A Green Political Agenda for City Elections

Anti-tax activist Grover Norquist won power and fame by getting Republicans to sign a pledge to never vote for a tax increase. Maybe that’s what environmentalists should try – a pledge. A new study looks at how the city could become a lot greener through the next two mayoral terms… cut carbon emissions, use less water, boost solar and wind, double public transit ridership…and suggests that anyone who wants to get elected mayor or to the city council should sign on. One concern – there’s no dollar figure anywhere in the study.

First, New York has one, San Francisco, Philadelphia – big cities that also plan to be sustainable cities. Sustainability means living and working so that the world remains livable for the generations to come. It means cutting carbon emissions that build a warmer climate, using less water, generating less waste, while still ensuring an urban life that offers opportunity and justice.

A new study from UCLA – Visions 2021 LA – A model Environmental Sustainability Agenda for Los Angeles’s Next Mayor and City Council. It examines almost a dozen of what it calls ‘goal areas’ – with far ranging green policy prescriptions that would remake the city. And the study advocates asking politicians to sign on – a pledge to actually try to make this work if elected.