David Beckman's Blog
About
- Bio:
In 1984, I left the cold Philly suburbs for college at U.C. Berkeley, and I have been in California ever since, save three years during law school. I spent three years at a big law firm before coming to NRDC, where I hoped I could combine legal practice with a subject I cared about, the environment. NRDC has enabled me to do that, and I have been here for nearly 14 years. NRDC just launched a new national water program, that integrates our advocacy efforts across the country. The focus of our work is ensuring safe and sufficient water for people and ecosystems. Water is one of the major environmental issues of the 21st Century—a natural resource that is in short supply in many regions and is likely to become even more scarce as population grows and climate changes. There’s a lot to do, and I am going to be focused on how we can make the biggest contribution to ensuring the water we have is clean and we use it as efficiently as we can.
- Roots in:
- Philadelphia
- Favorite place:
- Before I got married and had a son, I would have said Northern California. But now, I would say being with my family wherever we happen to be.
- Why "environmentalism" matters:
- There are a lot of great answers to this question, and my colleagues on Switchboard have mentioned many of them. Here’s one simple answer: I have always thought that what environmentalists do is just like that saying that “everything you need to learn you learned in kindergarten.” Play fair. Put things back where you found them. Clean up your mess. Don't take things that aren't yours.
Recent Blog Posts
- Dispatch from Israel: Smart Nations Are Investing Heavily in Water-Saving Innovations (November 19, 2009)
- Traveling to Tel Aviv: A Look at Israel's Leadership in Water Recycling (November 16, 2009)
- Water Conservation and Awareness Efforts Flood Universities (October 9, 2009)
- Atlanta's Flood: Changing What the Rain Falls On (October 5, 2009)
- If Your State Isn't Keeping Your Water Safe, You Can Do Something About It (September 15, 2009)
- What Does California Water Conservation Have to Do with Swedish Furniture? (September 3, 2009)
- Lake Tahoe, Clean Water BMPs, and My Summer Vacation (August 26, 2009)
- Low Impact Development Will Help California and the Arid West Retain Rainfall (August 11, 2009)
- Wasting LA’s Water During a Drought (April 28, 2009)
- Water in California: A Picture is Worth a Thousand Drops (February 12, 2009)
Read more in David Beckman's Archives→
- David Beckman
- Senior Attorney & Co-Director, Water Program
- Los Angeles