Many cities across the state of Oregon have taken at least tentative steps toward reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Ten of our cities have signed onto the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement. Several are working with the International Council of Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) to bring emissions down. But it's safe to say that the number of mayors who have made lofty statements about confronting climate change exceeds the number of cities that are really doing what is required to curb global warming. Take, for instance, the city of Beaverton. Beaverton mayor Rob Drake has signed the Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, and says the city is commited to fighting climate change. It is far from clear, however, that his city really intends to back up these brave words with meaningful action. The situation in other cities is similar to that in Beaverton. Given all this, how can concerned citizens be sure that their city government really takes climate change seriously?
What is needed is a state-wide network of people who are willing to push their governments for real change, keep tabs on some of the emission-reduction projects in their cities, and report on what they find out. Oregon Local Sustainability will soon be introducing the Adopt-a-Mayor program, to make this vision a reality. Oregon Local Sustainability will provide you with as much information as possible about the current status of emissions-reduction projects in your city. Concerned citizens who wish to participate will then be able to push their city towards taking the next step toward real progress. Questions or comments about the Adopt-a-Mayor program can be posted on this website; your inquiries about how to get started will be answered by someone with experience convincing a local government to reduce emissions. If you are interested in participating, look for a new post on this blog soon, with more information about Adopt-a-Mayor. City be city, we will move Oregon toward carbon neutrality.
MEANWHILE, THERE ARE OTHER INITIATIVES ON THE LOCAL SUSTAINABILITY ACTION DASHBOARD THAT CAN GET YOU STARTED ON MAKING CHANGE
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