It is not “that” difficult to create a useful and accessible online tool when the will is there. Trust me, I have experienced it first hand. Imagine getting 10 of the largest cities in California to collaborate on making available to other cities across the world their best green practices and actually to make it happen in a record 9 months time … Of course, some of the cities started to feel the increasingly heavy burden of answering requests from other cities and consultants interested in learning from them the how’s, the what’s and the why’s of say waste reduction policy and practices in Oakland or San Francisco, San Jose or Santa Monica. But that was not the only hurdle. In time of financial crisis, allocating a budget of roughly $100,000 to eventually save money and promote sustainability practices is a hard sell, even though everyone understands it has to happen: By switching to 100% recycled paper, GCC members annually have saved since 2008: 8,600,000 pounds of CO2 emissions, 19,600,000 gallons of water, 11,500,000 kilowatt hours of electricity, and 67,000 trees. The list of achievements goes on covering energy, waste reduction, urban design, transportation, environmental health and water.

Some local governments have been incredibly efficient and quick to act in embracing sustainability, but sometimes, there is nothing like the old start-up like approach to bringing transformational change while making things happen. That is what Full Circle Fund’s founder Josh Becker and member Jack Oswald saw when they were asked to give their view. Green Cities California became one of the 4 organizations to receive a grant from the engaged philanthropic organization. More than money, it is a force of resourceful and dedicated members that GCC inherited. So Josh and Jack, along with members Victoria Lavi (and her husband Mark who deserves tons of appreciation for his help), Marc Thibault (yes, me) rolled up their sleeves and together with GCC have created a web-based “Sustainable City Toolkit” which provides easy accessibility to the policy documents, performance measures, media outreach tools, etc., that any jurisdiction might need to accelerate their journey to sustainability. The website is filling a critical need since the adoption of local environmental policies has a profound impact on environmental protection, and a well-crafted local ordinance can help shape state policy; however the development of such legislation is exceedingly time-consuming. Large cities, which often operate independently, may unknowingly duplicate the efforts of others. Many small cities don’t have the staff to support the research and development involved in creating environmental policies. Now, they can access this new resource.

The last word for Shwarzy: “It is fantastic to see these local cities coordinating their efforts to use green technology as an opportunity to stimulate the economy, build jobs and produce real solutions, and I urge other cities to take part and do the same.”

Incroyable!!!

Visit California Green Cities Best Practice web site

Learn more about this project and Full Circle Fund

Other reads:

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