County Executive, Madison Mayor Convene Local Leaders to Collaborate Against Climate Change

August 15, 2019
Ariana Vruwink 608-267-8823
County Executive

New "Sustainability Leaders Collaborative" Representing Dane County's Dozens of Local Units of Government to Work on Solar, Renewable Fuels, Energy Efficiency

Local officials from across Dane County are agreeing to team their efforts and confront climate change head-on, County Executive Joe Parisi and Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes Conway announced today. The two were part of a first of its kind collaboration bringing together elected officials, administrators, and staff who work on sustainability issues from nearly two dozen cities, villages, and towns in Dane County.

“We are excited to bring the many communities that make up Dane County together to advance our shared mission of tackling climate change and advancing clean, green energy projects,” said Dane County Executive Joe Parisi. “By uniting in a shared vision, we can work together to support our sustainability efforts, positively impact the environment, and set the stage for others to follow suit.”

“Madison is proud to be part of a of the Sustainability Leaders Collaborative which will move forward initiatives on clean energy, green infrastructure and resilience across Dane County,” said Madison Mayor Satya Rhodes-Conway. “By facing the challenges of climate change together, municipalities are moving our communities toward a more sustainable future.”

The officials met today (Thursday, August 15th) for the first time and agreed to create four working groups to collaborate on ideas moving forward:

1.  Solar development

2.  Renewable Fuel Usage for Municipal Fleets

3.  Energy Efficiency/Sustainability for Facilities

4.  Green Infrastructure to Manage Run-off from heavy rain events

The Sustainability Leaders Collaborative will re-convene this winter to review progress made by the work groups and develop implementation plans for using sustainable strategies in both the public and private sectors.

Dane County, the City of Madison, and a number of other local communities have agreed to achieve 100% sustainability, reducing carbon emissions, and implementing practices that help improve resiliency for extreme weather events.