The Township’s EAC Includes Charges of: “To Recommend Plans And Programs To The Appropriate

Agencies”

“To Promote A Community Environmental Program”

“Undertake such environmental tasks as requested by the governing body of this municipality”

 

To fulfill these responsibilities and lead our community on a sustainable path, the EAC needs a framework which will focus our energy on results (rather than activities) and provide a path of continuous quality improvement.

To Meet This Challenge the EAC has: Researched local, state-wide, national, and international

sustainability frameworks for municipal governments

Applied service, cost, and quality analysis to recommend the most effective path to assess current community wide sustainability status and future planning

To learn, focus, and fund future sustainable outcomes and local actions to enhance community sustainability

What Is A Sustainable Community? A  sustainable  community  is  economically,  environmentally,  socially  healthy  and  resilient.  It 

meets challenges  through  integrated solutions rather  than through  fragmented approaches that  meet  one  of  those  goals  at  the  expense  of  the  others.  And  it  takes  a  long-term perspective  –  one  that’s  focused  on  both  the  present  and  future,  well  beyond  the  next budget  or  election  cycle. A  sustainable  community’s  success  depends  upon  its  members’ commitment and involvement through:

Active, organized, and informed citizenship. 

Inspiring, effective, and responsive leadership.

Responsible, caring, and healthy community institutions, services, and businesses. 

As a result, a sustainable community manages its human, natural, and financial resources to meet current needs while ensuring that adequate resources are equitably available for future generations.

The  STAR Community Rating  System measures  current  outcomes  and evaluates  local  plans while providing a roadmap to a sustainable future.

Local Yo!cal Weighs In 

“My quick advice is go for  it - the reason Philly  and  NYC  haven't  been  more engaged  is  that  both  cities  have  very mature  and  codified  sustainability plans/programs,  so  there  is  less  value  in having  a  roadmap/evaluation  tool.  That said,  a  lot  of  great  work  went  into developing  Star  and  it  could  be  valuable to both cities in the future as a revamping guide,  but  I  see  the most  value  in  it  for communities just getting started.”

Alex Dews, former Manager of Sustainability, City of Philadelphia and now (very recent) Executive Director of the Delaware Valley Green Building Council

“Reading  has  turned  to  STAR  Communities  as  a way  to  both  measure  progress  in  every  major aspect  of  community  performance  and  adopt emerging  best  practices  in  those  areas where we are  behind.  It  provides  an  objective,  third  party standard to compare ourselves against. We expect STAR  to  become  a  national  benchmark  for  any community  that  wants  to  remain  competitive  in the  21st  century,  as  well  as  the  main  toolkit  for addressing  the  many  challenges  it  presents.  In  a nutshell,  I  believe  it's  the  single  best  resource  to improve any community.”

Another Yo!cal Weighs In 

Eron LLoyd, Special Assistant for Performance and Sustainability, City of Reading, PA

 

The Township will demonstrate it has conducted an assessment and rating of sustainable goals verified by an independent third party

  The STAR Leadership Community designation will help  to  raise 

environmental  awareness  among  citizens  by  providing  a  base for  future  programming  that  promotes  a  more  sustainable community.

  The  STAR  Leadership  Community  Program  will  not  incur  any 

monetary cost to the Township ~ Future STAR participation may range from $500 to $1500 per year (e.g. re-verification in three years) paid by the EAC’s Sustainability Fund.

QUESTIONS/DISCUSSION

Slides for Anticipated Questions

 Slide 33 Goal areas and point system

 Slide 34 How STAR works to drive continuous quality improvement

 Slides 35-37 ~ Example of how one of the 44 Objectives is scored (Waste  Minimization) via Outcomes and/or Local Actions

 Slide 39 how STAR’s verification process works

Slides 40-41 David Lettermen’s Top Ten List for participating in the Spring Leadership Communities Program.

Slide 42 Additional information about Leadership Program Scholarship and other invited communities 

Slide 43 Our future “Ode to Sustainability”?

TOP 10 REASONS TO JOIN THE 2015 SPRING LEADERSHIP

PROGRAM

1. Learn tips and  tricks  from Certified STAR Communities on   how they  reached  certification  at  the  2-day  in-person  orientation training.

2. Apply  for  scholarship  money  to  make  tight  budgets        stretch further.

3. Receive one year of on-call support from experienced STAR staff on everything  from  technical questions  to project management to marketing your score.

4. Improve your application for future grants — such as Partners for Places where there is a category for certified STAR communities.

5. Get  certified  within  a  year  (or  in  as  little  as  6  months,  like Fayetteville, AR!)

6. Benchmark our performance against the national standard for sustainability.

7. Build  strategic  partnerships  and  bring  our  community together to start building a local culture of sustainability.

8. Get  tangible  metrics  to  measure  progress  towards  the goals of our comprehensive or sustainability plan.

9. Brand our community as a leader in sustainability.10. Publicize   sustainability  achievements  to  our  community 

and  create  PR  or  funding  opportunities  for  Township Departments, community partners, or elected officials.

TOP 10 REASONS TO JOIN THE 2015 SPRING LEADERSHIP

PROGRAM

LEADERSHIP STAR COMMUNITY PROGRAM

STAR Member Communities can apply to participate in the Leadership STAR Community program, a one-year full-support program, which costs $7,500. Abington Township has been awarded a 75% scholarship ($5625) and the EAC has approved paying the remaining $1875 from its Sustainability Fund. The program includes:

Technical GuideSelf-Assessment ToolFull Reporting ToolTwo day STAR Training in Washington, D.C.Verification FeeStar Crosswalk (aligns local plans/initiatives)Access to Online ResourcesAssigned STAR CoordinatorPreferred Status for National PublicitySTAR Community Webpage

We have a vision that’s mighty indeed.Abington’s sustainability is our mission, for all to excel and succeed.

To rise ever higher and transform “achievement gaps”Into a love for creating best practices that never never succumbs to negative raps.

Not ones to rest on our laurels or submit to the status quo,Abington’s future upholds unwavering principles, empowering all to prosper and grow!