Welcome to the Dutchess Climate Action Planning Institute

Welcome to the Dutchess County Climate Action Planning Institute!

On this site you will find information related to the Dutchess CAPI Cohort 2023-2024 16-month CAPI program. At any time, if you are not sure what you should be working on, you can refer back to this web site for guidance.

For CAPI programmatic or administrative assistance, please contact Mary Lambert: mlambert@hudsonvalleyrc.org, 845-595-8684. Schedule a virtual meeting with Mary.
For CAPI technical assistance: please contact Kale Roberts at iclei-usa@iclei.org, 845-464-3682. Schedule a virtual meeting with Kale.

Background

The Climate Action Planning Institute (CAPI) is a facilitated, collaborative working group through which a select group of local governments develop individual government operations greenhouse gas emissions inventories (“GOGHGI”) and government operations climate action plans (“GOCAP”).

The Hudson Valley Regional Council (HVRC) in partnership with ICLEI (Local Governments for Sustainability), will be leading Dutchess CAPI. Nine municipalities will together take a collaborative approach to climate mitigation and help bring State funding to the region for important projects.

Participating municipalities:

Dutchess County
City of Beacon
City of Poughkeepsie
Town of Amenia
Town of Pleasant Valley
Town of Poughkeepsie
Town of Rhinebeck
Village of Rhinebeck
Village of Wappingers Falls

2023-2024 Cohort Meeting Schedule: Dutchess CAPI Cohort Meetings will be held on: January 18th, February 15th, March 15th, April 19^th, May 17^th, June 21^st, July 19^th, August 16^th, September 20^th, October 18^th, November 15^th., January 17th, February 21st, March 20th, April 17th.

Meeting #1: Kick-off (1/18/23)

This in-person Kick-off meeting covered the basics of a government operations greenhouse gas inventory and government operations climate action plan, as well as an overview of the CAPI process, timeline, and benefits. It was an opportunity to meet the other cohort participants and engage with and ask questions to your CAPI leaders. Project management and match tracking were covered. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #2: Data Gathering (2/15/23)

This meeting covered Government Operations Greenhouse Gas Inventories (GOGHGI) including emissions factors, emission scopes, global warming potentials, and data sectors. The main focus was the data gathering process by sector, including a more detailed review of how to collect data for each sector and the sample data request templates. Climate Smart Communities (CSC) requirements and outreach and engagement planning were also covered. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #3: Making Sense of Data (3/15/23)

This meeting covered a sector-by-sector deep dive into ICLEI's excel workbook and a synopsis of data related questions and answers that have come up to date. Also covered: an overview of climate communications, i.e. effective ways to package and communicate climate-related data for broader audiences. Lastly, the municipalities shared experiences, challenges, and lessons learned in small group cohort breakout rooms. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #4: ClearPath Deep Dive (4/19/23)

This meeting covered a sector-by-sector deep dive into ICLEI's Clear Path tool. The Town of North East/Village of Millerton also presented on how their Government Operations Greenhouse Gas Inventories informed their joint Government Operations Climate Action Plan. Recent inventory related questions and answers were covered, and participants discussed how their inventories were progressing in small group breakout rooms. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #5: Inventory Report Deep Dive (5/17/23)

This meeting covered tips and guidance for ICLEI's government operations GHG inventory (GOGHGI) report template, as well as a review of example GOGHGIs from neighboring municipalities. The municipalities discussed progress in breakout rooms and frequently asked questions and answers from office hours were shared. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #6: Inventory Presentations and Emissions Forecasting (6/21/23)

Municipalities who had competed their inventories in ClearPath shared results at this meeting. Michelle Gluck from Ulster County also presented on Ulster County's Government Operations GHG inventory and Climate Action Plan. The Village of Rhinebeck and the Village of Wappingers Falls presented their inventory results. An introduction to forecasting in ICLEI's ClearPath tool was also covered in this meeting. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #7: In-Person Presentations and Reduction Strategies (7/19/23)

The Cohort heard inventory presentations from the Town of Pleasant Valley, the Town of Amenia, and the City of Poughkeepsie. Cohort participants engaged in a high impact action brainstorming and prioritization exercise. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #8: Business as Usual Forecasting and Stakeholder / Public Engagement (8/16/23)

Municipal emissions inventories were presented by the Town of Poughkeepsie, Dutchess County, and the City of Beacon. Caroline from ICLEI presented on the ClearPath emissions forecasting wizard to forecast a Business as Usual (BAU) forecast. Mary went over the Outreach and Engagement Planning doc and reviewed frequently asked questions. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #9: GOCAP Goals, Objectives and Strategies: Resources for Drafting a GOCAP (9/20/23)

Government operations climate action plan (GOCAP) goals, objectives and high impact strategies were covered, as well as useful resources and planning tools for drafting a GOCAP. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #10: Prioritizing GOCAP Strategies and Engaging Stakeholders (10/18/23)

Caroline reviewed the business-as-usual forecast and how to model reduction measures in ClearPath. Cohort participants engaged in a high impact action prioritization exercise, as well as a discussion on stakeholder engagement. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #11: Stakeholder Engagement and Reduction Measure Modeling (11/15/23)

*In-person Meeting* The Village of Rhinebeck will be presenting on reduction measure modeling in ClearPath. Cohort participants will engage in a stakeholder engagement exercise. Kale will be discussing climate communications in greater depth. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #12: Climate Action Plan Template and Reduction Measure Modeling Q & A (1/17/24)

Guest presenter Carole Upshur spoke (on Zoom) about the Village of Bronxville's Government Operations Climate Action Plan. Continued guidance was provided on the Climate Action Plan template and reduction measure modelling in ClearPath.

Meeting #13: Climate Action Plan Presentations from Cohort (3/20/24)

The results of the municipal climate action plans were presented by the Village of Rhinebeck, The Town of Rhinebeck, and the Village of Wappingers Falls to the cohort. Mary gave an update on available resources, timing, tips, and potential funding through the EPA's Climate Pollution Reduction Grant program. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #14: Climate Action Plan Presentations from Cohort (4/17/24)

GOCAP Presentations from Town of Pleasant Valley and the City of Poughkeepsie. Caroline discussed challenges and recommendations on effectively implementing aclimate action plan. Lastly, cohort participants discussed challenges and lessons learned to date in mini-cohort breakout rooms. Click here for more detail.

Meeting #15: Climate Action Plan Presentations from Cohort (5/15/24)

In this final meeting, Devin Rigolino (Dutchess County), Carla Castillo (HVRC) and Kale Roberts (ICLEI) discussed the cohort program, and the group's learnings and accomplishments. The Town of Amenia, Town of Poughkeepsie, City of Beacon, and Dutchess County all presented on their GOCAP. Lastly, cohort participants filled out feedback surveys on the CAPI program, and Mary recognized individuals and the cohort municipalities for their unique achievements and contributions. Click here for more detail.

Thank you to the DEC Office of Climate Change, ICLEI, the guest speakers, and all the participants!

All cohort deliverables will be posted to the CAPI Deliverables Web Site.

Background documents

Program resources for CAPI Part 1 (Greenhouse Gas Inventory)

Program resources for CAPI Part 2 (Climate Action Plan)

Examples of Government Operations Greenhouse Gas Inventory Reports

Examples of Government Operations Climate Action Plans

Visual Aids: Infographics Templates and Data Visualizations

CAPI Required Dutchess Cohort Deliverables

Dutchess CAPI has been funded in part by the Climate Smart Communities Grant Program, Title 15 of the Environmental Projection Fund through the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation.

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