In the face of rising heat and environmental challenges related to climate change, the Baltimore Office of Sustainability is working with local partners to implement neighborhood-focused climate solutions. From real-time weather tracking to water access and education, the office is helping communities prepare for and respond to the effects of global warming.
"Our work is broadly focused on making Baltimore more sustainable, more equitable and more resilient," said Ava Richardson, director of the Baltimore Office of Sustainability. "We implement more than 600 actions through three primary plans, including the city's Climate Action Plan, Sustainability Plan and Disaster Preparedness Plan."
The office engages thousands of residents through public meetings, a monthly newsletter and citywide pilot programs focused on waste reduction, green spaces and education.
"We really think it's important to hold ourselves accountable and be transparent to the public about where the city is making progress and where we may not be making progress," Richardson said. "And also really engaging people to educate folks about what they can do every day."
That outreach includes close partnerships with faith institutions like Allen AME Church, led by Pastor Brenda White, who also founded the nonprofit Pathway Forward. For the past two years, the church and nonprofit have collaborated with the Office of Sustainability to serve as a resiliency hub in West Baltimore.
"One of the major things is making sure the public has access to water during the extreme heat," said White. "We operate during the summer months when there is a code red, and we provide cold water and cooling space for the general public to help with their health and well-being."
Both the Office of Sustainability and Allen AME Church are collaborating with Johns Hopkins University in a long-term climate research project, which helps track the effects of extreme heat and supports better-informed climate solutions in Baltimore's neighborhoods. The weather station at AME Church is just one of the Office of Sustainability's 40 weather stations across the city.
"We are one of few faith-based entities in Baltimore that have a live feed weather station," Rev. White said. "This is a five-year project studying real-time temperatures in the city across all seasons, and the public can check the data online."
The station is part of a larger initiative to understand and reduce the urban heat island effect in Baltimore's most vulnerable neighborhoods. Richardson said those neighborhoods are the office's priority when implementing plans and rolling out resources.
"We are connecting with communities who are most impacted by climate change. We want to make sure our most vulnerable populations are factored into every step of the process," she said. "There's also a lot we can do for the environment through the millions of daily decisions we each make, whether it's food waste reduction or going car-free one day a week."
Richardson emphasized the importance of environmental justice and equity across all their plans. The Climate Action Plan includes 10 guiding principles that begin with centering equity. That includes engaging marginalized and climate-vulnerable communities when designing and rolling out policies.
"When the bag ban passed, we deployed and disseminated free reusable bags to residents across the city," Richardson said. "We understood the challenge that some people may have, whether it's remembering to bring their bags or having to pay for them."
Rev. White emphasized the broad reach of their work.
"We have a community garden and water access for all of West Baltimore," she said. "We don't turn anyone away."
Richardson said these partnerships are vital.
"We all have an incredible role to play in our environment," she said. "We all contribute to it and we all benefit from it. So advocate for protecting your spaces and your environment for the betterment of yourself and your community."