Holding diverse institutions accountable for a shared commitment for sustainable action

Faye Snodgress Apr 19, 2021 19:37 pm

This fall the Hoosier Interfaith Power and Light, an Indiana organization, https://hoosieripl.org/ will host a Climate Summit. Our current focus is on reducing energy usage and increasing energy efficiency. I am looking for examples and/or recommendations of tools we might use to hold the institutions accountable and increase the probability that they will indeed follow-through on the shared commitments made during the Summit. A state proclamation will be developed as part of the event to hand over to policymakers, use with the media, etc. Thanks in advance for any assistance you might provide!

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Julie Cook Kitchener Jun 11, 2021 15:30 pm

Hello Faye,

I've just viewed your website. It looks like you already have some helpful tools to use for institutions who are interested in reducing energy use and/or increasing energy efficiency. That's great!

Here are some additional recommendations:

Make sure the commitments made are SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-based). It would be best for institutions to make smaller commitments in the short term so that they will have one or two small wins that they can publicize as they build up to larger goals. These SMART commitments should be directly connected to the desired outcome (i.e. less energy use or less carbon emissions)
Commitments are most effective when they are written and made public
Decision makers need to perceive that there are clear benefits to making these commitments. In the energy sector, there are often strong arguments to be made for how much money will be saved by making particular commitments.
Economic arguments are not enough, however. Decision makers, just like anyone else, need to be inspired. You can inspire them through creating a sense of community and shared identity, so that the leaders attending the Summit believe themselves to be people who care about the environment. Group commitments work well when there is a strong sense of community cohesion.
If their commitments involve changing behaviour (in addition to infrastructure changes), make sure that they all understand the basics of community-based social marketing. That is, they need to understand that information and awareness campaigns are rarely enough to change behaviour.
Get creative. Draw the media in with stories that are interesting and inspiring, and that create a sense of novelty about what you're doing. The New Nordic Food movement, for example, created events that combined Nordic food identity with music, art, and even furniture design.
Use social media to maintain connections with decision makers after the Summit, and establish "liaisons": people whose job it is (whether paid or voluntary) to check progress and follow through once the Summit is over.
Consider holding another Summit in two years from now that will give decision makers a chance to meet with their community again, report back on progress made, and learn something new. This will be most effective if the attendees have a fantastic experience at this year's Summit.

I hope this helps,

Julie

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