This resource hub has provided real-world examples of equity and climate synergies as well as top level questions to apply to any climate action plan. It also examined specific climate actions through an equity lens. The following points are additional recommendations for enhancing equity synergies.
At a minimum, municipalities should:
- Identify equity synergies within their climate action plan
- Maintain transparency and accountability
To go further, municipalities might also:
- Create a Climate and Equity Working Group to take the lead on this work
- Working groups should involve community members and municipal staff, and include individuals of diverse genders, ethnicities, ages, religions, and abilities
- Create a Climate Justice Charter to guide staff, which might include:
- An articulation of climate equity and justice objectives
- Tangible actions for staff to undertake when creating policy or program development to ensure equity is at the forefront
- Specific measures for ensuring accountability and transparency
- A methodology to analyse climate budget spending through an equity lens to understand the portion of funding spent on policies and programs that benefit Indigenous people, racialized groups, and/or other equity-seeking communities
- Prioritize the following actions to promote transparency:
- Maintain a comprehensive, public website to share progress on action plan strategies and solicit feedback
- Meet routinely with your Climate and Equity Working Group or Task Force to solicit input, review data, and provide ongoing feedback on progress and challenges
- Meet with and solicit input from residents in an ongoing dialogue about climate action projects, priorities and safety concerns
- Seek opportunities for third party assessment of your progress (see the equity reviews shared earlier), and report regularly to key stakeholders, decision making bodies, and the public
- Ensure that all educational and informational materials are provided in diverse languages (e.g., multilingual flyers, pop-up information tents within the community, multilingual options on the city website, working with community-based organizations)
See here for more recommendations.