One of the cities making measurable progress by engaging the community to address climate change is Boulder, Colorado, which recently announced that it achieved a 24% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions in 2023 compared to 2018. By collaborating with nonprofit groups and community members in work that started in the 1990’s, the city is well on its way toward its goal of a 70% reduction from 2018 levels by 2030.
Boulder’s work on climate change is notable for its focus on data and the seamless collaboration of citizens and professionals working side by side. The city signed on to an international plan, the Kyoto Protocol, in 1997 at the urging of a group of residents, stakeholders, and energy experts, producing its first Climate Action Plan in 2006.
The city’s Climate Action Plan includes many ways for residents and businesses to contribute to the city’s climate goals. Participation in these programs has been driven through a promotional program, the ClimateSmart Campaign, whose goal is “to inspire voluntary behavior change and investment with regard to conservation and energy efficiency…such that there is a constant reminder that climate action is in large part the responsibility of individuals through their behaviors and purchase decisions.”
Specific programs of the city and county to address climate change, some of which are promoted through the ClimateSmart campaign, include:
- ClimateSmart at Work, a Building Performance Program whose primary objectives are to increase efficiency in Boulder’s commercial buildings, increase usage of utility rebates, and better assess the energy-related support needs of the commercial sector, partly through energy audits and other energy analysis programs for local businesses.
- ClimateSmart at Home, which sponsors a Residential Energy Audit Program that helps residents assess homes to determine what needs to be retrofitted—fixed, modified, replaced, adjusted—in order to raise energy efficiency, increase comfort, or increase the safety of the home. This program has been especially promoted to low-income populations, with a similar program offered to residents outside the city by the county.
- Work with neighborhood groups to promote Eco-Cycle and other grass roots activities. A few of Boulder’s neighborhood organizations have spun off separate organizations to educate neighbors on how to lower their carbon footprint through solar home tours, skills trading events, public forums, and screening movies such as An Inconvenient Truth.
- Cool Boulder: Connecting People to Climate Solutions, a campaign that engages residents in nature projects to maintain the greenery, with programs that include Connected Canopies, Pollinator Pathways, and Absorbent Landscapes. Through these programs, many households have planted new trees and replaced classic grass lawns with xeriscape featuring natural vegetation.
- Citizen members of the Boulder’s Transportation Advisory Board help attain the transportation goals of the Climate Action Plan by reviewing transportation community and environmental assessment processes, plans for capital improvements, and updates to the Transportation Master Plan.
- Boulder County focuses much of the work of its Sustainability Initiative on reducing the environmental footprint of county internal operations. Its Office of Sustainability, Climate Action & Resilience also provides energy audits and other services for county employees, residents, and businesses.
An over-arching aspect of these and other climate programs is the need to address equity, which along with resilience, is a vital consideration as the city develops policies to support climate adaptation. Climate change disproportionately affects those who are both least responsible and most vulnerable to its impacts. Black, Indigenous, or People of Color (BIPOC) communities worldwide bear much of the burden of climate change, as well as air pollution and environmental problems.
As the city tracks its achievements on earlier objectives, it continues to set lofty goals. In addition to its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 70% by 2030, the city joined ICLEI’s 150 Race to Zero Campaign in 2021, which added goals of being carbon neutral by 2035 and to be carbon positive by 2040. This is well above the national ambition emanating from the Paris Climate Accord, adopted by many cities, of an 80% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2050.
To reach these goals, Boulder has adopted additional targets, including reaching 100% renewable energy by 2030 and 85% Waste Diversion from Landfills by 2025. Both the city and county have extensive goals for government operations in every department, including the city’s goal of running its operations on 100% renewable electricity by 2030.
Nationally and internationally, an increasing number of cities are taking action to address climate change. With opinion polls indicating increased concern, from 44% of the public seeing climate change as a major threat in 2010 to 58% in 2020, over 10,000 cities representing nearly 1 billion people have joined the Global Covenant of Mayors, over 100 major cities have joined C40 cities, committing to cutting greenhouse gases in half by 2030, and over 200 large U.S. cities have joined the UN Global Compact.
While Boulder alone cannot make a major dent in climate change, the combined work of all these cities and countries can. As stated in Boulder’s initial Climate Action Plan from 2005,
No single country or community can make a significant impact; but no significant impact can be made without every country and community doing its part.
Is your community working toward environmental sustainability or resilience? Join us by applying for next year’s All-America City award, which in 2025 will focus on Strengthening Environmental Sustainability through Inclusive Community Engagement.
