Power A Clean Future Ohio News

November 4, 2021

Our Mission: Power A Clean Future Ohio is building momentum now for a clean, prosperous future by equipping local leaders for equitable, community-driven carbon reductions in Ohio.

Local Action Update:

Montgomery County Becomes 22^nd PCFO Community

At last week's Montgomery County Board of County Commissioners meeting, the County Commissioners unanimously adopted a resolution to join Power a Clean Future Ohio, furthering the County’s commitment to reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the communities it serves.

PCFO will work with local leaders to provide technical assistance and partnerships to help County staff as they review and update the Dayton Regional Green initiative and implement the five-year sustainability plan.

Montgomery County became the 22nd community to join Power a Clean Future Ohio and is the second County to join.

“We have looked forward to doing this for quite some time,” said Montgomery County Commission President Judy Dodge. “By implementing this plan and working with Power a Clean Future Ohio, we are securing a better future for all of our citizens. We look forward to seeing the results this partnership with PCFO will bring.”

Montgomery County Commissioner Carolyn Rice said, “Power a Clean Future Ohio is an expansive coalition of advocates and policy experts that can provide real support and critical tools and resources to our work in the region. We are thrilled to have them assist the county as we take a long-term view to be best positioned for the inevitable transition to an electric and green fleet. Their fleet analysis will help us draft a comprehensive and fiscally responsive solution that includes charging infrastructure alongside a fleet transition plan.”

Plans for an electric fleet are already in the works. Construction began in August on the new Western Regional Courthouse in Trotwood. The buildout will include two electric vehicle charging stations.

“Montgomery County will continue to play a leading role in maintaining a healthy and sustainable environment for our residents as we keep looking for ways to integrate renewable energy into the County’s operations,” said Montgomery County Commissioner Debbie Lieberman. “We support infrastructure investments into County operations. We hope agencies and organizations across the County will also look for ways to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.”

For more information on how to become a PCFO community, check out our toolkit.

PCFO Champions Win Big on Election Night

PCFO’s collaborative work with local governments means we were excited to see the results of Tuesday’s local elections across the state. A number of PCFO communities held elections for mayor and city council. The results on Tuesday showed that voters overwhelmingly supported the clean energy and environmental champions that we have had the opportunity to work with over the past two years. Congratulations to all who won and all who put their name on the ballot to offer their time and leadership to support their community.

Tuesday’s results included an exciting slate of well-established PCFO champions:

Sharetta Smith was elected Mayor of Lima and Kahlil Seren was elected to be the first Mayor of Cleveland Heights. In Toledo, Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz won reelection and Toledo City Councilmember Nick Komives was also reelected.

We saw a number of other clean energy champions win reelection to city council seats including Tristan Rader and Tom Bullock for Lakewood City Council, Stacie Baker for Reynoldsburg City Council, David Robinson for Worthington City Council, and Sean Dunne for Portsmouth City Council. In Sandusky, Dennis Murray won reelection to the City Commission.

We also saw newly elected mayors in some PCFO Communities who have demonstrated their commitment to climate action, clean energy, and environmental justice. Justin Bibb will be the next Mayor of Cleveland, Aftab Pureval will be the next Mayor of Cincinnati, and Jeffrey Mims won the race to be the next Mayor of Dayton.

PCFO looks forward to continuing our exciting work in collaboration with these elected leaders and in community with the voters and residents that gave them the opportunity to lead!

DC Fast Charging Grant Program for Ohio EPA

The Ohio Environmental Protection Agency (Ohio EPA) is looking for applications for grants under its Diesel Mitigation Trust Fund (DMTF) program to help fund the installation of publicly available DC Fast Charging (DCFC) Electric Vehicle (EV) charging stations in 26 Ohio priority counties.

For chargers located on Government-Owned Property, Ohio EPA will provide up to 100% of eligible project costs. For chargers located on Non-Government Owned Property, Ohio EPA will provide up to 80% of eligible project costs.

Applications are due via email to evcharging@epa.ohio.gov no later than January 31, 2022. You can find the request for proposal here that provides more information.

Ohio Climate Justice Fund Announces Latest Grant Award Recipients

The Ohio Climate Justice Fund (OCJF) recently announced the recipients of their second round of grants designed to build power through community conversations centering on environmental justice and equitable climate solutions.

The Ohio Climate Justice Fund, which launched in May, is an initiative investing in Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) organizations in Ohio, working at the intersection of racial justice and climate action. The OCJF was created to help move Ohio toward a just and inclusive clean energy economy.

The cohort of grant award recipients include:

Community Concerned Citizens – Warren

Global Shapers Cleveland – Cleveland

Greater Dayton Union Cooperative Initiative Inc. (dba Co-op Dayton) – Dayton

Healing Spaces – Cleveland

Journey on Yonder LLC – Cleveland

Mitsui Collective – Cleveland

Pendleton Heritage Center – Cincinnati

Village of Healing – Cleveland

YWCA Dayton – Dayton

Upcoming Events

PCFO Community, City of Cleveland, will be joining the Sustainable Innovation Forum during COP26 on November 9 at 10:45 a.m. Tune in to hear Cleveland's Chief of Sustainability Jason Wood and fellow international panelists discuss innovative ways cities across the globe are tackling climate action. RSVP here.

Ohio Climate Justice Fund will be hosting more Listen. Lead. Share events as they welcome their new cohort of grantees. Listen. Lead. Share. is a statewide grassroots campaign that allows grantees the opportunity to host public conversations with community members and stakeholders about the best and most effective ways to address climate and environmental justice in their communities.

To attend these sessions, visit their website for event postings.

Job Postings

Now hiring a PCFO Deputy Director. Power a Clean Future Ohio in partnership with the Ohio Environmental Council are seeking a Deputy Director for Power a Clean Future Ohio The Deputy Director will be responsible for engaging current PCFO Communities and working collaboratively with local partners to help cities and local governments meet their clean energy goals. View the job posting here.

Interested in getting started? Join today!

PCFO is an expansive, diverse coalition engaging with cities and local governments across the state of Ohio to build a clean future for our communities. Power A Clean Future Ohio is empowering local leaders with tools and resources to create carbon reduction plans and implement them in ways that are achievable, measurable, equitable and economical.

Our coalition of expert organizations wants to share our technical expertise and resources with your community. If your community wants to work on plans to reduce emissions, attract business investment, implement equitable clean energy policy, and reduce costs – contact us today to set up a meeting!

If your business or organization would like to support PCFO, we invite you to join the campaign as a PCFO Partner. Contact us for more details.

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