CicLAvia (United States of America)
Romel Pascual is the Executive Director of CicLAvia, a Los Angeles based non-profit organization that focuses on sustainability, alternative transportation, and community connectedness through CicLAvia events in the LA region, which have grown into the largest open street event in the United States.
For more than 20 years, Romel has been involved in environmental, sustainability, energy, and social justice issues at the federal, state, local and community levels. As the former Deputy Mayor of Energy, Environment and Sustainability of Los Angeles in the Villaraigosa administration, he was responsible for developing and implementing the Mayor’s environmental and energy agenda. Under his tenure, Romel led the community benefits agreement for the Space Shuttle Endeavor; was the Mayor’s point on the Port’s “TraPac MOU”; oversaw the city’s Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) program; and helped spearhead “CicLAvia”. Prior to coming to the Mayor’s office, Romel served as California’s first Assistant Secretary for Environmental Justice from 2000-2004.
Romel holds a B.A. in Political Science from UCLA, and Masters in City and Regional Planning from UC Berkeley. Romel served on a number of boards, including serving on the Board of Directors of the LA2028 Olympic Committee, the Advisory Board of UCLA’s Luskin Center for Innovation, and the Executive Committee of the C40 Cities.