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7 <br /> 4. INFORMATION ITEMS (Written Updates — Not for Specific Discussion) <br /> a) Orange County Climate Action Committee Update <br /> The Orange County Climate Council was established jointly by Orange County, <br /> Carrboro, Chapel Hill, and Hillsborough in the spring and summer of 2019 and the <br /> general membership was approved by all 4 of these governing boards. The Council <br /> elected Mark Marcoplos to serve as Chair for this first year and for Melissa <br /> McCullough of the Sierra Club to serve as Vice-Chair. The Council has met monthly <br /> since its first meeting in September and each meeting has provided greater clarity <br /> and momentum. At the end of 2019, the Council created and staffed two committees <br /> to formalize and carry forward the Council's work coordinating local climate actions <br /> among its members and bringing in national best practices to accelerate progress. <br /> These two committees are: <br /> • Climate Action Reporting — Tracking ongoing climate actions of all Climate <br /> Council partners to coordinate efforts, share successful approaches, and <br /> identify gaps. <br /> • Identity and Standards — Supporting the implementation of climate actions <br /> by communicating unified support and identifying national standards that will <br /> advance and benchmark the climate change work of all Council members. <br /> The Council also intends to establish additional committees, including: <br /> • Monitoring and Evaluation —Assessing the comparative impacts of ongoing <br /> and proposed climate change mitigation and resilience actions in Orange <br /> County. <br /> • Climate Justice Outreach - Focusing attention and resources on the needs <br /> of those most vulnerable to climate change impacts. <br /> A major consideration in the Council's first year has been diverse representation and <br /> equity. In November, the Council voted to adopt the 17 Principles of Environmental <br /> Justice created for the First National People of Color Environmental Leadership <br /> Summit as our guiding environmental justice principles. Adopting these reflects the <br /> Council's intention to have racial equity and climate justice inform all of our <br /> decisions. Four slots of the 30 total slots were reserved for the two Orange County <br /> chapters of the NAACP, and youth representing each school district, UNC, and <br /> Durham Tech have been given an additional 4 slots. In the December meeting the <br /> Council drafted and began refining this mission statement including a focus on <br /> equity: "The Orange County Climate Council accelerates joint action addressing the <br /> climate emergency by sharing successful strategies and identifying opportunities to <br /> equitably reduce greenhouse gas emissions and protect all County residents from <br /> climate impacts." <br /> For minutes from the Council's previous meetings, please go to the Council's <br /> website: https://www.orangecountync.gov/2228/Orange-County-Climate-Council <br /> No Attachments <br />