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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Florida Local Governments Forge Climate and Energy Network at State Climate Protection Summit
Mar 27, 2008
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 27, 2008
Contact: Monica Walters, (510)-844-0699 x315
Kim Lundgren, (cell) (617)-820-8038
TALLAHASSEE, Fl. – Today
elected officials and staff from 30 Florida local governments are attending a
conference of peers to form a statewide network to collaborate on local climate
action. The Florida Local Government Climate Protection Summit, co-hosted by
ICLEI-Local Governments for Sustainability and Leon County, is the start of a
robust effort for Florida jurisdictions to share and coordinate strategies for
reducing greenhouse gas emissions and advancing climate protection policies and
initiatives in communities throughout the state.
More information on the event, including an agenda, is available at
www.floridaclimatesummit.org.
“Today’s landmark event is a direct response to the
growing momentum on climate protection throughout the State of Florida,” said Michelle Wyman, Executive Director of ICLEI
USA, a non-profit membership
association of more than 350 local governments nationwide committed to advancing
climate protection and sustainable development.
“From the Governor’s office to cities and counties stretching from the Panhandle to the Keys, Florida is on the cutting edge climate action, and ICLEI is proud to support and advance these efforts.”
Keynote remarks will be delivered by Michael Sole, Secretary of the
Florida Department of Environmental Protection and Chair of the Governor’s
Action Team on Energy and Climate Change. The agenda includes presentations and
discussions on climate mitigation and adaptation, sustainability, financing and
staffing. The event will directly follow the Legislative Days of the Florida
League of Cities and the Florida Association of Counties, and will precede a
regional climate protection summit held by Leon County.
ICLEI currently works with 14 cities and counties in
Florida to mitigate greenhouse gas emissions,
including a pilot adaptation program with Miami-Dade County headed by County Court Clerk Harvey
Ruvin, member of the ICLEI USA Board of Directors, to adjust government
operations and emergency plans to address already existing effects of climate
change.
In the past year, initiative to address climate change
has spread throughout the State of Florida at an unprecedented rate. Along with
Governor Crist’s Executive Orders, many local governments have begun to take
powerful action on this complex issue. In an effort to underscore the potential
for local and state harmonization on climate efforts, Governor Crist ICLEI’s
Sundance Summit last year to over 50 mayors and elected officials from around
the country.
ICLEI – Local Governments for Sustainability is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization that provides technical climate planning assistance and policy analysis to more than 350 local governments in the United States, and nearly 1,000 worldwide. For more information visit www.icleiusa.org.
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