The city of Geneva is revamping their “Green Committee,” and they want HWS students to become involved.
Geneva’s Green Committee evaluates their city’s operations and community practices making sure they have sustainable impacts. Additionally, they make recommendations to the Geneva City Council on how they can be more sustainable in regards to policy changes or changes to operational practices.
Within the Green Committee, there are five subcommittees that aim to focus on improving the sustainability of different aspects of the city. These are:
The “Alternatives to Synthetics” subcommittee, which “supports the city’s Department of Public Works in its management of city-owned properties without synthetic pesticides and fertilizers, and promotes sustainable practices for all city residents, institutions, and businesses.”
The “Waste Diversion” subcommittee, which “seeks to reduce the city’s waste footprint by encouraging the use of the city’s new Resource Recovery Facility and by promoting the recycling of food wastes, e-wastes, and hazardous wastes as well as all recyclable materials.”
The “De-Icing” subcommittee, which “explores strategies for maintaining safety in the winter while reducing the amount of salt used on city streets and by its businesses, institutions, and residents.”
The “Climate Smart Community” subcommittee, which “seeks to meet the goals for designation as a Climate Smart Community which enables the city to benefit from grant programs.”
Lastly, the “Community Aggregate” subcommittee, which “explores ways the city and its residents, institutions, and businesses can obtain sustainable sources of energy at a reduced cost.”
These subcommittees allow people with any background in Environmental Studies a place in the Green Committee. The committee encourages all individuals with expertise in environmental fields or operations and maintenance practices to apply. This includes Hobart and William Smith students. If you are interested in pursuing a career in Environmental Studies, getting involved with Geneva’s Green Committee would be a great place for you to start getting experience at the local level. The committee meets as needed as long as they have topics to cover on their agenda. They are more than willing to listen to HWS students’ concerns about the sustainability of Geneva and would appreciate any feedback.
The committee is located in City Hall on 47 Castle Street. To contact them, they prefer you use this phone number: 315-828-6550
Additional cell phone numbers and names of those currently serving on the committee can be found on their website: https://cityofgenevany.com/290/Green-Committee
Improving the sustainability of our world starts at the local level, and the Green Committee encourages everyone to start making small changes within their community.