The city of Atlanta is breathing new life into an advisory board that was initially launched in 2020 with the goal of cleaning up the region’s energy sources.
“The nation’s climate crisis has created an urgent need for equitable solutions that accelerate a transition to clean energy,” said Mayor Andre Dickens in a press release
Dickens and Atlanta’s chief sustainability officer Chandra Farley announced the city would be relaunching its Clean Energy Advisory Board on Feb. 3.
“The time is now to activate our city’s rich ecosystem of expertise to attract resources and implement solutions that mitigate the worst impacts of climate change while also creating a local clean energy economy that benefits all Atlantans,” said Farley.
The creation of the board comes from a recommendation out of the city’s Clean Energy Atlanta Plan, which was passed by city council in March 2019.
The Clean Energy Atlanta Plan aims to chart the course for the city to achieve 100 percent clean energy by 2035.
The board will be a key tool for the city to build public support and leverage local expertise on clean energy issues for the plan.
The board will consist of 25 civic leaders from nonprofit, public and private sectors who will serve a two-year term.
“Like many of our efforts in Atlanta, reaching these clean energy milestones is a group project, which is why the community-led Clean Energy Advisory Board will play a pivotal role in reducing carbon emissions and building more sustainable and climate resilient communities,” said Dickens.
Six of the 25 seats will stem from the city’s most energy burdened areas. Residents in these southwest Atlanta neighborhoods experience energy burdens that are three to four times higher than national averages, based on data provided by Greenlink.
The board will meet quarterly and will provide recommendations for the Clean Energy Atlanta Plan. It will also inform development of the Sustainability and Climate Resilience Plan that the city will be launching in 2024.
Working groups within the board will focus on:
- Climate impacts
- Affordable housing
- Energy affordability
- Sustainable transportation
- Youth climate action
The working groups are expected to meet monthly and prioritize equity, environmental justice and data transparency.
“The members of the Clean Energy Advisory Board understand that we must prioritize the voice of our most marginalized residents, those that have been largely left out of the benefits of the clean energy transition,” said Farley.
The Clean Energy Advisory Board members include:
- Chandra Farley, co-chair and chief sustainability officer for the city of Atlanta
- Angela Clyde, chair for the city of Atlanta, Neighborhood Planning Unit T
- Anne Phillips, APAB president, Neighborhood Planning Unit chair, NPU-Z
- Avery Evans, graduate student, urban studies, Georgia State University
- Blair Beasley, director of climate strategies, Ray C. Anderson Foundation
- Bonita Johnson, senior physical scientist and water division environmental justice coordinator for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
- Ciannat Howett, assistant vice president of sustainability, resilience and economic inclusion for Emory University and Emory Healthcare
- Codi Norred, executive director of Georgia Interfaith Power and Light
- Erica Holloman-Hill, director of environmental justice programs at West Atlanta Watershed Alliance
- James Marlow, president of Southface
- Jennette Gayer, director of Environment Georgia
- Khalifa Lee, executive board vice chair for city of Atlanta, Neighborhood Planning Unit-H
- LaToria Whitehead, president and founder of LS Whitehead Group, LLC and Spelman College
- Lamia Lopez, environmental science student, Spelman College
- Lauren Westmoreland, vice president of energy and sustainability at Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future
- Maggie Kelley Riggins, senior program manager with Southeast Energy Efficiency Alliance
- Dr. Matt Cox, CEO of Greenlink Analytics
- Odetta MacLeish-White, director of Georgia Initiatives at the Center for Community Progress
- Rex Hamre, national director of sustainability for JLL Project and Development Services
- Robbie Hunter, president of Graymont Drive Neighborhood Association, NPU-S
- Sheryl Brown, owner of Thrive Public Relations Atlanta and director of ACE Warriors, NPU-R
- Susan Evans, program manager of the Atlanta Housing Authority
- Solomon McBride, manager of Just Energy, Partnership for Southern Equity
For more information, click here.