FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: 

Media Contact: Colleen Farrell | SBCCOG | 424-271-4681 | [email protected] 

SOUTH BAY CITIES COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS’ 22nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY TO REIMAGINE THE SOUTH BAY’S FUTURE  

Champions of Innovation to Inform South Bay Cities and Their Leaders  

How to Plan for a Multidimensional World  

 TORRANCE, CALIF., March 23, 2022 – Thought leaders from the South Bay’s private-sector will gather at the South Bay Cities Council of Governments’ (SBCCOG) 22nd annual General Assembly on Thursday, March 24 at 10 a.m. (exhibit hall opens at 8:30 a.m.) to discuss their game-changing projects and inform South Bay cities and their leaders how to plan for the future. The event will take place at the Juanita Millender-McDonald Community Center at 801 E. Carson Street, Carson, CA 90745.  

For decades, Aerospace has been one of the South Bay’s powerhouse industries. A panel titled, “A Glimpse into the Future – Aerospace & Defense – Federal/Local Intersections” will feature local out-of-the-box newcomers. Speakers will address how our cities can leverage a new multi-dimensional world, which includes 3D rocket printing and manufacturing in space, to create a business-friendly environment, well-trained workforce and a sustainable, livable community. A second panel called “Community of Innovation” will include local innovators, including the co-founder of LA-based chargeFUZE, an on-demand mobile charging system, and founder of LA-based Boomerang, a lost-and-found technology platform that connects people with their lost items. 

When one of the event’s TEDx format presenters Will Bruey was searching for a home base for his startup, Varda Space Industries, he looked no further than the South Bay after a heat map revealed it offered the largest talent pool in the nation of aerospace engineering minds. His Torrance-based company is building the world’s first commercial zero-gravity industrial park at scale to produce “a world of products that can only be manufactured in space.”  

Bruey started his career at SpaceX as a hardware engineer on Falcon rocket and Dragon spacecraft, before flying eight flights to the International Space Station from mission control as the lead of the Dragon spacecraft. Dariush Ajami, chief innovation officer of El Segundo-based Beyond Meat, will be the event’s second TEDx-format speaker. He will discuss ways the region can reduce its carbon footprint.  

Long Beach-based Relativity Space will be launching the world’s first entirely 3D printed rocket into space this year. Roxanne Fung, the company’s corporate controller, will be one of four speakers to take part in the event’s aerospace discussion. Additional speakers include Ben Marcus, co-founder/manager of UP.Partners, based in Santa Monica; and Colonel Jennifer Krolikowski, chief information officer, Space Systems Command, located in El Segundo. 

The “Community of Innovation” panel will feature Elizabeth Reynolds, program director, Starburst Aerospace Accelerator, based in El Segundo; Kevin Morris, CFO, WaveMaker Labs, based in El Segundo, and Miso Robotics, based in Pasadena; Ryan Levy, co-founder, chargeFUZE, based in Los Angeles; and Skyler Logsdon, Founder/CEO, Boomerang, based in Los Angeles.  

The event, titled “Back? to the Future: Reimagining the South Bay,” is designed with elected officials, city staff, city commissioners, residents and local businesses in mind.  

“We decided to have a little fun with the title and of course we all remember the movie,” Drew Boyles, mayor of El Segundo and SBCCOG board chair, said. “The question mark is meant to be a bit rhetorical. Considering all we have been through over the past two years with the pandemic, socially and politically, can we really go back when shaping the future? The answer is no. Let’s take this teachable moment to ponder what we have learned, and to consider what we want the future to look like for the South Bay. I believe anyone who attends will get something valuable out of it.”  

During the event, attendees will vote for the first-place winner of the SBCCOG’s “Why I Love the South Bay” photo contest. The SBCCOG launched the inaugural contest in January on its website, calling for the community to submit its best photos that “showcase what is unique and beautiful about the South Bay.” It received more than 150 entries. Dean Musgrove, a photo editor at the Daily Breeze, served as a judge to help the SBCCOG select its top-10 finalists. The first-place winner will be announced at the event following a vote. Winning photos will be featured on the SBCCOG’s website and social media channels.  

Sponsors and speakers will be exhibiting their innovations at the event’s exhibit hall opening at 8:30 am, which will include a display of zero-emission, low-speed vehicles (neighborhood electric vehicles i.e., NEVs, e-bikes and electric scooters) to showcase the SBCCOG’s South Bay Local Travel Network (LTN) project. The LTN proposes using existing streets to create a new network, where implementation of low-cost infrastructure and street treatments would support the growing personal micromobility market.   

This year’s Patron sponsor ($7,500 level) is Southern California Edison. Benefactors (sponsors at the $5,000 level) include Chevron Products Company, Continental Development / Mar Ventures, Inc.; The Port of Los Angeles; Southern California News Group (The Daily Breeze, The Beach Reporter and Palos Verdes Peninsula News); Holly J. Mitchell, Los Angeles County Supervisor, 2nd District; SoCalGas; and South Bay Association of REALTORS®. Sponsors (at the $2,500 level) include American Dark Fiber; Cox Communications; Kosmont Companies; Janice Hahn, Los Angeles County Supervisor, 4th District; Metropolitan Water District of Southern California (MWD); Northrop Grumman; 1-800-Got-Junk? & HazAway.com; Southern California Association of Governments (SCAG); The Energy Coalition; Water Replenishment District of Southern California (WRD); Watson Land Company; West Basin Municipal Water District; and Ygrene Energy Fund.  

For a complete list of event speakers and their bios, visit https://southbaycities.org/event/22nd-annual-general-assembly/. 

ABOUT SOUTH BAY CITIES COUNCIL OF GOVERNMENTS:  

The South Bay Cities Council of Governments (SBCCOG) is a joint powers government agency of 16 cities and the County of Los Angeles which share the goal of maximizing the quality of life and productivity of the subregion. Within this structure, cities and Los Angeles County maintain the qualities and characteristics that make them unique and independent, while also coming together collectively to address issues of common interest for a greater good of the communities through partnership, persuasion, performance and advocacy. For more information about the SBCCOG visit http://southbaycities.org 

 ###