His lived experience, growing up fenceline to a petrochemical facility continues to drive his work at the intersection of environmental justice, climate and public health. 

He is a founding member of the California Environmental Justice Coalition, and member of national Climate  &  Environmental Justice  networks including the EJ Leadership Forum and the National Leadership Advisory Board Member of the Moving Forward Network, BEA Building Equity & Alignment Steering Committee.

Beto’s contributions to the movement include organizing, climate policy that prioritizes environmental justice and community led research amongst many other community engaged initiatives that directly informed state policy.  

Beto has co-authored multiple academic publications on community based participatory research, air pollution, data accessibility, community engagement and presented his work in multiple NIEHS Environmental Health Sciences Core Centers.

He also serves on the advisory board for the American Public Health Association Center for Climate, Health and Equity, Health Effects Institute Advisory Board.

He continues to serve in  in Southern California Center for Children’s Environmental Health Sciences Translational Research (SC-CCEHTR) and the Advisory Board for the Community Engagement Core of the Southern California Environmental Health Sciences Center at USC (SCEHSC), South Coast Air Quality Management District Environmental Justice Advisory Group. 

In August 2021 Beto was invited to serve on the Federal Clean Air Act Advisory Committee, to represent a grassroots frontline perspective. He is committed to finding ways to improve environmental literacy, community expertise and academic practice through scican.org 

He has also received numerous recognitions for his environmental justice organizing and community science efforts and was named 2017 Science Defender.