Countless reports, toolkits, studies, and other resources have been published on equity and climate synergies. Rather than reinventing the wheel, consider the sample language below, which provides excellent examples for how to frame equity and climate synergies.

From Benefits of Actions to Reduce GHG Emissions in Toronto:

• The municipality recognizes that climate change is an economic, equity and quality of life issue and that taking action to mitigate climate change can generate significant benefits in health, social equity, economic prosperity and climate resilience. However, the ability to reliably understand and communicate these benefits is a leading challenge that cities face. Quantifying these benefits is an important step in reporting progress, measuring success, and guiding implementation to maximize such benefits.
• Over two-thirds of global greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions come from cities, and urban residents will bear many of the costs of inaction on climate, such as extreme weather impacts. At the same time, cities are increasingly playing a pivotal leadership role in climate action, since they are uniquely placed to implement on-the-ground solutions.
• By supporting the growth of new skilled labour, well-designed climate action also presents an opportunity to support the development of a future-ready workforce.
• The municipality is committed to designing climate actions to maximize their benefit to equity-seeking and vulnerable groups by applying an equity lens to program design. Populations with a lower socio-economic status face intersecting barriers and disadvantages related to energy use. Climate action presents opportunities to develop a more equal and inclusive city by directing economic benefits to equity-seeking and vulnerable groups.

From TransformTO: Climate Action for a Healthy, Equitable & Prosperous Toronto:

• The Climate Action Plan is grounded in the idea that reducing GHG emissions is not only necessary to avoid the worst effects of climate change, but that climate actions can also achieve multiple community-wide objectives.

From Modelling Toronto's Low Carbon Future:

• In many cases, actions that reduce GHG emissions in municipalities correspond or directly overlap with actions that create a vibrant cityscape, improve public health outcomes, reduce municipal operating and capital costs, and support innovation; these are no-regrets policies. Actions that reduce GHGs are synergistic with a wide range of other public goods, and in fact, these actions can be justified from the perspective of any of a number of public goods. One review of more than a dozen studies on GHG mitigation policies found that the co-benefits of reduced air pollution - a single co-benefit - often equaled or exceeded the benefit of the GHG reduction itself.
• The co-benefits of an evidence-based climate action plan suggest that it could equally, and as successfully, be an economic development strategy, a healthy city plan, a competitiveness and innovation plan, a City fiscal management plan, an active transportation strategy, and an energy plan, all rolled up into one. With careful consideration, the climate action plan can also be a poverty alleviation strategy, and an inclusion strategy.
• The municipality defines equity as 'not only equal access to opportunities but equal benefits as well. It requires the removal of systemic barriers and the accommodation of differences so that individuals can benefit equally.' The municipality defines access alongside equity as: 'people from diverse groups gaining equal opportunity to the use of goods, services, programs, facilities, public spaces and participation in social, economic, cultural and political life.'
• There is increasing discussion on co-benefits of city-scale climate change mitigation efforts, in recognition that actions that reduce greenhouse gas emissions can also provide other benefits, and that illustrating these benefits can increase climate action plan effectiveness. Consideration also needs to be given to potential co-harms, and understanding and exploring these impacts is critical to advancing sustainable development.
• Actions that achieve a low carbon community can vastly improve the lives of many residents and strengthen communities.
• Empowering marginalized populations to be active decision-makers in how their communities grow is an important factor of delivering climate change actions in effective, non-discriminatory manners. Additionally, public investments, programs and policies that meet the needs of marginalized populations while reducing racial disparities should be prioritized.

From Integrating Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Into Municipal Climate Action:

• As local governments, we must ensure many different voices are heard in the planning process and that the benefits that come from the solutions put in place to reduce GHG emissions are equitably distributed. We should strive to ensure our actions don't have unintended consequences that exacerbate EDI (equity, diversity and inclusion) considerations.

From Vision, Strategies, Action: Guidelines for an Effective Vision Action Plan:

• While data is important, it also needs context and usually does not tell the full story on its own. For example, communities that have been systematically marginalized may be less likely to report incidents to authorities. Additionally, some locations feel so dangerous and unwelcoming that people avoid walking or biking there, which means they are not elevated as problem spots with high injuries, but still may deserve attention. Depending on data alone will leave gaps in your strategy and may compound inequities in already underserved communities. To gather an accurate picture, a successful and equitable data-driven approach will require both collecting data as well as a robust community engagement process that prioritizes outreach in Communities of Concern.

From Renewable Regina: Putting Equity Into Action:

• An equity lens shouldn't be seen as some luxury add-on; rather, it is a tool to ensure the just distribution of climate protection efforts to all city residents. Moreover, failure to adopt an equity lens in planning can frustrate and even undermine citywide sustainability efforts.