ICLEI USA partnered with the City of Olympia, WA, to lead a climate action planning workshop for City staff and community stakeholders.
Olympia, a member of the ICLEI network since 1991, has been actively engaged in climate action over several decades, implementing a variety of policies and programs. The City’s prior work includes efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, enhance energy efficiency, and prepare for the impacts of sea level rise. By setting ambitious climate goals and maintaining momentum, Olympia has demonstrated its commitment to sustainability and resilience, positioning itself as a climate leader.
The October 25 workshop supports the City’s work on a new “climate element” to be included in its comprehensive plan update, Olympia 2045. Washington state legislation passed in 2023 (HB1181) requires Washington city and county governments to include climate elements in their comprehensive plans. Olympia’s climate element includes sub-elements focused specifically on climate resilience and greenhouse gas reductions. The workshop built on ICLEI USA’s and Olympia’s prior climate action and resilience work, including a greenhouse gas inventory, wedge analysis, and climate risk and vulnerability assessment.
Workshop attendees collaboratively identified goals and policies for the climate element. During the workshop, ICLEI USA and Olympia’s climate team familiarized participants with findings from the climate risk and vulnerability assessment and greenhouse gas inventory, and provided a process overview and resources for identifying climate element goals and policies.
In the coming months, the climate team will hold multiple rounds of review and feedback to fine-tune goals and policies with city staff and community stakeholders. The final set of goals and policies will be integrated into the Olympia 2045 Comprehensive Plan, slated for release in 2025.
