Sustainable PGH’s Update on CONNECT’s Climate Action Plan with Senior Program Manager, Jim Price

On Thursday, May 19th, the municipal members of the Congress of Neighboring Communities, CONNECT, unanimously voted to adopt a Climate Action Plan. CONNECT is a nonpartisan initiative of the University of Pittsburgh that convenes 38 neighboring municipalities, including Pittsburgh and Allegheny County, that share borders, challenges, and opportunities.

As part of an exciting collaboration with Sustainable Pittsburgh, the CONNECT Climate Action plan is directly linked to many of the resources in the newly overhauled Sustainable Pennsylvania municipal certification program. 

Sustainable Pennsylvania, a program managed by the Pennsylvania Municipal League and Sustainable Pittsburgh, provides municipal leaders with strategies, resources, and recognition for improving quality of life and expanding opportunities for everyone. 

Both Sustainable PA and CONNECT’s Climate Action Plan aim to help Pennsylvania’s local governments address climate change. These are important tools among many for the region’s municipalities to make progress toward their sustainability goals.

Municipalities working through the CONNECT Climate Action Plan will earn points toward a Sustainable Pennsylvania certification, and vice versa, if a municipality works through the Sustainable PA certification, it will significantly improve performance in achieving the goals of the Climate Action plan.

Participating municipalities will be well positioned to earn a high certification like Gold or Platinum in the Sustainable PA program.

The benefits of taking climate actions are manifold: Improving public health, saving money and promoting jobs, enhancing resource security, and fostering social equity. Sustainable Pittsburgh has always worked to assist local governments with helpful tools and resources: for more than two decades with Local Government Academy and other key partners. This collaboration with CONNECT furthers that goal.

Learn more about the goals and benefits of CONNECT’s Climate Action Plan at www.connect.pitt.edu/CAP, and head to sustainablePA.org to learn more about Sustainable Pennsylvania and how your community can get involved.