LACBA Speaker April 6 - Celeste Santarrosa

Overview of LA Vector Control District 

Celeste Santarrosa is a public health outreach professional dedicated to protecting community health through education and prevention. She works directly with residents, local organizations, and community partners to reduce mosquito and other vector-borne disease risks through education, prevention programs, and public engagement initiatives. Her work focuses on increasing public awareness, strengthening reporting and response systems, and ensuring communities have the tools they need to reduce health risks at home and in their neighborhoods across Greater Los Angeles.

Topics of Discussion for the meeting:
Understanding mosquito-borne diseases and local risk factors
Overview of District departments and their prevention strategies
Practical steps residents can take to identify and eliminate mosquito breeding sources
How residents can request services or report concerns
Information on Spray operation and how to protect bee water sources

LACBA Speaker May 4, 2026 - Phoebe Piper

Stories for Newbees

Phoebe Piper is a Certified Master Beekeeper and owner of the Los Angeles based beekeeping company, The Hive Tribe Beekeeping. Together with her team, she cares for over 100 hives in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. Phoebe came into beekeeping with a background in animal husbandry and instantly fell in love with bees and the impact they have on the environment. She loves sharing her passion with others as a way to foster interest in the small, often overlooked ecosystems in our own backyards.

LACBA Speaker September 7, 2026 - Dr. Ruben Alarcón

Impacts of climate change on plant-pollinator interactions at 10,000 ft.

Dr. Ruben Alarcón, earned his Ph.D. at UC Riverside, where he studied plant-pollinator communities in high elevation mountain meadows. For his postdoctoral work at University of Arizona, he studied hawkmoth communities, followed by an entomology research position at the USDA’s Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Tucson, AZ. Dr. Ruben Alarcón is currently the Chair of Biology at CSU Channel Islands and regularly teaches Entomology, Behavioral Ecology, and Apiculture & Bee Biology. His research focuses on pollinator ecology, honeybee health, and sustainable agriculture. He is the faculty advisor for the Bee Club. On his free time, Dr. Alarcón enjoys backpacking, kayaking, fishing, and volunteering with Canine Adoption and Rescue League https://carldogs.org/