Adopt climate mitigation and/or energy independence goals and objectives in the comprehensive plan or in a separate policy document, and include transportation recommendations such as becoming an EV-ready city.

The Yale Climate Opinion Maps and Factsheets can help provide a sense of what your community thinks about climate change, energy, and more. 

Small communities (10,000 in population and fewer) can use this list of 11 key climate actions that highlight actions that are relevant to and accomplishable by communities with limited capacity, yet help reduce local GHG emissions and prepare the community for a changing climate. The list also includes resources to connect you to GreenStep and Gold Leaf Challenge actions as well as funding opportunities. 

Targets & Goals: 

• Check out the Minnesota Sustainability Index to search for communities with climate/energy goals and plans. As of February 2023, 22 Minnesota governments have committed to clean energy goals; 33 have GHG reduction goals; 34 have energy action plans; and 14 have climate action plans. 
• For example, Massachusetts challenges cities to reduce energy use 20% within 5 years. 
• For example, the Rochester, MN mayoral goal of becoming carbon-free by 2031 was set in 2015. 
• See community-wide GHG data with Regional Indicators Initiative and Met Council's Twin Cities GHG Inventory.Interested in a comprehensive community-wide GHG assessment? Compare two available tools (ICLEI ClearPath and EPA Local Greenhouse Gas Inventory Tool) in the From Data to Action: Harnessing GHG Inventories for Local Sustainability Initiatives (Univ. of MI, 2023).
• How to Set Renewable Electricity Goals that Align with Community Priorities (GPI: 2018).

Climate & Energy Plans: 

• Find the Gold Leaf climate action program’s 44 high-priority/high-impact local climate actions for additional resources and recognition opportunities. 
• Consider Prioritizing Municipal Climate Change Actions (Michael Orange - RETAP, 2023)
• Learn more about climate and sustainability planning from the American Planning Association Sustainable Communities Division with on-demand videos. 
• Energy generation and use affect a community’s character, economic vitality, and environmental footprint. Planning for local energy resources, infrastructure, and energy-related development is essential to achieving community goals for growth, change, development, and global climate change. See climate and energy planning resources from the Regional Indicators Initiative that include an energy planning guide and workbook, a MN list of local government energy goals, sample RFP language to use in selecting a planning consultant, and a solar energy availability calculator. 
• Check out the Michigan Green Communities Sustainability Plan Template Resoureces, developed by our partners at the Great Plains Institute. The template resources can be used for climate and energy plans as well. 
• The Greenhouse Gas Strategy Planning Tool from the Metropolitan Council allows users to explore greenhouse gas reduction strategies and estimate potential impact for a chosen city or township in the Twin Cities region. 
• Find planning resources from the Metropolitan Council for climate action: reducing emissions, adapting to change, preparing for increased flooding and extreme heat, tracking GHG emissions, providing resources to expand solar energy use, enhancing and preserving tree canopies, improving energy efficiency in wastewater treatment operations, and reducing transportation emissions. 
• The Local Energy Efficiency Self-Scoring Tool (ACEEE, 2021) quickly allows a city to score their energy efficiency (and cost-saving, GHG-cutting) efforts by evaluating locally-enacted programs and policies across local government operations, community-wide initiatives, building policies, energy and water utility policies, and transportation policies. The tool introduces communities to innovative energy practices that have been implemented and proven successful in small communities, and provides actionable guidance on which metrics to target to improve energy efficiency performance.
• See the State and Local Planning for Energy (SLOPE) Platform, designed to help visualize your jurisdiction’s clean energy potential and reach your energy goals (NREL 2021). 
• Responsible outdoor lighting practices can save 35% of the energy used for lighting in this country, equivalent to planting 600 million trees a year. Use the International Dark-Sky Association Light Pollution Wastes Energy and Money guide to promote reduced/smarter outdoor lighting. See the GreenStep Dark Skies best practices for more. 
• A 2020 interactive tool that shows which cities in the Twin Cities Metropolitan Council’s jurisdiction that have incorporated various climate, energy, or sustainability elements or participate in various climate, energy, or sustainability programs.
• Find example local government climate action plans that address materials management and waste (EPA, 2023).
• Note that in the 7-country metropolitan area, cities are required by the Legislature each 10 years to develop and submit to the Metropolitan Council a land use plan that contains an energy infrastructure element for protection and development of access to direct sunlight for solar energy systems.
• Consider low-income energy affordability with the US Dept. of Energy LEAD Tool. 
• Include in your plan or adopt an Indigenous Land Acknowledgement - See BPA 6.1.  
• The City of St. Paul’s Climate Justice Advisory Board (CJAB). Is supporting the development of policies and programs informed by St. Paul’s Climate Action & Resilience Plan (December 2019), and ensuring that those efforts are equitably distributed to address the challenges faced by the most vulnerable populations and neighborhoods in Saint Paul. The CJAB’s focus is to ensure that the costs and benefits of new programs in clean energy, energy efficiency, the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, and climate resilience and adaptation, are equitably distributed and address the challenges faced by our most vulnerable populations and neighborhoods.
• See How to Implement Climate Action within a Comprehensive Plan (2019). 
• Minnesota and Climate Change (MN Environmental Quality Board) briefly summarizes the science and economics of climate change and benefits of proactive responses to it. 
• See climate resources on community resilience to climate change (MPCA) under BPA 29.2.

EV-Ready City: 

• Cities have tremendous influence over how and where infrastructure is built and serve as a critical and necessary partner in the market transformation effort to make electric vehicles a significant part of Minnesota’s passenger car fleet. In its comp plan, cities can adopt EV language in the areas of policy, regulation, capital improvements, administration, programs and leadership that put the city on a path to become an EV-ready city.