The Cool Current - Spotlight on Communities

Clean Air-Cool Planet is the Northeast's leading nonprofit organization dedicated to finding and promoting solutions to global warming.

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For the Leaf-Peeper in You

The vibrant colors of autumn in the Northeast are seen primarily in sugar maples, a tree species heavily susceptible to changes in climate.

Maine Foliage Index
Vermont Foliage Info
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GLOBAL WARMING SOLUTIONS 2005:

Leadership, Opportunities and Emerging Issues
New York City,
June 8-9

CA-CP is doing it again, bringing leaders from every sector across the region together to catalyze action. This will be THE climate conference of the year, so make plans to attend now. Learn more...

Website Spotlight

Clean Air-Cool Planet's site has a new look. We've redesigned to bring you a more straightforward, organized and up-to-the-minute web resource. Complete with daily climate headlines, postings of regional events, access to relevant science and policy findings, and the latest CA-CP program news, we think www.cleanair-coolplanet.org is one you'll want to bookmark and use. Take a look, and let us know what YOU think!

Spotlight on Communities

COMING SOON:

CA-CP is revamping its community program efforts, and we want to know how to serve you better. CA-CP is rolling out improved municipal web pages and community newsletter ideas, including a brief survey we hope you will participate in.

Also exciting, Amelia Ravin, former Energy Planner for the City of Newton, Massachusetts, has just joined our staff. Amelia, our new Program Associate and Kendall Fellow, is based in the new Tri-State Area Office, where she will be dedicating a lot of her time to working with communities on global warming solutions. Welcome Amelia!

Connecticut Municipalities Meet in August

At ICLEI’s August meeting Kim Klunich,
Stamford intern, Fordham University student and
“alumnus” of CA-CP’s Thompson Island training,
presented on the City of Stamford’s progress
in addressing climate change during
her time there over the past year.

On August 26th in New Britain, CT, CA-CP partner ICLEI held a half-day “Forum on Municipal Climate Protection in Connecticut.” Connecticut State Representative Patricia Widlitz, champion of climate legislation in the state, gave a keynote address to the audience of local elected officials, municipal staff and others working to implement emission reducing measures at the local level. Elected officials, staff and interns who worked over the summer on municipal greenhouse gas inventories and local action plans to reduce emissions, presented on successes and challenges in their municipal climate protection work, and ICLEI awarded Stamford, Hamden, Hartford, New Haven, Windsor, Weston and the Central Connecticut Regional Planning agency awards for completing milestones in ICLEI’s Cities for Climate Protection Campaign. In addition, the City of New Britain announced passage of resolution to participate in Cities for Climate Protection at the event.

Other notables:

Two new towns join Cities for Climate Protection Program: Farmington, Maine, and Weston, Connecticut.
Saratoga Springs getting energy efficient and leading the way to wind-powered future.
Clean-burning school buses to hit the streets in Portland, Maine.
Project BioBus brings biodiesel education to towns/schools across the country.

Stay Tuned for These Upcoming Events:

Keene, New Hampshire will kick off their citywide 10% Challenge to reduce carbon emissions with a festival on October 9th. For more information about the launch event or the Challenge, contact Krista Koehler.
Massuchusetts Climate Action Network (MCAN) Conference November 14th at MIT: more info posted on their site in the coming weeks.
The City of Guilford, Connecticut is planning a conference on sea level rise and land-use planning for this fall.

—Amelia Ravin/Jennifer Andrews