Path to Positive Communities

The Local Government Commission and Path to Positive Communities have partnered on a toolkit to help LGC members engage their communities around energy and climate solutions. Our goal is to support you as you advance sensible solutions, while encouraging cities and towns to build civic engagement into the work they do on resiliency and sustainability. When you engage your citizens, you help grow lasting public support for climate solutions. This toolkit includes several components, ranging from a communications guide, called Let’s Talk Climate, to a Moving Forward Guide, to a study on Mental Health and Climate. All the components can be found here.
Even if you are well on your way to resilience and sustainability, the toolkit has a checklist of possible solutions and additional climate actions that you might consider to go farther. Be sure to also sign up for our Path to Positive Communities newsletter and monthly talking points here, which provide helpful guidance for engaging citizens and countering negative detractors. We hope you find these useful for building support in your community for positive changes for a better, more sustainable tomorrow!

Helpful Resources

  • Checklist: Local Actions to Mitigate and Build Resilience to Climate Change
    • A comprehensive checklist that builds on the basic list in the Moving Forward guide, with concrete steps for climate preparation/resilience and mitigation, plus links to additional resources.
  • Sample Climate and Clean Energy Declarations/Resolutions
    • Real declarations and resolutions from Utah, Charlotte, and the Mississippi River Towns and Cities Initiative to use as templates to customize for your community, to advance policy engagement with city councils and mayors.
  • Sample Letter to the Community About Your Local Climate and Sustainability Initiative
    • This letter provides a template for announcing your community commitment to climate action, whether through your website, community newsletters or blogs.
  • Let’s Talk Communities & Climate 
    • This tool provides guidance for empowering and effective messages and communications on climate change that have been proven to move Americans toward support for climate solutions and action.
  • Blessed Tomorrow Moving Forward Guide
    • A guide to provide you with information and resources to reduce energy use, to build resilient houses of worship as refuges from a changing climate, and to encourage support for policies that better care for creation.
  • Let’s Talk Faith and Climate
    • A guide similar to the Let’s Talk Communities and Climate Guide, but instead including research-based, tested messaging that is proven to resonate with people of faith.
  • Let’s Talk Health and Climate
    • A guide similar to the Let’s Talk Communities and Climate Guide, but instead including tested messaging on health and climate that is proven to resonate with a broad swath of Americans.
  • Mental Health and Our Changing Climate
    • Created by ecoAmerica in collaboration with the American Psychological Association, this guide reviews the implications of a changing climate on personal and public health, and offers guidance for community leaders in preparing for and addressing climate impacts.
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