The administration of U.S. President Barack Obama named Boston one of 16 communities recognized as Climate Action Champions for their work in leading the battle against climate change, according to a Wednesday press release.
Boston’s adoption of Green Building Zoning, its “Green Ribbon Commission” and its comprehensive plan to adapt the city to future changes, known as the Climate Action Plan, all influenced the Obama administration’s decision, the release stated.
Boston applied to this program several months ago, and the recognition will qualify the city for additional federal resources to advance the work, said Leah Bamberger, a spokesperson for the City’s Greenovate Boston office.
Adil Najam, a professor of earth and environment at Boston University, said Boston’s recognition should serve as a call to action to city leaders and residents.
“It’s great for Boston,” Najam said. “It’s timely, but I also think that this should be seen as cheering us on, and not necessarily meaning that we’ve done what we need to do and now we can sit back. This is essentially a call for Boston to take it even more seriously, because climate is a long-term, big problem. And this is a call to other cities in the country.”
Marc Draisen, executive director of the Metropolitan Area Planning Council, said the recognition is well-deserved, particularly because of Boston Mayor Martin Walsh’s cooperative approach, not only within the city of Boston, but with the surrounding areas.
“We have something called Massachusetts Bay,” Draisen said. “It really doesn’t differentiate between Boston or Quincy or Gloucester. If there’s a storm, the impact is going to be throughout the Greater Boston region, so the response has to be regional.”
Draisen also said the two-pronged approach to climate change is highly effective and also merits recognition.
“There’s always two sides to climate change work — mitigation and adaptation. On the mitigation side, which basically means reducing greenhouse gas emissions, the city has played an exemplary role, first under Mayor Menino and now under Mayor Walsh,” Draisen said. “It’s hard to find another city that has done as much to encourage conservation, and mode-shift, meaning moving people from cars to other modes of transportation, like bike and ped[estrian], better than Boston has.”
The adaptations and comprehensive climate action plans will be further discussed at a regional conference held in Boston in the spring, where leaders from various surrounding municipalities will collaborate, the Daily Free Press reported.
“The impacts of climate change are multiple, and it is really necessary to address them as a group, and that’s the project we’re addressing with the communities, to really come together in the spring and lay out a concrete set of joint actions,” Draisen said.
Several residents said the recognition from the White House will help facilitate positive environmental change.
Susan Small, 56, of Brighton, said the recognition will not only be beneficial environmentally but also economically.
“If it drives economic growth and it keeps the environment cleaner, then it can’t hurt. But I don’t know how many other cities are being recommended and whether they’re doing it as an incentive,” Small said. “How can the environment be wrong? As long as it’s not punitive, causing things to slow down economically.”
Austin Perea, 23, of Brighton, said the recognition will allow Boston’s status as a climate change trailblazer to be furthered.
“It’s good to be a part of that. I know that Boston has been a pioneer,” he said. “I hope that some aspects of transportation can be improved, so that it can be more efficient, and maybe more solar energy. Boston is seen as a leader in a lot of respects for green energy and renewable energy and just climate change policy, so I hope we can continue that in the best way possible.”
