Clyde Cool Cities Event

We had a great Cool Cities event this morning in Clyde. That town has the nicest Board of Aldermen you could ever meet. It also has a great Town Administrator, Joy Garland, who joked to me that she is Planning Director, Public Works Director, Recycling Coordinator and whatever else needs to get done. An added bonus was the attendance of Rep. Ray Rapp.

Clyde is a very small town and is happy for it to stay that way. Because of its size many of the suggestions for action outlined in the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement don't really apply to it.

They are doing their part though especially in two realms:

-Public education about conservation. They use the town's newsletter, which is mailed to residents, to promote living a more environmentally friendly lifestyle. In such a small town, simply making residents more aware about what they can do in their own lives that will cut down on greenhouse gas emissions should go a long way toward helping them to reach their Cool Cities goals.

-Increasing recycling rates. They are working proactively to make it easier to recycle, to build public awareness about how important it is, and to basically make sure they do everything they can to make sure folks don't forget.

I am really inspired when towns like Clyde make it a point of doing everything they can to be good stewards of our natural resources. We can't just wait for DC to solve all the world's problems- the leadership shown by places like Clyde is the Cool Cities program at its best.