Welcome to the GreenStep Peer Exchange Pods program. This program was designed to help connect City and Tribal Nation GreenStep coordinators in order to support each other’s work across the state.
Purpose of the Program
- Learn and share knowledge with your GreenStep peers.
- Ask questions to see how other Cities and Tribal Nations are adapting to changes, creating solutions and serving their communities.
- Create a feedback loop for ideas and projects that are being considered, planned or implemented.
Benefits of the Program
- Break down topic, region and resource silos.
- Potentially find projects to collaborate on together.
- Avoid reinventing the wheel and duplication.
- Save staff time researching potential solutions and resources.
- Feel connected and supported by peers facing the same challenges.
- New Best Practice Action 24.8 (published soon!)
- Sustainable Coordination: Community staff and leaders have a clear understanding of roles and have expertise in coordinating sustainability best practices.
Who can participate?
- This program is geared towards GreenStep Coordinators and those who support the GreenStep Coordinator and the GreenStep Program.
- It could be an existing staff person, an elected official, or community member. It’s normally the person or people tasked with posting the initial background information on the GreenStep Cities website, educating other staff, public officials, and the community about the GreenStep program; and completing the annual reporting.
- Multiple GreenStep Coordinators from the same community can participate but will be matched with people outside each city or Tribal nation.
- Groups of three to four people from different communities will be placed into pods.
- Members from the same city or Tribal nation will be assigned to different pods.
- Mix of Step 1-3 and Step 4-5.
- Mix of types of roles staff hold in their city or tribal nation.
- Matching will be by a combination of population, location and types of projects a city or tribal nation is working on.
What is expected of participants?
- Scheduling: Each pod coordinates their own meeting times based on their schedules.
- Discussions: GreenStep will send out reminders and prompts for each meeting quarter that pods can use for discussion.
- Notes: GreenStep will set up each pod with its own meeting notes google document.
- Facilitation: Rotate meeting facilitation and note taking within the pod.
- Support: Pods can request GreenStep staff, or a BP advisor attend a session if the group has questions they would like help with.
- Assistance: Peer pod members do not need to help another member with their GreenStep reporting - GreenStep staff are here for technical assistance.
How to join
- You can join anytime during the year by filling out this Sign-up Form. You will be notified and assigned to a Peer Exchange Pod - either an existing pod of three or a new pod will be created depending on total number of participants.
- See Slides from the kickoff meeting presentation.