Krantz’s résumé includes 45+ years of experience with a wide range of specializations. He has been in Academia for 25+ years and is a Professor Emeritus of Environmental Studies at the University of Redlands. Dr. Krantz was a Fulbright Scholar to Austria in 2009-2010, focusing on renewable energy technology transfer between California and Austria, the U.S. and the E.U., with a particular emphasis in biomass energy production. He has continued to work with the Institute for International Education as a peer reviewer of U.S. scholar applicants to Austria and as a Fulbright Ambassador.
Currently, Dr. Krantz is the Conservation Director for The Wildlands Conservancy—California’s largest private non-profit land conservation organization—where he lives and works on the Oak Glen Preserve and is the founding Director of the Southern California Montane Botanic Garden. He is an authority on the flora of the San Bernardino Mountains and rare and endangered plants of California. He has worked in the environmental planning industry for many years and is very active in local and state environmental decision making on issues ranging from the Salton Sea to fracking to western Joshua tree restoration and Big Bear’s famous bald eagles—Jackie and Shadow. (LinkedIn)
John Davis
Mojave Desert and Mountain Recycling Authority
John Davis administers the nine-member Mojave Desert and Mountain Recycling Authority. Currently a CRRA Board Advisor, he is a former Board President and recipient of the organization’s Service, Recycler of the Year, and Rick Best Environmental Advocacy awards. John is President of the Californians Against WasteBoard and former President of the California Association of Recycling Market Development Zones.
Shifting the System: Plastic, Policy, and the Power of Public Will
Shifting the single-use plastic system requires science, policy, and public support — and Monterey Bay Aquarium sits at the intersection of all three. Amy Wolfrum will share how the Aquarium’s local-to-global advocacy reflects the deep public concern about plastic pollution and the need for producer-level solutions. From science that tracks the harmful impacts of plastic in all parts of our ocean to taking the steps to eliminate single-use plastic in the Aquarium’s café and retail store, the Aquarium is modeling what's possible — and helping shape the systems to support it. Amy will explore California’s groundbreaking SB 54 law and discuss the opportunities and challenges that lie ahead.
Amy Wolfrum
Director of CA Policy and Government Affairs
Amy Wolfrum is the Director of California Policy and Government Affairs at Monterey Bay Aquarium, where she leads efforts to advance science-based policy solutions to protect ocean health and biodiversity. Amy serves as the Aquarium’s policy lead for SB 54—the groundbreaking law aimed at transforming California’s plastics economy and reducing single-use packaging waste at the source. With more than two decades of experience in environmental policy and public affairs, Amy’s work focuses on California’s most urgent conservation challenges: combating climate change, eliminating ocean plastic pollution, restoring iconic species like the southern sea otter, and building strong partnerships across local and state governments. She also serves as the Director of the California Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Amy holds a B.A. in Economics and Environmental Studies from Occidental College and an M.B.A. with a concentration in Environmental Policy and Management from The George Washington University.
Teresa Bradley
Race to Zero Waste CEO, National Recycling Coalition President
Teresa Bradley is CEO and Founder of Race to Zero Waste, an environmental non-profit that focuses on community-centered education. In support of its mission, Race to Zero Waste works to build local, national, and global campaigns through a network of community coalition leaders who are delivering the message of the circular economy through a variety of pop-up events, webinars, and workshops. Teresa is a Missouri native and holds a Bachelor of Arts in Geography and Environmental Studies from the University of Missouri and a Master of Science in Environmental Managment from the University of San Francisco. Teresa has worked in resource recovery for 20 years in both local government and the non-profit sector across the U.S. Additionally, she is the co-founder of CircularSTL, a reuse coalition led by other passionate environmentalists to realize a circular economy for the St. Louis Region. Lastly, she is an adjunct Professor at the University of San Francisco and is a TRUE Advisor. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling for weeks at a time in her RV, hanging out with her daughter Chloe, partner Jeff and cat Luna.
Miho Ligare
Senior Manager, Plastic Pollution Initiative
Miho is the Surfrider Foundation’s Senior Plastic Pollution Initiative Manager. In this role, she oversees and manages Surfrider’s plastic pollution advocacy and program efforts. On the policy front, she focuses on policy advancements, including advocating for effective legislation at the local, state, national, and international levels. The program work includes supporting Surfrider’s nationally recognized Beach Cleanup and Ocean Friendly Restaurants and Hotels programs. She also represents the ocean advocacy organization seat on the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act (SB 54) advisory board.
She brings over 20 years of policy, research, and management experience, working at non-profits, government agencies, and academic institutions. She has a Master’s in Environmental Science and Management from the University of California, Santa Barbara, and served as a California Sea Grant State Fellow for the California Natural Resources Agency. Miho is based near Sacramento, and in her spare time enjoys going on adventures with her family, taking trips to the coast, hiking, trying new recipes, and floating down the river.
Keynote Presentation: “Protecting What We Love: Grassroots Activism and Creating Lasting Change”
Since its inception in 1984, the Surfrider Foundation has evolved into one of the largest non-profit grassroots organizations with a volunteer-activist network dedicated to protecting and enjoying the world's ocean, waves, and beaches for all people. Surfrider has a blueprint for success that transforms passion into protection. Learn how Surfrider's chapters and student clubs mobilize in local communities and scale up, all across the country, and have helped achieve over 400 plastic pollution-related victories. From single-use plastic product bans to promoting reuse, we advocate for meaningful solutions to end plastic pollution at the source.
2025 Award Recipients
Outstanding Household Hazardous Waste/Universal/Electronic Recycling
Corporate eWaste Solutions (CEWS)
Outstanding School Recycling Program
Center for Environmental Health (CEH)
Outstanding Waste Prevention
City of Long Beach Environmental Services Bureau
Pavitra Crimmel Reuse
Carlsbad Fix-it Clinics
Zero Waste or Recycling Program
Race to Zero Waste
Dave Hardy Leadership in Organics
OC Waste & Recycling
“Next Generation” Recycler
Pajaro Valley High School Green Grizzlies Club
Outstanding Construction & Demolition
City of Malibu Construction and Demolition Recycling Program
Outstanding Edible Food Recovery
Joint Venture Silicon Valley-Santa Clara County Food Recovery Program
Despina Kreatsoulas Service
Ruth Abbe
Rick Best Environmental Advocacy
Nick Lapis
Recycler of the Year
Tim Flanagan
2025 AWARD CEREMONY
NCRA PLAYERS 2025
