The Sierra Club of Canada is taking its Cool Cities campaign across the country, stopping in Calgary on May 26. The goal of the tour is to reduce Canada’s contribution to global climate change by initiating action by municipal governments.

What kind of action? Solutions fall in three categories: green vehicle fleets — greening city vehicles with hybrid cars and clean buses; efficiency — such as using energy-efficient lighting throughout the city, making new buildings more energy efficient and retrofitting existing buildings; Renewable Energy — which includes introducing renewable energy standards and requiring an increase in the percentage of wind- or solar-generated electricity.

The Canadian campaign is modelled on the U.S. Cool Cities campaign developed by Sierra Club in the U.S. in 2005, and some U.S. cities have major green initiatives underway. In Seattle, the government reduced global warming pollution by more than 60 per cent by constructing green buildings and operating alternative-fuel vehicles. In Minnesota, the majority of the buildings in downtown Saint Paul are heated using a combined heat and power (CHP) system.

On a scale of one to five, with five being the most environmentally progressive, Calgary is currently a three on the “cool” scale. This means that we have made a formal commitment to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, but have a long way to go.

More information about the Cool Cities campaign is available at www.coolcities.ca.