Looking Ahead: The Sustainable States Network
Ava Thompson, Program Associate, Great Plains Institute
The Sustainable States Network (SSN) is building momentum and growing our impact as we support the state and regional technical assistance providers and programs that help local governments and municipalities act on sustainability, climate resilience, and mitigation measures.
We take pride in connecting state-based and sub-state sustainability, climate, and clean energy programs. SSN enables members to share resources and best practices, foster the success of local initiatives, build capacity, and collaborate on projects that deliver action at scale across the United States.
Growing Sustainable States Network impact by supporting more communities across the US
Our members now engage over 2,500 municipalities and counties with a combined population of over 65 million people. These numbers have grown each year since the network’s founding in 2015 as more local governments seek support to be cleaner, greener, and more equitable.
The SSN vision is that sustainability becomes the norm in society. Local governments are in a unique position to address sustainability and climate impacts. Communities around the country are impacted by the flooding, droughts, heat, and wildfires of the summer of 2023. However, all—large and small— are challenged by a lack of elected officials, staff and volunteer capacity, experience, and knowledge of solutions to the impacts of the rapidly changing climate.
Our programs support local action in many ways—municipal certification, recognition, and technical assistance. Member programs effectively define best practices and engage and support municipalities in achieving them, no matter where they are in their journey. We are ensuring that new sustainability projects are being built in communities across many states and that minority, disadvantaged, and rural communities that are often overlooked have the tools and resources that they need to succeed.
Accomplishing emissions reduction and sustainability goals happens at the local level. This past year has seen landmark legislation allocating federal funding to climate action, resiliency, and mitigation efforts. The challenge is spreading awareness and increasing local capacity to take advantage of these opportunities. Our Network programs are in a unique position to do this crucial work.
Looking ahead to 2024 priorities
In the coming year, the network will do the following:
• Support simplified local climate action planning to help municipalities quickly identify short-term priority projects and support implementation
• Connect communities with federal and state funding resources for project implementation
• Build local capacity with shared training for local interns and fellows across the country
• Ensure disadvantaged communities benefit by providing the resources our members need to effectively engage municipalities on equity
Connecting communities to funding
Given the historic federal investments from recent legislation, local governments have an incredible opportunity to enhance infrastructure modernization and clean energy across underserved communities.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act both offer $700 billion in infrastructure, research activities, and related programs to enhance infrastructure modernization and deploy clean energy. This will improve local infrastructure and increase community resilience while advancing clean energy and effective clean transportation systems. Accessing federal and state funding takes pre-planning, information, and assistance in matching projects to funding and help with proposal development.
Our members are supporting efforts to help communities access this funding. We have already seen amazing work being done by members and affiliates to bridge the gap between communities and funding opportunities. For example, Indiana University’s Environmental Resilience Institute has a federal funding hub providing programs, webinar training, and resources to help local governments earn federal funding to address climate challenges. Similarly, Michigan has a funding hub with personalized technical assistance and a resource library for utilizing the American Rescue Plan Act, Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, and other funding opportunities.
Leaving no communities behind
In every community, all members should have access to benefits, participate equitably in civic decision-making, and be included in community life. We aim to see community members, including Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) and other traditionally underserved residents and groups, craft their own sustainable future.
SSN provides members with training and resources on local governments and equity. In a network-wide survey comparison from 2021-22, we saw a 26 percent increase in respondents who have incorporated equity-focused actions into their programs.
Our members are able to receive 1-on-1 equity consulting, access to equity toolkits, and informative training on equity best practices. This past year, we brought in speakers with considerable background in equity, particularly in building diverse coalitions and equity communications. Most recently, we had researchers share practical tips for building support for equity-focused initiatives in diverse organizations and communities. Incorporating equity measures into SSN member programs continues to be relevant as we strive to serve all members of our communities, especially those who have been historically underserved.
Conclusion
As a network, our goal is to be as effective as possible in building capacity for local governments and communities to achieve their climate and sustainability goals. We do this by connecting and collaborating with each other. We are excited to continue to engage and build capacity for our communities in the coming year and beyond.
To learn more about the Sustainable States Network, please visit our website: https://www.sustainablestates.net/. If you are interested in collaborating with us, please reach out to the network coordinator, Lola Schoenrich, at lschoenrich@gpisd.net.