Summit County Climate Action Plan & Climate Equity Plan
The jurisdictions, municipalities, ski areas, and institutions in Summit County, convened by High Country Conservation Center (HC3), contracted with Lotus to create a Climate Action Plan for the community. Lotus guided and supported the entire development process, which included conducting Summit County’s first GHG emissions inventory. Lotus facilitated and led the stakeholder engagement process that informed the development of Summit County’s Climate Action Plan in collaboration with the High Country Conservation Center. Our team convened meetings of stakeholders and experts, provided education and background on climate change, and facilitated conversations to develop strategies that will reduce emissions and achieve the goals of the Climate Action Plan for this mountain community. The development process also included modeling the impacts of stakeholder-selected strategies to determine emissions reductions, energy use, and other benefits; forecasting a business-as-usual case scenario; and providing the community with a final Climate Action Plan that defines aspirational targets for climate mitigation and resiliency and establishes a path towards achieving these goals.
Lotus ultimately developed a Comprehensive GHG Inventory (see here) and an aspirational yet achievable Climate Action Plan for the County (see here).
Since completing the County’s Climate Action Plan, the jurisdictions in Summit County embarked on implementation work. Lotus worked with the High Country Conservation Center to update the County’s GHG inventory with 2021 data and develop a Climate Equity Plan that specifically details projects and programs to enhance equity in the community through the implementation of climate action work. Lotus facilitated an equity steering committee that included representatives from local community-based organizations, local governments, and agencies serving disproportionately impacted communities in Summit County. The Steering Committee advised on the development of a tri-lingual public survey, listening sessions, and informational interviews to guide the development of climate equity strategies that will supplement the existing climate action work. During the implementation of this work, HC3 will continue to work with Steering Committee members through the strong relationships that were built in this process to ensure that climate equity strategies meet their intended goals in supporting benefits for all Summit County residents.
“Lotus’ expertise was instrumental in developing our community’s climate action goals and understanding what it will take to meet them. Their depth of knowledge and nimble facilitation skills were a tremendous asset to our planning process.”
Below is a presentation on Summit County’s Climate Equity Plan from Mountain Towns 2030.