Catherine Sandoval appreciates that when it comes to climate disruption, true change is rooted in local action. As a Commissioner on the California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC), Sandoval oversees rates and rules for privately owned electric, gas, water, telecommunications, rail and passenger transportation utilities. The CPUC has been tasked with beginning the process of increasing the ratio of renewable energy use in California to 33% of total energy consumption by 2020.

Sandoval is a professor at Santa Clara University School of Law. In 2011, Olga Talamante's Chicana/Latina Foundation honored Sandoval with its Legacy Award.