LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR
Local Leaders Battle Global Climate Change Challenges in Cities, Counties, and Towns
ICMA is dedicated to supporting you in combating climate change There is a great deal of passion around the
MARC OTT is CEO/executive director of ICMA, Washington, D.C.
issue of climate change. So much so that science and data can get lost in the competing rhetoric of politicians and activists. Just this past month, I found myself watching 100,000 people marching after the United Nations COP26 in Glasgow, Scotland, demanding more action. It occurred to me that while world leaders attended the conference, local government managers around the world were at home in their communities actually planning and implementing climate actions. As our Disaster Resilience and Recovery survey demonstrated, more than 90 percent of responding cities, counties, and towns have plans in place in preparation for natural disasters.1 It is local leaders who confront the outcomes of the extreme weather that brings about droughts, tropical storms, wildfires, flooding, rising sea levels, and shortened winter recreation seasons. Local leaders must not only act as first responders to these crises, but determine how best or even whether to rebuild in the face of relentless recurrences. It is local leaders who work to mitigate both the causes and effects of our changing climate day in and day out. Cities and counties are increasingly being seen as innovation hubs for sustainability practices where new technologies, policies, and ideas can be tested. Community sustainability and resilience has long been a priority for ICMA members.2 The Sustainable Communities Advisory Committee is a group of dedicated members that has helped guide ICMA’s work in this area.3 Since signing our first contract with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in the 1970s, ICMA has been working on environmental issues. In those five decades we have developed and featured thousands of resources, offered sessions and conference
6 | PUBLIC MANAGEMENT | DECEMBER 2021
BY MARC OTT
tracks, and worked with national and international partners to provide technical assistance to communities throughout the world. Currently, our website features more than 2,000 resources dedicated to resilient and sustainable communities, climate change, and renewable energy. Here are a few recent examples of our leadership in this area. • A land-use planning tool, produced by our Global Programs team, integrates climate change considerations into the planning process.4 It was specifically developed for the Dominican Republic, but the content is universal.5 The tool helps in assessing and accounting for climate vulnerabilities in designing landuse policies and practices—and addressing these risks in deciding how and where the community will grow. • ICMA’s work in the Philippines under the SURGE Project is equally impressive.6 With funding from USAID, we assisted municipalities in initiatives ranging from reducing greenhouse gas emissions to developing training in climate adaptation and risk reduction to making water infrastructure more resilient to the effects of climate change. • We have worked with the Department of Energy to advance solar energy most recently through the development of the SolSmart designation program, which helps local governments achieve renewable energy goals.7 When I last checked, 416 communities, representing a total of 99 million people in 41 states, D.C., and the Virgin Islands have received the designation. Communities share their experiences and successes in a series of case studies.8 In his article on
