Power A Clean Future Ohio Launches Equity Coaching for Sustainable Cities Program

(COLUMBUS, OH)—Today, Power A Clean Future Ohio (PCFO) announced it is offering city and local governments the opportunity to participate in the Equity Coaching for Sustainable Cities Program. This program will provide a group of city leaders and staff in 10 Ohio cities the chance to engage with a sponsored equity coach and with one another on the issues of racial equity, access to resources, and representation.

Systemic racism is a pervasive force in institutions across every aspect of our society. It shows up everywhere we look—the environment, public health, education, policing, transportation, housing, food scarcity, and so many other places. Communities and local governments are long overdue to engage in real dialogue and transformation to address racial inequity and identify opportunities to serve each community’s unique needs. This is one resource to help spark that conversation with the local governments that PCFO works with.

"Power a Clean Future Ohio's Equity Coaching Program provides cities the opportunities to bring racial equity into their programming and decision-making,” said Jennifer Sconyers, president and founder of Abundance Leadership Consulting, LLC. “This program is a great opportunity for leaders in their communities to build closer relationships with their city officials, and for cities to deepen their racial equity in the environmental planning, especially as it relates to clean energy.”

This fully-funded in-kind grant program includes: four hours of equity coaching; fully-funded greenhouse gas inventory or fleet inventory and assessment, expert policy recommendations that are equitable, actionable, and affordable; and personal and professional development opportunity for staff.

“On February 10, Power A Clean Future Ohio celebrated its one-year anniversary since we launched this campaign,” said Joe Flarida, executive director of PCFO. “Providing equity coaching and useful sustainability tools in this way is an exciting next step for our work. We are thrilled to provide PCFO Communities access to this unique in-kind grant program and learn and grow together in this work. The ultimate goal of this program is for the local government to implement new strategies and tactics to actively address systemic racism and inequities that will also create a more sustainable, healthier city.”

The program will also provide communities unique benefits and resources to assist in their journey towards a clean energy future. The greenhouse gas inventory will provide cities with a details assessment that shows a baseline of city-wide emissions and how best to prioritize policies to reduce emissions.

In order to reach as many communities as possible, PCFO is looking for dynamic, organized and committed individuals to join its support network and serve as Equity Coaches. The Equity Coach is responsible for providing direct support to municipalities, including video conference coaching sessions with communities to provide training and guidance with regard to embedding equity considerations and practices into municipal decisions, services and operations. For more information on becoming an Equity Coach please see the RFQ details here.

The program is supported through a partnership with the Ohio Mayors Alliance and the Ohio Environmental Council, along with the broad coalition of PCFO Partners. For more information about Equity Coaching for Sustainable Communities Program or how to become an Equity Coach, please visit poweracleanfuture.org/equity-coaching.