Other Upstate NY Efforts
Climate Protection Initiatives in Other Upstate New York Communities
Tompkins County is not the only area of upstate New York that is paying attention to and taking action on climate change. Take a look at what our regional counterparts are doing to meet the challenge of climate change. It is this sort of community-driven initiative and leadership that we need across the country in the absence of federal action.
Conservation's Climate Smart Communities Program in 2009. The mayor signed a comprehensive executive order that same year in order to formally establish a comprehensive sustainability agenda for the state capital. Albany then completed its greenhouse gas inventory and established a Mayor’s Office of Energy and Sustainability as well as an associated Sustainability Working Group. In July 2011, the City released Albany 2030, a community development road map that makes sustainability a core component of its vision and planning. Albany is currently working on its climate action and adaptation plan and has a number of climate -related initiatives in the works.
Syracuse
Tompkins County is not the only area of upstate New York that is paying attention to and taking action on climate change. Take a look at what our regional counterparts are doing to meet the challenge of climate change. It is this sort of community-driven initiative and leadership that we need across the country in the absence of federal action.
Albany
In 2005, the mayor signed the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s Climate Protection Agreement. Albany became a member of ICLEI - Local Governments for Sustainability in 2007 and the NY State Department of Environmental
Conservation's Climate Smart Communities Program in 2009. The mayor signed a comprehensive executive order that same year in order to formally establish a comprehensive sustainability agenda for the state capital. Albany then completed its greenhouse gas inventory and established a Mayor’s Office of Energy and Sustainability as well as an associated Sustainability Working Group. In July 2011, the City released Albany 2030, a community development road map that makes sustainability a core component of its vision and planning. Albany is currently working on its climate action and adaptation plan and has a number of climate -related initiatives in the works.Binghamton
Binghamton became a signatory to the Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement in 2007 and joined ICLEI in 2009. The city completed a greenhouse gas inventory in 2006 and will soon set an emissions reduction target and develop a climate action plan to reach this target. The city has already installed solar panels on its water treatment plant, and Binghamton University, a signatory of the American College and University Presidents' Climate Commitment (ACUPCC), has drafted its own climate action plan. The City of Binghamton is also partnering with local agencies to implement an energy efficiency outreach program inspired by the Energy Leadership Program of the Tompkins County Cornell Cooperative Extension.
Rochester
Rochester is also a signatory to the Mayors’ Climate Protection Agreement and a member of Climate Communities, ICLEI, the NY Smart Communities Program, and the Climate Registry. The mayor has established 
an interdepartmental Green Team and in 2009 signed a Climate and Environment Protection Resolution, which calls for a greenhouse gas inventory and local climate action plan. City officials expect to begin their work on the climate action plan by the end of the summer, and a number of initiatives are well under way, including greening the city's fleet and reducing the city government's overall energy consumption with HVAC upgrades, efficient lighting systems, US Green Building (LEED) standards, and employee education.
an interdepartmental Green Team and in 2009 signed a Climate and Environment Protection Resolution, which calls for a greenhouse gas inventory and local climate action plan. City officials expect to begin their work on the climate action plan by the end of the summer, and a number of initiatives are well under way, including greening the city's fleet and reducing the city government's overall energy consumption with HVAC upgrades, efficient lighting systems, US Green Building (LEED) standards, and employee education.Syracuse
Syracuse, like Albany, Binghamton, and Rochester, is a member of ICLEI and a signatory to the Mayors' Climate Protection Agreement. Syracuse was the first city in New York to join the Climate Registry and is a member of the NY Climate Smart Communities Program, along with Albany and Rochester. The city achieved its original goal of reducing energy use 20 percent by 2006, and in 2007 Syracuse became one of the first cities in New York to
adopt green building standards for all new construction and major
renovations of city-owned municipal buildings. Syracuse has has taken many positive steps towards sustainability and is in the process of developing its climate action plan. Syracuse University, having signed the ACUPCC, has released its climate action plan, as has SUNY-ESF, which seeks to achieve carbon neutrality by 2015.
