I would like to thank the Board of Directors for my appointment as Chair of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative. On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank outgoing Chair Mike Vandersteen for his incredible leadership during what was certainly a very difficult period for the organization and for our cities. As Mayor of Sheboygan, and Chair of the Cities Initiative, Mike provided a steady hand in navigating our organization through the impacts of COVID-19 and providing strong insight into the issues facing our member communities. Read more

First let me inform you that since I am no longer serving as Mayor of Sheboygan, I have stepped down as Chair of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative effective immediately. I will remain on the board as the City of Sheboygan’s proxy for incoming Mayor Sorenson until the next AGM. Read more

Due to the continuing impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, we have decided to make our Annual Conference virtual. The AGM will be over two half-day sessions. Please mark your calendars - Wednesday, August 25 - Thursday, August 26. For further questions please contact admin@glslcities.org.

The Mid-Year Meeting provided an excellent opportunity for municipal leaders across the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River to speak directly with federal representatives on several critical issues.  Read more

The Biden Administration announced an expansive and groundbreaking infrastructure proposal on March 31. The Administration’s proposal includes more than $2 trillion in funding over the next 15 years. Read more

CHICAGO, April 29, 2021 – The Mayors Commission on Water Equity requests $58 billion to create a cross-agency “Lead Safe Communities” fund to support state programs to replace lead service lines and lead plumbing, fixtures, and paint in homes and schools. Read more

On April 29, 2021, the Cities Initiative’s Mayors Commission on Water Equity convened a briefing for Members of Congress and staff to present a suite of funding priorities to strengthen water equity for Great Lakes cities (see the funding priorities here). The Commission’s key message was that Congress has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to ensure every American has safe, reliable water and wastewater services. A complete recording of the briefing is on the Cities Initiative’s website along with remarks from mayors from Flint, Mich., Detroit, Mich., and Milwaukee, Wisc. View videos

St. Catharines, ON, 20 April 2021 – St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik, Vice-Chair of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, responded to the Government of Canada’s Budget 2021. Read more

St. Catharines, ON, 16 April 2021 – St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik, Vice-Chair of the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative, spoke before the House of Commons Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure, and Communities on the need for targeted infrastructure funding for shoreline communities, asking for $2.2 Billion for the Canada Water Agency and $7 Billion in shoreline infrastructure funding to address climate change and build for the future. Read more

The Cities Initiative’s Mayors Commission on Water Equity continues to develop recommendations for strengthening water equity in Great Lakes cities. The Commission is focusing on needs in four key areas: lead contamination, water affordability, water workforce development, and urban flooding. Read more

Wege Small Cities Sustainability Best Practices Award: The world’s largest source of surface freshwater is in peril and needs leadership to protect it. While large cities often have more resources to act, small cities – with populations under 100,000 – often do not. The Wege Small Cities Sustainability Best Practices Award program awards $5,000 to one small Cities Initiative member city in the U.S. or Canada working to protect the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River and improve the quality of the water resource for future generations.  Read more

Each year the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Cities Initiative releases our resolutions to governing bodies and the general public notifying them of the important issues and initiatives we will be working on over the next year. The resolutions also guide us as an organization by directing us on a set of issues we will work on. Read more

“We were very excited to receive so many solid resolutions this year,” said Mayor Easton, the Chair of the Cities Initiative Operations Committee.  Read more