“With growing populations depleting resources, how do we keep increasing and en- suring prosperity while we are already using more than we have? It’s a conundrum.”


~ Pragati Pascale, United Nations spokeswoman


the ‘network world’, recognizing the number of players today. It’s not just national governments; it’s states and cities, corporations and philanthropists. In addition to the official meetings and negotiations, between 3,000 and 4,000 other gatherings were going on between business people, mayors, civil society organizations and others, pre- senting myriad opportunities to make specific commitments. We’re moving to a different dynamic.”


Sowing Seeds The inclusive atmosphere is reflected in another new U.N.-sponsored inter- national sharing website, FutureWe Want.org, featuring visions and videos relating to sustainability and solutions to dire environmental problems, such as turning global warming-inducing methane from China’s farms into a us- able energy source; predicting periods of drought in Ethiopia to prevent humanitarian crises; and investing in solar power to bring electricity to 1.4 bil- lion people around the world. More than 50 mil- lion people worldwide have submitted ideas for a more sustainable world, ranging from ways to increase public education to plans for stopping in- dustrial pollution and better manag- ing waste. “The huge public engagement in the conference is exciting,” says Pascale, “because that’s really how progress will happen. People have to force their governments to take action.” The NRDC


dedicated website 16 NA Twin Cities Edition


is part of a coordinated effort to hold governments, businesses and nonprofits accountable and inform the public. The new U.N. websites facilitate a thriving discussion of what sustainability means and how it can be put into practice. “We want to continue the over- all campaign and build upon it,” says Pascale. “Whatever frustrations people have with businesses, nongovernment organizations (NGO) or governments, we need to harness that energy and keep that dialogue going to give people a voice in making sustainability happen.”


Results-Oriented Role Models


State-based examples of sustain- able development in action speak to widespread needs in the United States. Here are examples of five models worth replicating.


PlaNYC: New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s announcement of PlaNYC, on Earth Day 2007, signaled an his- toric moment. The people’s vision of a cleaner, healthier New York City, one that could accommodate 9 million predicted residents by 2030, aims to be a model for urban sustainable develop- ment. Its original 127 initiatives leave few sustainability stones unturned, including cleaning up brownfields, building more playgrounds and parks, increasing public transportation and bike lanes, implementing aggres- sive recycling, enforcing green building standards and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Two-thirds of the initial goals have


already been achieved; the latest up- date calls for 132 initiatives, including a new set of annual milestones. Speaking at the Museum of the


City of New York in 2009, Daniel Doctoroff, the former deputy mayor of economic development and rebuilding for the Bloomberg administration, called PlaNYC “one of the most sweeping, most comprehensive blueprints for New York ever undertak- en.” Most critically, all of its stated commitments are achievable (see Tinyurl.com/ PlaNYC-goals).


natwincities.com


Rio+20],” advises Scherr. “I call it the ‘network world’, recognizing the number of players today. It’s not just national governments; it’s states and cities, corporations and philanthropists. In addition to the official meetings and negotiations, between 3,000 and 4,000 other gatherings were going on between business people, mayors, civil society organizations and others, pre- senting myriad opportunities to make specific commitments. We’re moving to a different dynamic.”


Sowing Seeds The inclusive atmosphere is reflected in another new U.N.-sponsored inter- national sharing website, FutureWe Want.org, featuring visions and videos relating to sustainability and solutions to dire environmental problems, such as turning global warming-inducing methane from China’s farms into a us- able energy source; predicting peri- ods of drought in Ethiopia to prevent humanitarian crises; and investing in solar power to bring electricity to 1.4 billion people around the world. More than 50 million people worldwide have submitted ideas for a more sus- tainable world, ranging from ways to increase public education to plans for stopping industrial pollution and better managing waste. “The huge public engagement in the conference is exciting,” says Pas- cale, “because that’s really how prog- ress will happen. People have to force their governments to take action.” The NRDC dedicated website is part of a coordinated effort to hold governments, businesses and nonprofits accountable and inform the public. The new U.N. websites facilitate a thriving discussion of what sustainability means and how it can be put into practice. “We want to continue the over- all campaign and build upon it,” says Pascale. “Whatever frustrations people have with businesses, nongovernment organizations (NGO) or governments, we need to harness that energy and keep that dialogue going to give people a voice in making sustainability happen.”


Results-Oriented Role Models


State-based examples of sustainable


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