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Climate Action – What is a City to Do?

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Boston, like Interface Global that we’ve talked about before, is “climbing Mount Sustainability” with the same intended timeframe for completion of its goals, 2020.    Here is a little background on Boston for context.  Founded in 1630, it is one of the US’s oldest cities.  That means that there is a lot of old infrastructure.  There are about 625,000 people in Boston, a relatively small city.  It covers a little over 48 square miles and has a population density of almost 13,000 people per square mile.  Contrast that with New York City which has a little over twice the density.   So the less density of population may make it a little easier to implement some sustainability efforts because people are not as crowded together.  What are some of those sustainability goals for Boston?

One of the major 2020 goals is to reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 25%.  There is a lot of mass transportation infrastructure in and around Boston that could make it happen.  Additionally, by 2050, the goal is to reduce GHG emissions by 80%.  Another, and we believe very smart goal, is to” incorporate projected climate change into formal planning and project review process. “There are two things that can be said about this effort.  The first is that there is an acknowledgement of climate change at the highest levels of city government.  The second, we believe, is that new construction/renovation projects will include the “risk” of climate change, like taking into consideration severe weather and other changes to the climate.  In June of 2011, I was in Boston teaching when a huge tornado touched down in western Massachusetts and a smaller one hit closer to the city of Boston.   That night, and I was a witness, the city suffered some severe thunderstorms not seen before.   So it is just smart that Boston look to protect its citizenry by accounting for that type of climate change risks.

The city is also intending on a city-wide effort to get the community and community leaders involved in the effort.  Finally, another very smart initiative is to “develop innovative businesses and workforce skills to take advantage of climate action opportunities.”  This is not unlike the message we have in our book and what we have been saying for more than three years now, project managers need to be aware of sustainability efforts because of the potential job opportunities, not just building a wind farm or adding solar panels to a roof top.  The potential is that all projects have some aspect of sustainability, and by being aware of those aspects, a project manager can broaden his or her horizons.  For further information on how you can help your city, big or small, see Boston’s green game plan.  For more information on our efforts please visit our website.

Inspiration: Suffolk Law, Alumni Magazine, Winter 2013, Shades of Green


Posted by Dave Shirley on: February 05, 2013 12:11 PM | Permalink

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