ST. LOUIS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--As communities worldwide grapple with the pressing challenges posed by climate change, the need for transparency on how local governments are addressing climate issues is critical. Enter Climate Herald - a first-of-its-kind, comprehensive online platform that tracks recent and upcoming local government climate and sustainability initiatives.
Climate Herald was created by former Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) staffer Michael Dexter to be a resource for residents and journalists seeking to learn about local government and contribute to meaningful climate initiatives. In his six years at the EPA, Dexter led community-based resiliency projects and supported efforts to develop award winning Climate Adaptation resources for local governments. This experience, coupled with extensive engagement with local government staff and community advocates, inspired and informed the development of Climate Herald as a resource to increase awareness of how communities across the country are acting on climate change.
“There is a false perception that only large cities like New York and Seattle are taking action on climate change. The reality is that communities of all sizes and in all regions of the country are engaged in meaningful climate action. There are ways for residents to engage locally to effect change on every level,” Dexter said. “This project grew out of my long standing desire for a transparent and easily-searchable database of local government climate policies. Climate Herald can serve as both a starting point for residents looking to better understand how and when their community is acting on climate change and as a way for local governments to learn more about similar initiatives from other parts of the U.S. or Canada.”
Today’s launch of the user-friendly Climate Herald website enables visitors to easily search for a city, county or township and get an overview of what the community has done on climate change as well as a glimpse of potential upcoming actions the community may be taking. The database contains detailed information on climate action from over 1,250 communities across the United States and Canada with more being added every day. Climate Herald’s robust database provides residents with much-needed transparency around local climate initiatives and governments' accessibility to example peer actions for local climate action.
About Climate Herald:
Climate Herald is a comprehensive online platform for tracking local government climate policies. The data is sourced from publicly available local government information including meeting packets, press releases, and publications, and compiled into easy-to-use, searchable pages. Climate Herald is updated routinely to highlight opportunities for residents to participate in local government processes including public comment periods, advisory committees, city council meetings, and even professional opportunities.
To learn more visit climateherald.org
Follow us on social media for updates:
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ClimateHerald/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/ClimateHerald
- LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/climate-herald
