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Getting Ready for Sustainable Jersey Certification
March 18, 2013
Webinar Agenda
• Introductions
• 2013 Certification Cycle
• New Sustainable Jersey website
• Focusing on your Green Team
• Planning for certification
• Case Study: Gloucester Township
• Submitting your application
• Reasons why actions are not approved
• Sustainable Jersey support
• Wrap-Up
Introductions
Sustainable Jersey Staff Presenters • Randy Solomon, Co-Director • John Loyer, Program Assistant • Samantha McGraw, Program Assistant
Guest Presenters • Lori Braunstein, Executive Director, Sustainable Cherry Hill • Michelle Gentek, Camden County Freeholder
Participants • Name and Municipality • Where You Are in Preparing for Certification?
Benefits of Sustainable Jersey Certification
• Certification process guides your town’s work towards sustainability
– Menu of actions and step-by-step guides
– Insights on how to save money and become more sustainable
• Extensive support and training
– Sustainable Jersey training and events
– Connections to partner organizations willing to help
• Priority access and notification on incentives and grants
• Showcase results and gain recognition internally and externally
• Fuels the statewide movement
2013 Certification Cycle
• June 16 – Application Deadline
– Indicate all actions you plan to complete for credit by marking “Ready for Review”
• Mid-July – First Round Review Comments Provided
• September 15th – Revision Deadline to be Eligible for Recognition at the 2013 NJLM Conference
• Mid-October – Second Round Review Comments
• November 13th – Final Application Deadline
• Mid-December – Final Decision on Pending Applications
New Sustainable Jersey Website
• Navigating the website
• Green Team Resources & Presentations Page
• Action “Expiration Dates” noted in your “living” application
• Access the website
– Primary Contact: Same Email address and password
– Others: Sign Up for an Account
• Municipal Dashboard
– Update Application, Municipal Profile, Manage Municipality Users (Owners & Contributors), Download Resolution
Getting Ready for Certification Focusing Your Green Team
Getting Ready for Certification Focusing Your Green Team
Lori Braunstein Founder/Chair Sustainable Cherry Hill
Green Teams
What many people do not realize is that a successful
green team must be built upon a foundation of strong
leadership, clarity of purpose, strategic planning,
communication and more.
Pick a strong leader.
The Green Team should have a clearly defined leader, whose role and responsibilities have been determined and documented.
Having leaders from both the municipal and community sides of the team can be effective.
Create a mission statement.
Everyone involved should have a clear sense of purpose.
The role/scope of the group is best defined as a group exercise with input from diverse interests.
Make a plan. Visit it often.
Achieving certification can take several years.
Having a strategic plan with long and short-term goals helps to keep the team focused and moving forward.
Revisit the plan at each meeting to keep on track.
Divide the work.
While strong leadership is vital to the success of your team, it is helpful to assign other group members tasks such as scheduling meetings, creating agendas, arranging rooms, sending out emails, updating spreadsheets, uploading documents, etc.
This helps decrease leader burn out and enables other group members to take ownership of their roles on the team.
Schedule regular meetings.
Choose a regular meeting time and stick with it.
Creating a yearly meeting schedule and communicating it to members can make the difference between a successful effort and one that gets “fit in” when convenient.
Be clear about how decisions
are made.
Meeting and decision making procedures should
be clearly defined and understood by the group.
Transparency can eliminate power struggles and
hurt feelings.
Think diversity!
Take an honest look at who is on your team.
Does it include representatives from municipal government, residents, businesses, faith groups and schools and reflect the demographics of the town?
The more diverse voices at the table, the more robust and authentic the effort will be.
Get municipal support.
Sustainable Jersey is administered by the municipality, so
your team cannot succeed without municipal support.
Does your team have access to municipal staff or
consultants in the areas of planning, engineering, legal
matters and purchasing?
Be mindful of how partisanship may influence the decisions
or progress of the group.
Communicate…then
communicate some more.
Regular, formal communications should go out to green team members, municipal leadership and the community.
Keeping everyone informed helps everyone celebrate progress and involves others in the process.
Hone your community
organizing skills.
It is vital for the community at large to be aware of and support the efforts of the Green Team.
Create a community outreach plan that includes building email lists, sending out regular communications, hosting educational events and holding a community visioning event.
Don’t do it all yourself.
Your community likely has existing initiatives, resources and programs that may count towards certification.
Look to your environmental commission, shade tree commission, business association or schools.
Research, document and celebrate these efforts.
Network, network, network.
Every community has groups like Rotary Clubs, PTA’s, swim clubs and civic associations that have their own resources.
Visit these groups, ask them to send out your information, have a table at their events and look for every opportunity to connect with assets that already exist in your town.
Connect and learn.
Look for opportunities to connect with your neighbors and others doing this work.
None of us are experts and we all have something we can learn from each other.
Take advantage of the free trainings offered by Sustainable Jersey.
My contact info
Lori Braunstein
Founder/Chair, Sustainable Cherry Hill
609.238.3449
Planning for Certification
Certification Requirements
• Bronze
– Green Team
– 150 Points
– 2 out of 7 priority actions
– 6 out of 16 categories
• Silver
– Green Team
– 350 points
– 3 out of 7 priority actions
– 8 out of 16 categories
Priority Actions
• Inventory and Upgrade All Buildings (50 points)
• Natural Resources Inventory (20 points)
• Energy Management & Tracking (10 points)
• Fleet Inventory (10 points)
• Municipal Carbon Footprint (10 points)
• Sustainable Land Use Pledge (10 points)
• Water Conservation Ordinance (10 points)
Action Categories
• Animals in the Community
• Arts & Culture
• Community Partnership and Outreach
• Diversity & Equity
• Energy Efficiency
• Food
• Green Design
• Greenhouse Gas
• Health & Wellness
• Innovative Demonstration Projects
• Land Use & Transportation
• Local Economies
• Natural Resources
• Operations & Maintenance
• Sustainability Planning
• Waste Management
Develop a Plan
• Get your Green Team organized
• Identify the Sustainable Jersey action you plan to pursue
• Form small groups to work on each specific action and identify a group leader
• Review documentation requirements for each action
• Review materials submitted by other towns
• Develop a list of tasks to complete the action and the associated target dates
• Track progress and adjust plan as needed
• Upload action documentation by June 16th
Most Popular Actions
• Animals in the Community
– Animals in the Community Education (10 points)
– Pledge Supporting NJ Wildlife Action Plan (10 points)
• Community Partnership & Outreach
– Community Education & Outreach (10 points)
– Create a Green Team (10 points)
– Hold a Green Fair (10 points)
• Energy Efficiency
– Inventory and Upgrade All Buildings (50 points)
– Energy Audit for One Building (20 points)
Most Popular Actions
• Food
– Community or School Gardens(10 points)
– Buy Fresh Buy Local Programs (10 points)
– Farmers Markets (10 points)
• Green Design
– Green Building Policy/Resolution (5 points)
– Create a Green Development Checklist (10 points)
– Green Building Education (5 points)
• Health & Wellness
– Anti-Idling Education & Enforcement (10 points)
Most Popular Actions
• Greenhouse Gas
– Municipal Carbon Footprint (10 points)
– Community Carbon Footprint (10 points)
– Wind Ordinance (10 points)
• Innovative Demonstration Projects
– Other 1 and Other 2 (10 points each)
– Raingardens (10 points)
– Solar (10 points)
• Land Use & Transportation
– Complete Streets (20 points)
Most Popular Actions
• Operations & Maintenance
– Adopt Behavioral Policies (5 points)
– Energy-Efficient Appliances or Equipment Purchasing (10 points)
– Green Maintenance Equipment and Materials (10 points)
– Recycled Paper Usage (10 points)
– Green Grounds & Maintenance Policy (10 points)
– Efficient Landscape Design (10 points)
– Recycled Materials and Composting (10 points)
• Natural Resources
– Natural Resources Inventory (20 points)
Most Popular Actions
• Sustainability Planning
– Sustainable Land Use Pledge (10 points)
– Community Asset Mapping (10 points)
– Community Visioning (10 points)
– Sustainable Community Action Plans (10 points)
• Waste Management
– Recycling Actions (5-10 points each)
– Grass – Cut It & Leave It Program (5 points)
Actions to Consider
• Energy Efficiency
– Inventory and Upgrade All Buildings (50 points)
– Direct Install (New) • Outreach Campaign to Local Business Community (10 points)
• Achieving Target Increase in Local Business Participation (10 points)
– Home Performance with Energy Star (New) • Outreach (10 points)
• Municipal Program (20 points)
• Arts/Culture
– Establish a Creative Team (10 points)
Actions to Consider
• Land Use & Transportation
– Complete Streets Program (20 points)
• Operations & Maintenance
– Green Fleets • Fleet Inventory (10 points)
Partners Providing Technical Support
• Transportation Management Associations (TMAs)
• New Jersey Board of Public Utilities Clean Energy Program (NJBPU CEP)
• Association of New Jersey Environmental Commissions
• Citizens Campaign
• Clean Ocean Action
• Mayors Wellness Campaign
• Water Resources Program at Rutgers
Master Action Tracking Spreadsheet
• Download from Website
– On Green Team Resources and Presentations Page accessed under the Actions & Certification heading
• Helpful Planning Tool
– Track progress & checklist for uploading materials
• Spreadsheet Includes:
– Action name, submission requirements, shelf life, resubmission requirements, points
Certification Case Study Gloucester Township
Michelle Gentek Camden County Freeholder Founding Member, Gloucester Township Green Team
Who Should I Add To My Green Team?
• Sustainable Jersey recommends… – Mayor
– Council
– Business Manager
– Zoning Board
– Environmental Comm.
– Planning Board
– Purchasing Dept.
– Buildings & Grounds
– Parks & Recreation
– Shade Tree Comm.
– Transportation
– Utilities
– Youth representatives
– Local Businesses
– Chamber of Commerce
– Civic Organizations
– Faith Communities
– Concerned Citizens
– Nonprofits
– School Board
– County Departments
Green Team Make-Up
• Mayor & Councilwoman • Public Works Director • Township Business Administrator • Township Grants Coordinator • Mayor’s Chief of Staff • Chair of Environmental Committee • Township Webmaster • Green Business Owner • Students & Interns • Resident Representative
Gloucester Township’s Action List
• Create Green Team
• Community Visioning
• Community Asset Mapping
• Hold a Green Fair
• “Green” Your Green Fair
• Green Challenges & Community Programs
• Community Paper Shredding Day
• Recycling Depot
• Farmers Market
• Community Education and Outreach
• Community or School Gardens
• Support Local Businesses
• Green Business Recognition Program
• Adopt Behavioral Policies
• Building Healthier Communities
• Anti-Idling Education & Enforcement Program
• Water Conservation Education Program
• Raingardens
• Companion Animal Management Pledge
• Companion Animal Management Plan
• Fleet Inventory
• Purchase Alternative Fuel Vehicle
• Energy Tracking & Management
• Other – LED lights
• Solar
• Complete Streets Program
• Energy Audits for Municipal Facilities
• Vision Statement and Goals
• Indicators and Targets
• Actions Plans
Sustainable G.T. Organizational Model
Mayor & Sustainable Chairperson
Community Organizations
Mayor’s Chief of Staff
Green Team
Community Members
Business Partners
Actions & Grant Submitter
School Youth Groups
Sustainable G.T. Organizational Model
Partnerships • Partner with pre-existing groups in the community
– Environmental committee • Community Garden
– Farmer’s Market – Blackwood Lake Advisory – Youth Groups – Rotary/Blackwood Kiwanis
• Field of Dreams • Mayor’s Wellness Campaign
– Faith Groups • Green Faith Project • Showing of “Renewal”
– Businesses • Support Local Businesses
– G.T. Scholarship Committee • Green Fair
– School Green Teams – Surrounding Green Teams in Camden County
• Cherry Hill • Camden City • Stratford
Sustainable Jersey’s Master Action List
Download on the Sustainable Jersey website
The Story of How Gloucester Township Became Certified
• Step 1 – Approached mayor by meeting with him and proposing our desire to begin the certification.
• Step 2 – Followed Sustainable Jersey guide to selecting members for the Green Team
• Step 3 – We developed an organizational chart
• Step 4 – Initial meeting with all invited Green Team prospects
• Step 5 – Showed a power point explaining Sustainable Jersey and asked people to consider staying on-board with the Green Team
The Story of How Gloucester Township Became Certified
• Step 6 – Community Visioning meeting with the public, through this meeting and advertising the Sustainable Gloucester Township effort, people were interested in joining the Green Team
• Step 7 – Came up with a mission statement
• Step 8 – The core Green Team reviewed every action and selected the most obtainable actions that the team felt they could accomplish themselves.
The Story of How Gloucester Township Became Certified
• Step 9 – Met with Mayor for guidance on chosen actions and municipal assistance for information and resolutions needed. Asked Mayor about actions which the township may already be doing and for his approval to gather information from the township.
• Step 10 – Met with Green Team, went through actions and set a goal of bronze certification. Planned a timeline of actions and followed the Sustainable Jersey Master Action List which can be downloaded here from the Sustainable Jersey website
The Story of How Gloucester Township Became Certified
• Step 11 – As we completed actions, one Green Team member was designated as the person responsible for uploading narratives and supporting documents for the actions.
• Step 12 – Monthly Green Team meetings continued throughout the year to ensure everyone was on task and to review and plan events.
• Step 13 - Submitted actions before the deadline.
• Step 14 – Waiting for Sustainable Jersey’s feedback. Some of our actions were incomplete or rejected.
The Story of How Gloucester Township Became Certified
• Step 15 – Fixed incomplete actions and resubmitted for Sustainable Jersey’s second review.
• Step 16 – Sustainable Jersey certified the municipality at the bronze level upon second review! Yay!
• Step 17 – In year two, sustained actions, achieved more and received silver certification!
Sustainable Gloucester Township: Bringing Government and Community
together to Create a cleaner, greener Gloucester
Township…
Applying for Certification
Working on Your Application
• Choose “Begin Application” or “Update Application” on Municipal Dashboard
• Use “Training Needed” and “Action Planned” columns Make note of “Approved Actions,” “Completed Actions,” and “Planned Actions” boxes on right hand side of page to track progress
• Think of your application as a living document; a file-cabinet that will constantly change and get updated even after certified
Working on Your Application
• Upload Documentation to verify action was completed – Click on action title
– Input narrative and upload any files
• Maximum 6 files per action
• Individual file size max is 20 MB
• Accepts most file types
– Click “Save Action Submission”
Submitting Your Application • Submit application
– Mark actions that you plan to complete for credit; status will change to “Submitted”
– Recalculate totals in the “Completed Actions” Box and click “Submit”
• Application is locked while under review – Cannot update those actions marked “Submitted”
• Receive Reviewer Comments – Click on Comments at top of application to view all at once
– View comments in individual actions
• Address comments and resubmit – Cannot edit recently “Approved” actions
– Editing of any actions (including “Approved” or “Expired”) turns them back to “In Progress”
Why Actions Are Not Approved Pitfall How to Overcome
Action Implemented Expired/Too old
Review Submission Requirements; Update action as necessary.
Proper documentation not submitted
Double check action submission requirements and documentation uploaded
Misinterpretation of Action Goals Be sure to closely read the “What to Do” and “What to Submit” portion of the action to verify that what you plan on submitting is in line with the intent of the action
Seeking credit for same activity under two different actions
One activity may only be given credit under one action; Have someone that oversees entire application
Not conducting outreach/education component required for many actions
Read the submission “What to Do” and “What to Submit” sections closely
Not completing the prerequisite action
Be sure to read the Introduction to each action and the “What to Submit” section to make sure the action does not have a prerequisite or that it has been completed.
Why Actions Are Not Approved
Sustainable Jersey Support
• Technical Support
– Samantha McGraw: 609-771-2938; [email protected]
• Events & Trainings
– Listed on website (Events & Training Page)
– Ability to add your events
• Join the Sustainable Jersey Mailing List
• Follow Sustainable Jersey on Facebook and Twitter
• Creation of Regional Hubs
• Additional Support Needed?
Wrap-Up
• Additional Questions
• Online Survey
– Link will be emailed to you
– Tell us how we can better serve you
• Webinar Posted on Website
• Thank You for Your Participation
