Sustainable City: Acting Today for a Better Tomorrow

When someone mentions sustainability, it is typical to think of recycling, composting, or using a rain barrel to capture stormwater for reuse in the garden. Maybe you’ve replaced all the light bulbs in your home with energy-efficient LEDs or made a conscious effort to unplug tech gadgets that aren’t in use.

A sustainable city is able to provide residents with all of the needs of today without depleting the resources future generations will need.

While these green initiatives are all important components of sustainability, to be truly sustainable is to be able to withstand the test of time. A sustainable city is able to provide residents with all of the needs of today without depleting the resources future generations will need. And so, when the City of Cedar Rapids measures sustainability, it looks to assess and improve not only its environmental health, but also its social and economic health in a holistic way over time. This is referred to as the triple bottom line of sustainability.

iGreenCR Action Plan

Sustainability efforts are not new for the City of Cedar Rapids. What is new in 2020 is the iGreenCR Action Plan — built from many years of momentum and success toward triple-bottom-line goals across City departments. In January, City staff formalized the iGreenCR Action Plan to further chart commitment to leadership and innovation across four areas of work, or elements — resources, nature, development, and community. Goals within each element address environmental, social, and economic health.

View the plan at CityofCR.com/Sustainability.