Equitable Climate Action Team
The Equitable Climate Action Team (ECAT) is a City staff led group of community members who work to assist in implementing equitable climate action through community education, outreach and the evaluation of City programs to ensure equitable outcomes. Equitable climate action is defined as local policy and personal habits that reduce climate pollution and increase community resilience in ways that do no harm, and that support all communities according to their needs.
After completing the work of the Just Transition Plan Committee, the team re-named itself to ECAT and developed the following 3 main tasks of operation which help foster community engagement and a direct line of communication with the City:
Two important parts of doing climate work centered in equity are building a good foundation of knowledge on climate action and developing a mutually beneficial education exchange with City staff around equitable climate action and other City programs. With this task, members of ECAT increase their understanding of climate action, equity and their application to City programs.
In 2021, ECAT members learned about:
- Attended two Equity Workshops with the Climate Justice Collaborative
- Learned about six different climate action topic areas, including air quality, waste & electrification
In 2022, ECAT members learned about:
- ECAT’s role in Local Government
- How to use the Microsoft Teams App
- Adding more equity and language access guidelines to internal governing documents
ECAT assists city staff in applying an equity lens to climate action projects by providing feedback to City Staff to ensure projects support all communities in Longmont and are successful in advancing equitable outcomes through climate action.
In 2021, ECAT engaged with and reviewed these City programs and projects:
- Wrote and was awarded the Partner for Places Grant
- Gave feedback on eight climate action projects, including contributions to the initial Beneficial Building Electrification Plan and Universal Recycling Ordinance
In 2022, ECAT engaged with and reviewed these City programs and projects:
- Beneficial Building Electrification Plan
- Zero Waste Resolution
- Climate Risk & Vulnerability Map
- STEAM/Sugar Mill
- E-Bike Pilot Program
- Water Efficiency Master Plan
Community outreach is an important component of implementing equitable climate action. Through outreach we better inform people who live in Longmont about resources the City offers for a sustainable, prosperous life to all its residents. ECAT assist city staff in engaging and educating the community on equitable climate action through volunteering at City events.
In 2021, ECAT lead these outreach and education efforts:
- Welcomed five new members
- Presented at the We’re In This Together Event
In 2022, ECAT lead these outreach and education efforts:
- Welcomed three new members
- Volunteered at 12 events educating community on city climate action programs
- Preparing to increase community education & outreach through presentations
The City is always looking for feedback on climate equity issues that impact our community and invites all Longmont residents to share their experiences, concerns and ideas for possible solutions. Contact the Sustainability Office for more information. To learn more about how ECAT’s volunteer service relates to the Sustainability Plan, visit the Sustainability homepage.
Current Members of ECAT reflect diverse perspectives and experiences, but all are connected by motivations to address climate equity issues related to air pollution, clean water access, waste reduction and health effects of climate change.
- In 2019, the formation of ECAT was initially part of the just transition process to support an equitable transition to 100% renewable electricity that can be read about on the Just Transition Overview page.
- In 2020, ECAT (formerly the Just Transition Plan Committee) developed overarching equitable climate action recommendations in the Climate Action Recommendation Report that can be applied to any climate action program to help expand inclusion and participation in City programs. Since then, ECAT’s recommendations have been developed into an Equity Checklist for City staff to review and an Equity Discussion Guide to be used as an analysis tool when reviewing new City programs.
- In 2021, the City worked with Sustainable Resilient Longmont to host the first ECAT panel on Earth Day, “We’re in This Together: Equitable Climate Action in Longmont,” a panel focused on the importance of climate justice. This was the first Spanish-English panel at the Longmont Museum and was broadcast in both languages with many viewers. Watch the videos in English and in Spanish.
- In 2022, a Bilingual Equity and Engagement specialist was hired to better coordinate ECAT’s important work. Since then, more equity guidelines have been added to ECAT’s operations, membership has expended to include more diverse community representation and volunteer presence at City supported community events has increased. Check out our new indicator’s page when it’s launched for more recently highlights of ECAT’s work!
- In 2023, ECAT has grown by welcoming three new members early in the year, receiving volunteer T-shirts and a banner to help them be recognized as volunteer City leaders at community events. In the first six months of the year, ECAT attended six community events, supporting with personable and bilingual engagement at information booths; and provided equity feedback on seven City climate action and community resiliency programs, supporting the integration of equity into these programs.
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