| 8:00 AM
- 9:00 AM |
Networking Continental Breakfast |
 |
| 9:00 AM
- 10:30 AM |
Opening General Session
Just announced! Congressman Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore), Chair of the Livable Communities Task Force, will be the Keynote speaker. Elected to the US House of Representatives in 1996, Mr. Blumenauer has created a unique role as Congress’ chief spokesperson for Livable Communities: places where people are safe, healthy and economically secure. From 1996 to 2007, he served on the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he was a strong advocate for federal policies that address transportation alternatives, provide housing choices, support sustainable economies and improve the environment. He was a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee from 2001 to 2007. Now a member of the Ways and Means Committee and the Budget Committee, Congressman Blumenauer also serves as Vice Chair of the Select Committee on Energy Independence and Global Warming. |
|
| 10:45 AM
- 12:00 PM |
Community Engagement: Marketing Energy Efficiency to Business
(Community Engagement)
The objective of this session is to draw practical lessons from social science research that can help us better influence business managers when we promote energy efficiency and environmental protection. It’s a mistake to assume that corporate decision makers respond in the same way to energy efficiency and environmental appeals as consumers. In some cases, consumer-oriented marketing appeals can have the exact opposite of the intended effect on business audiences. We will examine a number of relevant research findings and – drawing on the real-world experiences of several energy efficiency and environmental programs -- demonstrate how to apply them and how they can boost our effectiveness as program marketers. Along the way, we will highlight key differences between consumer and commercial audiences, and present examples of the types of programs, messages, and materials that genuinely appeal to the later. Attendees should take away a number of very practical ideas for better marketing energy efficiency and environmental protection programs to business enterprises. |
|
| 10:45 AM
- 12:00 PM |
Integrated Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Planning
(Adaptation)
The purpose of this session is to explore strategies for integrating adaptation and mitigation planning into one process. There will be three presentations from cities and organizations that have started integrating adaptation initiatives with mitigation efforts. We will discuss where and how adaptation and mitigation projects can be effectively combined to achieve "co-benefits”. |
|
| 10:45 AM
- 12:00 PM |
PACE and Community Energy Financing: Moving Forward
(Economic Development/Financing)
Learn about the state of community energy financing programs and how you can bring this local innovation to your city or county. Get an inside look at how one Florida community decided how to create its community energy financing program. You’ll learn about the different decisions you’ll need to consider and how you can make the right choices for your community. Also get the latest on Property Assessed Clean Energy financing and alternatives so that your community can move forward to provide these valuable energy and cost saving programs. |
|
| 10:45 AM
- 12:00 PM |
Sustainability Activity in Congress and the Administration
(Sustainable Communities)
This session will provide a comprehensive and detailed update on the latest sustainability-related activity in Congress and the Administration. A team of federal relations staff from the National League of Cities will address timely topics relevant to the summit, potentially including the interagency sustainable communities partnership, climate and energy legislation, transportation reauthorization, infrastructure funding, and community and workforce development. In addition to informing the audience, the intent is to promote discussion among attendees and generate a two-way dialogue. The National League of Cities is the oldest and largest national organization representing municipal governments throughout the United States. Its mission is to strengthen and promote cities as centers of opportunity, leadership, and governance. Working in partnership with state municipal leagues, NLC serves as a resource to and an advocate for the more than 19,000 cities, villages, and towns it represents. Sustainability has been specified as an ongoing priority of the organization, and NLC holds a unique perspective, inclusive of all city population sizes, all regions of the country, and all political viewpoints. |
|
| 10:45 AM
- 12:00 PM |
Understanding Feed-in-Tariffs: A Funny Name for the World’s Most Effective Renewable Energy Policy
(Climate & Energy)
In March of 2009, Gainesville, Florida became the first U.S. city to adopt a true European-Style solar Feed-in-Tariff. Simply stated, a feed-in-tariff is a payment to a renewable energy producer who feeds that energy into the local electric grid. It can be employed for production of solar, wind, biomass or biogas energy. The Gainesville experience provides clear empirical evidence that FITs are the most effective way to bring renewable energy online in the United States while achieving both environmental and economic goals. This session will outline the fiscal, political and other community conditions that led Gainesville and its public utility, GRU, to make such a bold move, and the results that have followed. Other panelists will present the “democratization” benefits of feed-in-tariffs, and address essential elements that make these policies most effective and provide a perspective on federal energy and climate policy, and how feed-in-tariffs and other clean energy policies are being considered in Washington and beyond. |
|
| 12:00 PM
- 1:30 PM |
Networking Lunch |
|
| 1:30 PM
- 2:45 PM |
2010 Landscape of County Sustainability Efforts
(Sustainable Communities)
Description TBA |
|
| 1:30 PM
- 2:45 PM |
Carbon Credits: Generating Revenue through Sustainability
(Economic Development/Financing)
Heard about carbon credits and interested in learning whether your community can generate revenue from your existing and planned sustainability work? Join us for a session that goes over the basics of carbon credits from a local government perspective, including how a local government gets started in this arena. Think participating in carbon markets is too costly or not worth your time? Learn about the latest thinking and concept in community aggregation to achieve economies of scale and more effectively leverage your resources to maximize revenue. |
|
| 1:30 PM
- 2:45 PM |
Green Schools and Community Sustainability
(Community Engagement)
Green Schools are an important part of community sustainability and provide a venue for teaching, demonstrating and integrating sustainability into the built environment of the communities that schools serve. Green schools cost less to operate, freeing up resources to truly improve students’ education. Integrating sustainability into school buildings, operations, and curriculums has a tremendous impact on student health and performance and can be a powerful driver to advance sustainability concepts and practice. There is a movement across the United States where school districts of all sizes are now realizing the benefits of green schools. This movement is lead by students, parents, teachers, community members and local elected officials who are making a difference in the way their schools are built, operated, maintained, and in the substance of the curriculums. This movement is gaining ground through green school policy reform, green makeovers for schools across the country, and teacher grant programs and resources. This session will provide an overview of some larger green schools efforts underway at the national level while drilling down to the local level to share on the ground experiences from local elected officials and practitioners. The session will also demonstrate how green schools can translate into green communities. Initiatives to be covered include: The Mayors’ Alliance for Green Schools, Montgomery County Public Schools in Maryland’s Green Building Program, Asheville and Buncombe County NC’s Reading, Riding and Retrofit Program, The Earth Day Networks' National GREEN Schools Campaign, and The US Green Building Council's Green School Buildings. |
|
| 1:30 PM
- 2:45 PM |
State EECBG Trends and Linkages with Local Governments
(Climate & Energy)
Over $2.7 billion in formula grants was provided to states, territories, local governments and tribes under the Energy Efficiency and Conservation Block Grant (EECBG) Program under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) to develop and implement projects to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy use and fossil fuel emissions in their communities. This panel session will focus on EECBG projects: reviewing major trends in project activities and successes, relating the cooperative interaction between state and local governments on these noteworthy efforts, and how State Energy Offices and Local Governments can work together to ensure continued federal support for EECBG and SEP. |
|
| 1:30 PM
- 2:45 PM |
Turning Obstacles, Barriers and Challenges into Opportunities for Sustainability
(Sustainable Communities)
The principles of sustainability - the economic, societal and environmental views – meeting society’s present needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs can help communities deal with these ever increasing challenges. In this session attendees will hear from sustainability leaders and public works experts from three geographically and philosophically diverse localities who are creating a foundation for sustainable action throughout their communities. This panel discussion centers on how these three communities are successfully integrating sustainability initiatives in their municipalities - despite looming economic challenges and differences in philosophy in the community. |
|
| 3:00 PM
- 4:15 PM |
Addressing Barriers to Implementing Sustainable Policies and Practices within Local Governments
Integrating sustainable policies and practices into local government operations is a daunting task, yet local governments are finding increasingly effective ways to create more sustainable infrastructure and operations. Although local government structures and values differ, sustainability advocates around the country face similar challenges across the following issue areas: Policy, Finance/Budget, Education and Outreach, Management, Tracking and Reporting, Competing Priorities. This networking session will allow participants to share strategies for overcoming barriers to resource conservation and other sustainable practices within local governments in these key issue areas. |
|
| 3:00 PM
- 4:15 PM |
Barriers and Obstacles to Renewable Energy Deployment
The topic is obstacles that local governments encounter in installing renewable energy projects in their communities. Examples can be shared on how communities overcame such barriers. |
|
| 3:00 PM
- 4:15 PM |
Local Community Fuel and Transportation Choices
Description TBA |
|
| 3:00 PM
- 4:15 PM |
Planning for Climate Change: A Candid Look at Local Government Needs, Barriers, and Opportunities
During this session, local government representatives will have the opportunity to speak with their colleagues from around the country in a candid, frank, and safe environment about their needs, obstacles, challenges and successes as it pertains to climate adaptation. The emphasis will be on what local government’ needs are or what local communities are struggling with as it pertains to preparing for climate change (climate adaptation). |
|
| 3:00 PM
- 4:15 PM |
Special Challenges and Opportunities of Being a Small Community
Small communities (under 20,000 population) face a number of challenges in addressing and keeping pace with sustainability efforts. This networking session will discuss some of these challenges and allow participants to engage in discussion on how to apply for state and national grants, getting technical assistance, using ICLEI tools, staffing, financing, community participation, communications and media. |
|
| 5:30 PM
- 6:30 PM |
Friday Night Welcome Reception |
|
|
| |
| 7:30 AM
- 8:45 AM |
Networking Continental Breakfast |
|
| 8:45 AM
- 10:00 AM |
Community-Driven Climate Action Planning: Techniques to Facilitate Staff and Public Engagement
(Community Engagement)
Mitigating community greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions requires action at a variety of scales from neighborhood resident to high-level policymaker. Community Climate Action Plans (CAPs) and citizen-led Neighborhood Sustainability Plans are two valuable strategies that each lay the foundation to reduce GHG emissions and contribute to the overall sustainability of a community. In support of these plans, policymakers and sustainability planners should facilitate a strong community understanding of the implications, opportunities, and tradeoffs of various policy-driven and programmatic approaches to sustainability improvements, while also emphasizing public dialogue and the provision of key information and analysis to address challenges and build community support. This session will focus on how to include focused stakeholder outreach and collaboration processes, financial and co-benefit analysis of key measures, techniques to educate the public on sustainability topics, and the use of decision support systems that equip staff, elected officials, and residents to understand the implications of policy alternatives and their individual actions. |
|
| 8:45 AM
- 10:00 AM |
Driving Sustainable Economic Development
(Economic Development/Financing)
Local governments around the US are recognizing that engaging the commercial/industrial sectors is essential to achieving more sustainable communities. This panel will present on and discuss Sustainable economic development strategies in communities of different sizes and policy contexts. Panelist will address what can be done in a state with no energy policy and when served by an investor owned utility that is not taking a leadership role in energy efficiency or renewables and how to create a program that can be replicated by the private sector to enhance the environment as well as build economic development. Learn how Sarasota County, FL and Bridgeport, CT interfaced with private and public sector entities to truly meet their local sustainability goals. |
|
| 8:45 AM
- 10:00 AM |
Innovations in Energy and GHG Emissions Management Software
(Climate & Energy)
A presentation on new innovations in software to enable local governments to manage, track, and reduce their energy and greenhouse gas emissions. ICLEI and Hara will provide a brief presentation on their strategic partnership and local governments using the Hara solution will provide first hand insights into the benefits they have realized in using Hara's Energy and Environmental Management system. |
|
| 8:45 AM
- 10:00 AM |
Recognizing and Addressing Local Barriers to Solar Energy
(Climate & Energy)
The Solar Cities program uses local governments as laboratories for investigating and applying market transformation tools for solar energy. Participating cities are in a variety of distinct solar regimes, as measured by solar resources (physical landscape), cost of solar relative to other forms of energy (economic landscape), and acceptance or understanding of solar energy by residents, businesses and political decision makers (social/political landscape). This workshop will describe the concepts of market transformation and how the physical, economic, and social landscapes can constrain and provide opportunities for transforming energy markets. |
|
| 8:45 AM
- 10:00 AM |
STAR Community Index: Developed By and For Local Governments
(Sustainable Communities)
Join Lynne Barker, STAR Program Director and a panel featuring Steering Committee member Brendan Shane, District of Columbia; Affordability and Social Equity Committee Chair Pam Sparr, Consultant; and, Economic Prosperity Committee Chair Russ Gaskin, Green America. The panelists will share their committee’s perspective on the value engaging a wide diversity of expertise on STAR committees charged with creating this ground-breaking system. These panelists will also address how STAR will advance the shared goals of their profession and their communities. Learning Objectives: 1)Learn how this ground-breaking system is being designed to drive concerted action and catalyze change. 2)Gain a greater understanding of core concepts and terms for the comprehensive set of sustainability goals and measures. 3)Discuss how the stakeholder committees and sustainability issues are organized into the broad categories of environment, economy and society and across eight specific disciplines. This holistic approach has resulted in an integrated set of sustainability goals that are both individually relevant and collectively representative of a community’s overall sustainability-related performance. |
|
| 10:15 AM
- 11:30 AM |
Best Practices in Revolving Energy Funds
(Economic Development/Financing)
Revolving fund programs are powerful tools for enabling or lowering capital costs for local EE/RE projects. Since energy avoidance and clean generation projects both create valuable goods and predictable recoupment cycles, so called "Revolving Energy Funds" have the ability to recycle their seed monies indefinitely. In this way, "REF's" are a sustainable policy option and clean energy catalyst - if designed and administered correctly. We will explore the do's and don'ts of creating and running a Revolving Energy Fund as well as successful variations and funds from which local governments might draw money themselves. |
|
| 10:15 AM
- 11:30 AM |
Climate Change Action Planning: Harnessing Regional and Local Leadership
(Climate & Energy)
Regional planning entities and Metropolitan Planning Organizations are well positioned to serve as agents in the development of a regional greenhouse gas inventory and coordination of climate change programs and resources. A regional greenhouse gas inventory can 1) help guide well-informed decisions for regional and local policies to reduce these emissions and 2) be allocated to the local-government level, serving as an excellent starting point for local governments that wish to develop a community-wide inventory of GHG emissions. This panel will highlight the benefits of developing a regional GHG emissions inventory by showcasing several regional planning organizations that have or will complete a GHG emissions inventory for their regions, as well as representatives of communities that have used these allocated inventories to do work at the local level. Panelists will also provide hindsight of how regional collaboration can foster energy and climate change policies and programs at the metropolitan level. |
|
| 10:15 AM
- 11:30 AM |
Increasing Urban Resilience to Climate Change: General Approach & Specific Decision Support Tools
(Adaptation)
Description TBA |
|
| 10:15 AM
- 11:30 AM |
Sustainability as a Decision Making Tool
(Sustainable Communities)
Hear how three communities have approached Sustainability Planning and incorporated it as a decision-making framework internally and community-wide. Frederick County, MD will present their Sustainable Action Planning process and how they identified goals, action items and developed an implementation plan for the next 5 years. Keene, NH has been tackling climate change for over a decade and recently started the conversation on overall sustainability in the City. The Community Development Director will provide an overview of how their Comprehensive Planning process was jumpstarted and sustainability planning was integrated into that plan. Burlington, VT adopted the 1st Sustainability Plan in the country a decade ago. Learn how they kept tabs on the implementation of this plan over the years and how they have re-engaged the public recently to participate in the update of the plan. |
|
| 10:15 AM
- 11:30 AM |
Tapping Volunteers for Community Climate Action
(Community Engagement)
This session will introduce two new innovative models for matching volunteers with local governments to achieve climate change preparedness goals. The University of Oregon is in the second year of the Sustainable Cities Initiative, which includes the Sustainable City Year (SCY). The Sustainable Cities Year (SCY) Initiative is a ‘partnership’ with one city in Oregon per year where a number of courses from across the University focus on assisting that city with their sustainability goals and projects. The Sustainable Cities Year faculty and students work with that city through a variety of studio projects and service learning programs to: 1) provide students with a real world project to investigate; 2) apply their training; and 3) provide real service and movement to a local city ready to transition to a more sustainable and accessible future. In 2009-10, SCY partnered with Gresham Oregon, and this year they are partnering with the City of Salem. (currently 30 classes in 8 disciplines) to advance the city’s identified sustainability needs.
Through the AmeriCorps funded Bay Area Climate Corps, 30 AmeriCorps members in Northern California are being trained, managed and paid to deliver professional climate planning and related project implementation support to communities. After initial technical skills training, members are placed alongside of municipal staff to develop a work scope that identifies specific objectives and deliverables to ensure that the young adults effectively contribute towards realizing local climate protection goals. Participating AmeriCorps members and municipal staff jointly plan and implement needed climate protection initiatives, while building internal support and capacity for climate change management as an ongoing function of local government. Climate Corps outcomes directly accelerate the implementation of climate change programs in participating communities while engaging community members in local climate protection activities. By providing an effective introduction to climate change management for local governments, AmeriCorps members serve as agents for seeding climate protection commitments in the community while gaining valuable skills and experience in the emerging field of climate change management. As part of this workshop, program staff will review these innovative models and other community case studies, highlighting for attendees the associated benefits and challenges faced. |
|
| 11:45 AM
- 1:45 PM |
Milestone Awards Luncheon |
|
| 2:00 PM
- 3:15 PM |
Green Buildings for Cool Cities: Policies to Advance Green Building in Your Local Community
(Climate & Energy)
As awareness of, and interest in, green building and the LEED rating systems continues to grow amongst local government officials as a powerful tool to help communities mitigate climate change and prepare for the 21st century economy, more and more local governments are adopting policies supporting green building in both the public and private sector. This session will feature representatives from a diverse group of local governments who have adopted green building policies (public sector requirements and/or structural/financial incentives) and will be able to talk about the process that they engaged in and how successful the policies have been since they were adopted. |
|
| 2:00 PM
- 3:15 PM |
Lifecycle Emissions: Innovations in GHG Emissions Inventories
(Climate & Energy)
Description TBA |
|
| 2:00 PM
- 3:15 PM |
Preparing for Warmer Temperatures and the Public Health Implications
(Adaptation)
Description TBA |
|
| 2:00 PM
- 3:15 PM |
Strategic Sustainability Partnerships for Small Communities
(Community Engagement)
Description TBA |
|
| 2:00 PM
- 3:15 PM |
The Innovation Consortium: A Green Partnership between Private Businesses and the Public Sector
(Economic Development/Financing)
This session will focus on the Innovation Consortium. Out of our Smarter City initiative grew the Consortium, which is a partnership with the City of Dubuque, our local development corporation, and 25+ area businesses and industry who come together to discuss green markets and opportunities. The Innovation Consortium is comprised of manufacturing, technology, service, wholesale, and other industry sectors. The companies represent 1,126 employees and are currently engaged in both the sales and production of green related services/products. Also tied to this is our Green jobs initiative with the local colleges and creating curriculum that is design to create jobs in these fields. |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
California Region |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
Midwest Region |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
Mountain States Region |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
Northeast/ Mid-Atlantic Region |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
Pacific Northwest and Islands Region |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
South Central Region |
|
| 3:30 PM
- 4:45 PM |
Southeast Region |
|
| 6:30 PM
- 7:00 PM |
Local Sustainability Leadership Awards Reception |
|
| 7:00 PM
- 9:00 PM |
Local Sustainability Leadership Awards Dinner |
|
|
| |
| 8:30 AM
- 9:30 AM |
Networking Continental Breakfast |
|
| 9:30 AM
- 11:15 AM |
Closing Plenary Session |
|
|
| |
|
