Color Your Community Green
Advancing Climate Solutions at the Community Level
Our municipalities are the small but mighty building blocks of our region and state, and also of regional and statewide climate action. These towns, villages, and cities possess a great deal of authority and autonomy in “home rule” New York, meaning that much of the climate progress needed in our region can only happen when municipalities take action.
This is why the Climate Solutions Accelerator is mobilizing climate action across the nine-county Genesee-Finger Lakes Region through the Color Your Community Green (CYCG) initiative. Inspired by Accelerator member organization Color Brighton Green, CYCG aims to connect and organize concerned individuals, by the community, to form a network of climate-focused citizen action teams that will:
Identify locally relevant, high-impact climate solutions and develop strategies to move those solutions forward using the CYCG “Toolkit” (see below);
Advocate for environmental justice and equitable climate solutions to be implemented at the municipal level;
Determine the best path forward for their community, with support from the Accelerator, fellow CYCG teams, and other climate organizations in the region.
Color Your Community Green Toolkit
1. Mission, Objectives, Values / 2. Team Directory / 3. Getting Started / 4. Team Roles, Responsibilities, and Decision-making / 5. How to be an Anti-Racist and an Ally for Environmental and Climate Justice / 6. Sample Meeting Agendas / 7. Municipality Assessment Worksheet / 8. My Elected Officials Worksheet / 9. Lobby Meeting Plan / 10. Technology and Support Skills / 11. Hybrid Meeting Guide / 12. Building Energy Efficiency and Electrification 13. Transportation and Land Use 14. Clean Energy Communities and Climate Smart Communities 15. Opening a Team Bank Account
CYCG efforts have been launched across multiple communities throughout the Genesee-Finger Lakes Region! Get connected to or start a CYCG team in your municipality or neighborhood by submitting our interest form below.
Informational video about Color Your Community Green
Two Penfield, New York residents explain Color Your Community Green in this short testimonial-informational video
Color Your Community Green Intro Webinar
E-Newsletter
Find out what projects CYCG teams are working on and what events are coming up.
Color Your Community Green Vision
Our vision is to have a CYCG team in every municipality in the Genesee-Finger Lakes Region, working to create and train a network of citizens who are empowered to take on systems-level, high impact environmental solutions with a focus on climate. Teams will be able to act independently and determine the best path forward for their community while having the support of other CYCG teams and climate organizations in the region. They are encouraged to share best practices and lessons learned with other CYCG members.
CYCG is guided by the values of respect, inclusion, nonpartisanship, solutions focus, collaboration, science, and commitment to social, racial, economic, environmental, and intergenerational justice.
CYCG Training in May 2023
Learn more about the efforts of communities taking action for climate solutions!
Color Your Community Green Interest/Inquiry Form
Thank you for your interest in Color Your Community Green! Complete and submit our volunteer interest/inquiry form, and we’ll be back in touch soon to get you the information you seek and get you connected. You can also contact the Color Your Community Green coordinator via email at brady@climategfl.org.
“I've really enjoyed being a part of the Climate Solutions Accelerator's latest initiative, Color Your Community Green (CYCG)... Through these small but mighty groups, the voices of individual climate advocates are amplified and greater change becomes possible.”
— Katie Rygg, Collaboration Team Member; Member organization liaison (Citizens Climate Lobby)
