GreenStep Cities

[v=AcJJhhf5GS4]

Minnesota GreenStep Cities is a voluntary challenge, assistance and recognition program to help cities achieve their sustainability goals through implementation of best practices.  These actions are tailored to all Minnesota cities, focused on cost savings and energy use reduction, and encourage innovation.

• GreenStep Cities is a partnership of Minnesota’s Clean Energy Resource Teams (CERTs), League of Minnesota Cities (LMC), MPCA, Minnesota Department of Commerce, Great Plains Institute, Izaak Walton League Minnesota, and the Urban Land Institute Minnesota chapter.
• The entire program is Voluntary.
• GreenStep Cities provides a do-able pathway—an action plan—to implement cost-effective, pragmatic “sustainability” best practices that fit Minnesota.
• The program recognizes that all cities don’t have access to the same capacity, so there are different categories (A, B, C) that have different # of best practices to achieve.
• GreenStep is geared toward providing best practices and specific resources to help cities move forward.
• The program allows cities to “take credit” for best practices in place now.
• In Southwest Minnesota, the City of Luverne passed a GreenStep City Resolution in December 2010.  A group in Marshall is working on a resolution.
• GreenStep Cities can be a great way to engage your community in the City’s activities, and to help people within the community understand what the City is doing to save money and plan for the future.

GreenStep Cities focuses on 5 categories of best practices, with a total of 28 best practices identified.  Each best practice can be implemented by completing one or more specific actions from a list of 4-8 items, in the 5 categories:

• buildings & lighting,
• land use,
• transportation,
• environmental management
• economic/community development

The Southwest CERTs team is reaching out to people who might have an interest in the GreenStep project, and who can be resources for communities participating in GreenStep.  For more information, visit www.MNGreenStep.org, or www.cleanenergyresourceteams.org