Cleveland, OH
Round 4
Cleveland, OH
Proposal for Local Sustainability Matching Fund
Spring 2014
Project Title:
Cleveland Neighborhood Climate Action: Engaging Residents with Asset-Based Community
Development and Grassroots Grantmaking
Purpose of Project:
To establish an equitable model for developing and funding neighborhood projects that
aligns climate action with the assets, concerns, and priorities of Cleveland residents.
Brief description of project goals, strategy, and key activities (250 words or less):
In 2013, the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability, in partnership with a diverse 50-member
Advisory Committee, launched the Cleveland Climate Action Plan: Building Thriving and Healthy
Neighborhoods. As the title reflects, Cleveland is truly a city of neighborhoods, and in order to create
the foundation for true, lasting, and equitable climate action, implementation must also occur at the
neighborhood level. This project seeks to create this foundation through two primary strategies,
aimed at developing an effective and replicable way to fund and provide resources for
neighborhood-led climate action projects.
First, the Mayor’s Office of Sustainability will work with community partners to roll out the
Cleveland Neighborhood Climate Action Toolkit throughout the city. This Toolkit, developed in
tandem with the Climate Action Plan, is intended to help residents take actions that advance their
neighborhood goals while also taking climate action. The toolkit currently includes materials to help
neighborhoods learn about Cleveland’s Climate Action Plan, identify neighborhood assets and
concerns, relate them to climate action, and develop neighborhood climate action project ideas. The
toolkit, including results from pilots conducted in three neighborhoods, can be found here:
www.sustainablecleveland.org/toolkit
The second strategy is centered on linking the toolkit process with a successful tradition of
grassroots grantmaking in Cleveland, thereby creating a sustainable mechanism for turning ideas into
implemented neighborhood projects. This project seeks to develop a Cleveland Climate Action
Fund that allows corporate donors and individuals alike to invest in local projects that meet
neighborhood concerns while also mitigating and/or adapting to climate change.
Primary Contact Person
Name:
Jenita McGowan
Title:
Chief of Sustainability
Organization:
City of Cleveland
Mailing
address:
City:
601 Lakeside Ave. Room 227
Email:
jmcgowan@city.cleveland.oh.us
Telephone:
216-664-2405
Cleveland
State:
OH
Zip:
Ext:
1
44114
Cleveland, OH
Round 4
2