Azul in the News

Previous
surfrider.org Feb. 10, 2011
Blatantly disregarding public will, Coastal Commission votes to fire executive director
Morro Bay, CA, February 10 – Today, more than 1,000 concerned citizens, elected officials, former commissioners, staff members, and environmental and social justice advocates attended the Coastal Commission hearing in Morro...
Read More
Yes! Magazine July 22, 2024
The Movement to Ban Plastic Production
Azul's Founder & Executive Director, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, spoke with Yes! Magazine about the need for a strong and ambitious global plastics...
Read More
Yahoo News July 10, 2024
Majority of U.S. Latino voters support candidates who support marine conservation
(Read in Spanish) Eight out of ten Latino voters in the United States support candidates who are in favor of laws that protect the coasts and oceans, according to a poll released Wednesday by the Azul organization, which promotes...
Read More
La Red Hispana June 6, 2024
Marcela Gutiérrez Graudins, founder of Azul: ‘The ocean is the plastic sewer of the planet’.
Azul's director and founder, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, spoke with La Red Hispana as part of their effort to create alliances with organizations dedicated to protecting the...
Read More
Radio Bilingüe April 25, 2024
Línea Abierta: Plastics in the ocean
(Listen in Spanish) On the eve of Earth Day, ocean conservation advocates, including Azul Founder and Executive Director Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, participated in negotiations convened by the United Nations in Ottawa (Canada)...
Read More
Radio Bilingüe March 28, 2024
Línea Abierta: The ocean at risk
(Listen in Spanish) Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, Founder and Executive Director of Azul, talks to Radio Bilingüe about IUU fishing, plastic pollution and climate change. Listen to the radio interview in...
Read More
El Diario NY March 25, 2024
Ocean Justice for All requires strong action against plastic pollution
In an op-ed in El Diario NY, Azul calls on the United States to take a strong stance in the global plastics treaty in order to advance ocean justice. Read the op-ed in...
Read More
California Legislature February 8, 2024
Assemblymember Bauer Kahan, Senator Blakespear, and Senator Allen Partner on Legislation Addressing Plastic Bag Pollution
Azul joined California legislators and advocates to announce legislation to address California's persistent plastic bag pollution problem. Read the quote from Azul's Founder and Executive Director, Marce...
Read More
USA Today December 7, 2023
Biden Administration announces first-ever Ocean Justice Strategy. What’s that?
The first-ever White House Ocean Justice Strategy was released at COP28. Our founder and executive director, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, spoke to USA Today about why this is an important win for...
Read More
La Opinión September 19, 2023
When it comes to the ocean, House Republicans are playing with fire
(Read in Spanish) If it were not for the ocean, average global temperatures would be an unbearable 122°F on...
Read More
Speak Up For Blue August 2, 2023
The Upwell Conference: Fostering Conversations in Marine Conservation
In this episode, Andrew Lewin welcomes Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš (Founder and Executive Director of Azul) and Kat So (Research Associate for the Centre of American Progress) on the podcast to discuss the results of the...
Read More
Monterey Bay Aquarium August 2, 2023
Plastic isn’t only a threat to wildlife; it’s also harming people and driving deep societal injustices.
Azul wrote a report with UNEP that was the blueprint for raising the world’s awareness of plastic pollution as an environmental injustice. They continue to bring a voice for vulnerable communities, whether they are in pollution...
Read More
El Diario June 15, 2023
Moving towards marine restoration: solutions to support ocean ecosystems
(Read in Spanish) "I think it is important that not only the administration, but also Congress and individuals understand that the ocean is not only a victim of climate change but also an agent of conservation, which offers many...
Read More
Latino Loop June 16, 2023
Latino Loop: Azul Rising Leaders Initiative
Azul, the only U.S.-based organization specifically focused on and working with Latinxs to protect the ocean and coasts, has graduated its first Azul Rising Leaders Initiatives 14-person cohort in Washington DC last...
Read More
La Opinión June 5, 2023
Unstoppable wave: Plastics infiltrate all systems and affect the planet’s health and economy
(Read in Spanish) Op-ed by Azul's Founder and Executive Director, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, and Margaret Spring, Chief Conservation and Science...
Read More
Radio Bilingue May 25, 2023
Open Line: #LatinosMarinos
(Listed in Spanish) Affirming that one out of every two breaths of oxygen we take in comes from the sea, environmental advocates are encouraging Latinos to get involved in the movement to save the ocean from pollution, climate...
Read More
Monterey Bay Aquarium April 12, 2023
Assemblymember Luz Rivas and Senator Ben Allen recognized as California Ocean Champions
Monterey Bay Aquarium and Azul presented legislators with the 2023 California Ocean Champion Awards for their work to advance measures to protect the health of California’s coast and...
Read More
La Opinión March 13, 2023
Launch of the Coastal Justice Lab
(Read in Spanish on La Opinión) Azul partnered up with UCI Law to launch a new world-class law center to advance environmental justice, ecosystem management and community involvement in coastal...
Read More
The White House March 23, 2023
President Biden Champions Conservation, Takes Action to Protect Lands and Waters
Marce Gutierrez-Graudins, Executive Director, Azul: “Today, the first-ever U.S. Ocean Climate Action Plan was released by the Biden Administration. This groundbreaking roadmap acknowledges the ocean’s power...
Read More
Grist January 13, 2023
A $100 million boost for environmental justice
Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, executive director of Azul — a grassroots ocean conservation organization that works with Latinos — said the grant funding could empower community organizations to implement environmental justice...
Read More
Medium December 8, 2022
Op-Ed: Latine communities have solutions to ocean and climate challenges
New op-ed ahead of #COP15 from Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, Azul's founder and executive...
Read More
LX News November 10, 2022
Water Why: Do you know what you are drinking?
Azul's founder and executive director, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, speaks to LX News to talk about why some people have clean drinking water and others do not, and why everyone should be concerned about drought in Southern...
Read More
La Jolla Light November 3, 2022
State leaders at La Jolla conference discuss success of a decade of marine protection
A decade after California formed a network of 124 Marine Protected Areas, state leaders gathered Nov. 1 in La Jolla to celebrate the MPAs, discuss their effectiveness and press for strengthened ocean protection. Nonprofit...
Read More
National Marine Sanctuary Foundation October 13, 2022
Lessons From My Abuelito: Listen Deeply to El Mar for Life’s Answers
Azul's Digital Strategist, Jessica Itzayana Vazquez Mesta, was featured on the...
Read More
Green 2.0 October 13, 2022
Healing Outdoor Trauma While Advancing Coastal Access & Ocean Policy
This Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month, Green 2.0 is featuring Azul’s National Policy Manager Carlos Ochoa. The Washington, D.C.-based Ochoa offers a glimpse into his work alongside Latinx communities, family background, and why...
Read More
Atmos September 21, 2022
Ocean Conservation for La Gente
For Latine Heritage Month, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, the founder and executive director of the only marine conservation group dedicated to Latines in the U.S., shares how her community carries a special relationship to the...
Read More
LA Times August 15, 2022
Column: In a ‘Latinas First’ strategy, everyone wins
Azul's founder & executive director, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, spoke with the LA Times about the importance of investing in Latina leadership & Latinx-led nonprofits, as well as the essential work HOPE is...
Read More
White House July 29, 2022
White House Lauds Azul for Landmark Ocean Poll
Dr. Jane Lubchenco, Deputy Director for Climate and Environment White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, delivered remarks at the launch of our 2022 Azul U.S. Latinos and the Ocean...
Read More
LAist July 1, 2022
California’s Landmark Plastics Law Affects Just About Every Kind Of Plastic Packaging You See
You’ve seen the heart-wrenching photos of marine life trapped and choked by plastic. There’s a laundry list of problems caused by the stuff: it’s filling up landfills, polluting the environment, harming public health, and,...
Read More
Ocean Protection Council July 1, 2022
A Reckoning for Plastic Pollution
"From California to the UN Oceans Conference in Portugal, it is exciting to see a new focus on environmental justice and equity in ocean conservation. Based on our report 'Neglected: Environmental Justice Impacts of Plastic...
Read More
The LA Times June 9, 2022
Women in environmental leadership
"I’ve also been inspired by women such as Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš (leader of Azul, a marine conservation organization) and Veronica Garibay and Phoebe Seaton (co-founders, respectively, of the Leadership Counsel for...
Read More
Pew Stateline / Yahoo May 16, 2022
California Panel Unanimously Quashes Desalination Plant
“The commission showed the environmental justice laws of the state of California and the environmental justice policy of the Commission itself were not just words on a page, but living, breathing pledges to do what was right,...
Read More
CBS Los Angeles May 13, 2022
Plan for controversial Huntington Beach desalination plant rejected
"Yes we need water, we don't need all the tools in the toolkit, we need the tools that make sense," said Andrea Leon Grossman, director of the group Azul Climate Action. "And the tools that make sense are efficiency,...
Read More
NRDC March 29, 2022
California Ocean Day 2022: Celebrating Ocean Protection
As the impacts of climate change are increasingly prevalent and devastating to our global ocean, the upcoming California Ocean Day will showcase the positive strides and leadership California has taken to safeguard nature, and...
Read More
Voice of OC September 2, 2021
We Don’t Have a Water Shortage; We Have a Water Management Problem
We are in a drought, a mega drought. Many even claim that California is in a state of emergency, but drought and flooding is now the new normal. What we are experiencing is climate change, exacerbated by severe water management...
Read More
Mercury News July 30, 2021
California must take leadership role in reducing plastic
A recent report from the United Nations Environment Program and Azul finds that people are harmed at every stage of the plastic lifecycle, from production to use to disposal. The report rightfully reframes plastic pollution as an...
Read More
KQED Aug. 2, 2021
Gripped by Drought, Marin Considers Desalination, Water Pipeline Over the Richmond Bridge
Andrea León-Grossmann, director of climate action for the ocean conservation group Azul, advocates against desalination because the high costs are shouldered by ratepayers. “Proponents claim it will be a few dollars a...
Read More
Reuters July 28, 2021
Desalination advances in California despite opponents pushing for alternatives
Andrea León-Grossmann, director of climate action for the ocean conservation group Azul, says better alternatives include conservation, repairing leaky pipes, capturing storm water runoff and committing to more recycled...
Read More
Yes Magazine May 26, 2021
In California’s Drier Future, What’s the Best Investment for Securing Water?
“First and foremost, it’s just not needed,” said Andrea León-Grossmann, climate action director at the nonprofit Azul. Indeed, though 41 counties across Northern and Central California are under a drought emergency,...
Read More
CalMatters.org May 21, 2021
Conservation policy must include more diverse voices
I like to say that I used to sell the fish, and now I save them. Growing up blocks from the U.S.-Mexico border and the Pacific Ocean, I ended up working for an international seafood company at the start of my career. But that...
Read More
Voice of OC April 30, 2021
Regulators Allow Controversial Desal Plant to Run in Huntington Beach
“Over two days of hearings, advocates pushed the Regional Water Board to heed the cautionary tale from Carlsbad, where Poseidon built and began operating a desalination facility,” wrote the coalition, which included...
Read More
Voice of OC April 29, 2021
Should Poseidon Be Able to Start Running Its Desal Plant Without Starting to Make Up for Marine Life Loss?
“What’s been alarmingly absent from the Regional Water Board’s deliberations today is the project’s impact on low-income ratepayers,” said Andrea León-Grossmann of environmental justice group Azul, in a statement after...
Read More
Eco Justice Radio April 22, 2021
Break Free From the Plastic Death Cycle
"It's important to look at the big picture, because it's easy to make grandiose, yet non-detailed announcements while at the same time continuing to ship the waste to places where people have to deal with them," says Marcela...
Read More
Spectrum News 1 April 22, 2021
LA City Council approves ordinance to reduce plastic foodware waste
"Single-use waste is an environmental justice issue that needs to be addressed at the source," Andrea Leon-Grossmann said in January. "We commend the LA City Council for introducing the motion to reduce waste by enacting an...
Read More
Voice of OC April 22, 2021
Will Desalination Come to Huntington Beach?
Andrea Leon-Grossmann, deputy director for environmental justice group Azul, warned of the project’s impacts on surrounding, poor households and pointed to this figure: State officials say there’s a combined $1 billion in...
Read More
Los Angeles Daily News April 21, 2021
LA council votes to make plastic utensils only available upon request
The motion was praised by Andrea Leon-Grossmann, who serves as climate action director for the environmental justice organization Azul, which focuses on ocean stewardship. “Single-use waste is an environmental justice issue...
Read More
The Orange County Register April 14, 2021
Permit terms might kill Poseidon desalination proposal in Huntington Beach
The environmental group Azul is among those calling for Kerr, Peterson and Murray to recuse themselves from voting on the project. “Secretary Blumenfeld, or any member of the governor’s administration, could have gone on...
Read More
Green Dream Podcast April 6, 2021
Plastic is Killing Us! The Plague of Plastic
My guest is Andrea Leon Grossman from Azul, an environmentalist/activist and expert on PLASTIC. We talk about what plastic is made from, the devastation it is having on the People, Planet, Animals, and what we can do to STOP this...
Read More
EcoWatch April 1, 2021
‘Plastic Pollution Is a Social Justice Issue,’ New Report Warns
Plastic pollution isn't just a threat to non-human life like turtles and whales. It's also a major environmental justice problem. That's the conclusion of a new report released Tuesday from the UN Environment Program and ocean...
Read More
Mail & Guardian
Plastic pollution a huge threat to marginalised groups, UN report finds
The UN Environmental Programme (UNEP) has released a report that addresses the human and environmental damage that plastic pollution...
Read More
NowThis News
Ocean Activist Wants to Change Narrative on Environmentalists
"My grandmother had [a reusable grocery bag] before Whole Foods existed" — This ocean advocate wants to change the narrative of what an environmentalist looks...
Read More
Gizmodo March 30, 2021
Plastic Is Creating an Environmental Justice Crisis
There’s growing awareness that plastics are an environmental disaster for marine and terrestrial ecosystems alike. A new United Nations report published shows they’re also a huge problem for human beings—and that they...
Read More
The Washington Post
How protecting the ocean can save species and fight climate change
“There’s this false narrative of conservation versus the economy,” says Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, who worked for a commercial seafood company...
Read More
Los Angeles Daily News March 18, 2021
LA Council wants restaurants to stop automatically giving out plastic utensils
The motion was praised by Andrea Leon-Grossman, who serves as climate action director for the environmental justice organization Azul, which focuses on ocean...
Read More
Solar Tribune March 16, 2021
Climate Change Policy: Bigger Picture Policies
"We need to embrace a Green New Deal that is equitable and we must put indigenous communities and people of color front and center. If you’re not sitting at the table, you’re on the menu. Our communities have been on the menu...
Read More
KUCI 88.9 March 8, 2021
The Poseidon Desalination Plant is bad for California
Andrea León-Grossmann, Azul's Director of Climate Action, went on Kuci 88.9 FM to talk about the Poseidon boondoggle and why the desalination plant is bad for California's environment –and tax payers. Read More
Los Angeles Times Jan. 29, 2021
With Democrats in power, an emboldened environmental movement confronts them
The tension between the old and new guards is spilling over into one of the most sensitive areas: funding. The grass-roots groups now compete for large philanthropies’ donations. “There’s been a marked shift in...
Read More
Voice of OC Dec. 8, 2020
Gov. Newsom Ousts Key Poseidon Desal Critic
Andrea Leon Grossman, who has spoken out against the project on behalf of the Latino environmental justice group Azul, said the project goes “into direct conflict with environmental justice, with the human right to water and...
Read More
Los Angeles Times July 23, 2020
Sierra Club reflects on its racist roots and looks toward a new future
Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš of Azul, a group based in Oakland that aims to bring more Latino voices to coastal issues, said the Sierra Club’s reckoning with its history “was a long time coming, and it’s sadly a reflection...
Read More
The Washington Post July 22, 2020
Liberal, progressive — and racist? The Sierra Club faces its white-supremacist history
We’ve finally started to recognize it,” said Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, a founder and director of the ocean conservation group Azul, the Spanish...
Read More
Ink Magazine August, 2019
The beach isn’t for the chosen few; it’s for all of us
"The prevailing image of the California beachgoer leaves many people outside," says Marce Gutiérrez-Graudins, founder of and advocate for Azul, a Latinx coastal conservation nonprofit that raises awareness of the barriers faced...
Read More
The Californian July 27, 2016
Engaging Latinos in supporting coastal conservation
Latino Conservation Week kicked off July 16 with 17 nationwide events aimed at highlighting and promoting the beautiful public lands available to Latino communities. The weeklong event was a fantastic opportunity to explore our...
Read More
calmatters.org June 1, 2016
Oil money flows for black and Latino Democrats
It’s not often that interest groups call out public officials by their race, but as environmentalists evaluated state lawmakers’ voting records last year, that is just what they did. Black and Latino Democrats “must do...
Read More
mobilisationlab.org March 10, 2016
Go beyond collaboration to build lasting power
Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš doesn’t view questions of equity, fairness and privilege as hypotheticals. She was often the only person of color in rooms of people working on sustainable fishing issues in southern California....
Read More
power-la.org March 7, 2016
Social Justice Groups Demand Inclusion in Coastal Commission Decisions
On Wednesday at its Santa Monica meeting, the California Coastal Commission will appoint an interim executive director, and discuss the process for hiring a permanent leader. Social justice, environmental, and indigenous rights...
Read More
momscleanairforce.org Feb. 22, 2016
Interview: Marce Gutiérrez-Graudins on Latinos and Conservation
In January 2016, The Verde Paper: Latino Perspectives on Conservation Leadership was released by La Madre Tierra and Resource Media. Between 2014 and 2015, over thirty environmental activists in the Latino community were...
Read More
San Francisco Chronicle Feb. 10, 2016
War of words, battle for power after Coastal Commission firing
Charles Lester signs a poster for Merle Moshiri of Huntington Beach at the Morro Bay Community Center in Morro Bay , Calif. on Wednesday, February 10, 2016. The proposal to fire California Coastal Commission Executive Director...
Read More
The Huffington Post Jan. 3, 2016
Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš: Bringing Latinos to the Environmental Table
In January 2016, The Verde Paper: Latino Perspectives on Conservation Leadership was released by La Madre Tierra and Resource Media. Between 2014 and 2015, over thirty environmental activists in the Latino community were...
Read More
The Daily News March 6, 2015
Stopping pollution saves money, creates jobs: Guest commentary
Cleanup crews remove oil-laden sand from the beach at Refugio State Beach, site of an oil spill, north of Goleta. A broken onshore pipeline spewed oil down a storm drain and into the ocean for several hours May 19 before it was...
Read More
surfrider.org Feb. 10, 2011
Blatantly disregarding public will, Coastal Commission votes to fire executive director
Morro Bay, CA, February 10 – Today, more than 1,000 concerned citizens, elected officials, former commissioners, staff members, and environmental and social justice advocates attended the Coastal Commission hearing in Morro...
Read More
Yes! Magazine July 22, 2024
The Movement to Ban Plastic Production
Azul's Founder & Executive Director, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, spoke with Yes! Magazine about the need for a strong and ambitious global plastics...
Read More
Yahoo News July 10, 2024
Majority of U.S. Latino voters support candidates who support marine conservation
(Read in Spanish) Eight out of ten Latino voters in the United States support candidates who are in favor of laws that protect the coasts and oceans, according to a poll released Wednesday by the Azul organization, which promotes...
Read More
La Red Hispana June 6, 2024
Marcela Gutiérrez Graudins, founder of Azul: ‘The ocean is the plastic sewer of the planet’.
Azul's director and founder, Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, spoke with La Red Hispana as part of their effort to create alliances with organizations dedicated to protecting the...
Read More
Radio Bilingüe April 25, 2024
Línea Abierta: Plastics in the ocean
(Listen in Spanish) On the eve of Earth Day, ocean conservation advocates, including Azul Founder and Executive Director Marce Gutiérrez-Graudiņš, participated in negotiations convened by the United Nations in Ottawa (Canada)...
Read More
Next