RSC New Member Selection Process

Contact

Introduction

CARB is seeking nominations & applications from the public to fill eight positions on CARB’s Research Screening Committee (RSC). CARB is now accepting nominations and applications for the RSC with expertise in the following area(s):

  • Agriculture/Natural and working lands
  • Air emissions measurement
  • Climate science and impacts
  • Community-based research
  • Economics
  • Fire science
  • Public health
  • Urban planning

The public may submit nominations for multiple candidates (further instructions are found on the nomination form). All nominations must be submitted by August 25, 2025 to be considered. All nominations that are submitted by the due date will be reviewed by CARB staff. Every nominee will be contacted and provided with information on how to submit their application. Please note, the nominator’s submission will be kept confidential.

Nomination requirements

  • Provide contact information of the nominator and nominee/s.
  • Describe in what capacity you know the nominee/s.
  • Provide a one-paragraph statement describing why your nominee/s is a good fit for the RSC.

The application period will be open to nominees and anyone else interested in applying, regardless of nomination status, until September 15, 2025.All requirements must be submitted via e-mail to research@arb.ca.gov with the subject title “RSC Application” by September 15, 2025 to be considered.  All of the applications that are submitted by the due date will be reviewed by CARB staff. The most qualified candidates will be contacted in November 19, 2025 to schedule an interview.

To apply for any of the expertise areas listed, please complete, and attach the information requested below.

Application requirements

  • Contact information.
  • Resume or CV - This document should provide the review panel with a detailed account of your personal, professional, and educational history to decide whether you’re a good fit for the RSC appointment you’re applying for.  The document should include your contact information, relevant skills, awards and honors, grants and scholarships, publications and presentations, licenses and certifications, fieldwork, community service, and any other qualifications relevant to the work you are proposing to do, including your lived experience.
  • Statement of interest responding to the following questions (2-page limit):
    • Why are you interested in becoming a member of the RSC? What could you contribute to this body?
    • What are your qualifications, including your field/s or expertise and lived experience that make you uniquely qualified to be a member of the RSC?
    • Below are the desired skills for each position. You do not need to be an expert in every area requested. In your Statement of Interest, please address your familiarity with the relevant items.
  • Letters of support are optional but note that these will be considered in the evaluation criteria.

Online Nomination Form [OPEN]

Application Form [OPEN]

If you have questions about this process, please contact us at research@arb.ca.gov with the subject title “RSC Application.”

Expertise: Agriculture/natural and working lands

Methods:

  • Biogeochemical and other modeling techniques
  • Field data collection
  • Remote Sensing and geospatial analysis
  • Big-data analysis

Topics:

  • Forest and fire ecology and management
  • Coastal and freshwater wetland ecology and management
  • Shrubland, rangeland, and grassland ecology and management
  • Urban greening and forestry
  • Agricultural sciences
  • Desert ecology and management
  • Nature Based Solution science
  • Carbon and GHG accounting/quantification
  • Climate change impacts on ecosystems, and disaster avoidance
  • Circular bioeconomy
  • Soil science
  • Dairy emissions from changes in management practices
  • Environmental justice for nature-based solutions and climate change
  • Air quality impacts/benefits from lands

Policies:

  • AB 1757
  • SB 901
  • AB 1279: Net-zero by 2045
  • AB 32/SB 32: GHG reduced by 40% below 1990 by 2030
  • SB 1383: Methane and SLCP targets by 2030

Expertise: Air emissions measurement 

Methods:

  • Top-down and bottom-up criteria pollutant and toxics emission inventory methods, especially mobile monitoring, remote sensing, flight measurements.
  • Measurement of air toxics
  • Air quality modeling and forecasting

Topics:

  • Sources of PM2.5, NOx, VOCs, and ozone in California air basins 
  • Emerging toxics of concern

Policies:

  • SIPs
  • NAAQS
  • ATCM development

Expertise: Climate science and impacts

Methods:

  • Top-down and bottom-up GHG emission inventory methods
  • Climate scenario and projection modeling

Topics:

  • GHG sources and mitigation strategies
  • Nature-based solutions and ecosystem balance
  • Equitable transition to a low-carbon future and building decarbonization
  • Climate forcing
  • Source emissions responses to climate change

Policies:

  • CARB Scoping Plan
  • CARB’s Short-lived Climate Pollutant Plan
  • California and National Climate Assessments
  • IPCC Assessments
  • AB 1279

Expertise: Economics  

Methods:

  • Causal inference
  • Spatial analysis
  • Life cycle assessment 
  • Applied microeconomics
  • Cost-benefit analysis
  • Modeling/simulation

Topics:

  • Public health and social impacts
  • Regulations and policies
  • Energy
  • Environment
  • Behavior
  • Land use

Expertise: Community-based research

Methods:

  • Community-based participatory research
  • Mixed-methods: Surveys, focus groups, interviews
  • Community-scale monitoring, use of low-cost monitors
  • Community engagement and outreach strategies

Topics:

  • Sustainable communities and mobility justice
  • Equitable transition to a low-carbon future
  • Community-level exposures and equity
  • Health and equity
  • Climate impacts and solutions, including urban nature-based solutions

Policies:

  • SB 375
  • AB 32/SB 32: GHG reduced by 40% below 1990 by 2030
  • AB 617
  • U.S. EPA NAAQS
  • SB 1000
  • AB 2588

Expertise: Fire science  

Methods:

  • Fire and smoke categorization
  • Air quality and air pollution dispersion modeling  

Topics:

  • Forest management strategies, including prescribed burning
  • Natural and working lands
  • Health and smoke exposure
  • Wildfire vulnerabilities at the Wildland-Urban Interface

Policies:

  • AB 1757: Expanding nature-based solutions
  • SB 905: Carbon sequestration
  • SB 705: Open agricultural burning phasedown

Expertise: Public health

Methods:

  • Statistical approaches to estimate associations between air pollution emissions/concentrations and health
  • BenMAP and related health analysis tools
  • Health analysis methods for state, regional, and local scales
  • Community-engaged research methods

Topics:

  • Social determinants of health and exposure
  • Air pollution and climate health impacts
  • Air pollution epidemiology
  • Health impacts of wildfire smoke
  • Air pollution and children’s health
  • Cumulative health impacts
  • Impacts on overburdened communities

Policies:

  • Federal Clean Air Act
  • California Clean Air Act
  • AB 32: Global Warming Solutions Act 
  • National Ambient Air Quality Standards
  • AB 617: Community Air Protection 

Expertise: Urban planning

Methods:

  • Geospatial analysis
  • Mixed-methods: Surveys, focus groups, interviews
  • Land use impact analysis

Topics:

  • Sustainable communities and climate mitigation  
  • Buildings, building codes, electrification, and the built environment
  • Equitable transition to a low-carbon future
  • Economic development and housing
  • VMT reduction and public transit

Policies:

  • SB 375
  • SB 150
  • AB 2446/43: Carbon intensity of building materials, reduced by 2035
  • SB 1279
  • SB 535
  • California Building Standard Code
  • SB 1000