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Department of the Environment details racial equity commitments, staff trainings and planning
Summary
Department staff presented a racial equity update outlining survey findings, immediate commitments — leadership training, staff racial equity milestones in performance plans, equity trainings and a Phase 2 external engagement plan to be presented by year end.
The San Francisco Department of the Environment updated the commission on its racial equity work, describing internal and external steps the department plans to take following citywide calls for racial justice.
Director Deborah Raffel introduced the item and named Cindy Comerford to present. Comerford summarized a department survey to the Office of Racial Equity that found staff often feel uncomfortable discussing race and recommended leadership training and institutional changes. She described recent senior leadership training with Robin DiAngelo and a pilot to incorporate one internal and one external racial equity milestone into staff performance plans.
Comerford said staff will roll out additional trainings on racial and social equity tools in late summer or early fall and will expand use of an equity policy scan tool in upcoming ordinance and program work. The department estimated that roughly 8–9.6% of its FY19–20 budget was dedicated to racial equity work, noting the department is largely funded through non‑general‑fund sources and lacks broad discretionary funding for additional internal work.
Commissioners asked for measurable timelines and metrics; Commissioner Ahn requested concrete numbers and a timeline for staffing and career pathway programs to improve leadership opportunities for staff of color. Comerford said the department is developing templates and pilot testing performance milestone guidance and is continuing outreach with other city offices and community stakeholders. She said Phase 2 of the racial equity plan will focus on external engagement, policy and program changes and is expected to return to the commission for review before the end of the year.
No public callers spoke on this item during the scheduled public comment period.
