The Institute for Local Government (ILG) is launching a new program, the California Climate Action Network (CalCAN).

The program will assist local officials in three ways by:

1. Providing quality information and resources on specific strategies that can be applied in individual communities to make a difference on climate change issues;
2. Coordinating CalCAN statewide to bring local city and county leaders together to share ideas, and link officials to a wide variety of climate change programs and resources that provide technical assistance to local agencies; and
3. Recognizing the voluntary efforts of communities that implement climate action best practices.

Opportunities for Local Leadership

Local communities can implement many strategies to reduce carbon emissions and combat global warming, both in their municipal operations and throughout the community. In most cases, these stra tegies not only help the environment, they also save money and make great economic sense.

This effort is featured in a section of the ILG website (www.ca-ilg.org/climatechange), which offers climate action resources, best practices and case studies. Using the website to connect local agencies with suppliers and vendors of products and services that can help reduce greenhouse gas emissions is one of CalCAN’s goals.

Certification Program Under Development

Good efforts deserve recognition so ILG is developing a certification and awards program for exemplary local efforts. Based on a three-tier scoring system that recognizes efforts to reduce carbon and other greenhouse gas emissions, the program is similar to the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) and other successful certification programs.

ILG envisions the CalCAN certification program as a major, long-term effort, growing both in the number of cities and counties participating and the number of local agencies being recognized for taking increasingly aggressive measures to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.

Thanks to Founding Sponsors

ILG gratefully acknowledges the funders whose support made this program pos sible: the League of California Cities, California State Association of Counties, Southern California Edison, Waste Management Company Foundation, Northern California Power Agency, Southern California Public Power Association and Pacific Gas & Electric.

For more information, visit www.ca-ilg.org/climatechange or contact Steve Sanders, program director; phone: (916) 658-8245; e-mail: ssanders@ca-ilg.org.

This article appears in the July 2007 issue of Western City
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