AMAZING CITIES

Amazing Cities Newsletter

Volume Eight

December 2007

In This Issue

Why Should Cities Care?

Amazing Mayor

Amazing Cities goes Green

Speaker, Trainer, Consultant

WHY SHOULD CITIES CARE ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENT

As we struggle to provide services and keep our cities safe, we know that tax dollars are not becoming more plentiful. Why not save energy and save money at the same time. We are committed to finding new and exciting ways to solve these energy issues.

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AMAZING

MAYOR

Mayor Greg Nickels

This month's Amazing Mayor is Greg Nickles of Seattle, Washington.

Mayor Nickels is known for his commitment to environmental protection. In 2005, Nickels announced an "Environmental Action Agenda" with the goal of protecting air quality and public health. The primary goal of the agenda is to reduce Seattle's greenhouse gas emissions "to meet or beat" the levels stipulated in the Kyoto protocols. Nickels spearheaded the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement, an accord between over 600 US cities committed to reducing greenhouse emissions. Nickels won the 2006 Climate Protection Award from the Environmental Protection Agency, the 2006 Edgar Wayburn Award for Environmental leadership from the National Sierra Club, and the 2006 National Conservation Achievement Award from the National Wildlife Federation.

Dear James,

Greetings, this issue of the Amazing Cities Newsletter closes out a tremendous year. We have grown to over 5000 suscribers and have become a trusted resource for hundreds of city officials. We will continue to research inovative ways to improve municipal governance and our travels will take us throughout the country and some exciting adventures our of the country. Stay tuned, we have only just begun.

Jim Hunt, Founder of Amazing Cities

AMAZING CITIES GOES GREEN!!!

You will notice a new look at Amazing Cities. We are going green. This decision was fairly easy to make. We simply cannot continue to waste energy and resources. Who would leave a water fountain running or a lightbulb burning if it were not needed? Cities use billions of dollars of energy each year and if we can impact this usage, we can save tax dollars and contribute to a greener enviroment. What are some ways cities can go green?

Vehicle Usage-One of the biggest users of energy by cities is the vehicle fleets. A concerted effort towards energy efficency can result in massive savings. Since most usage by city staff, excluding emergency vehicles, is daily, planned trips. Flex fuel, electric, and hybrids can save thousands of dollars of energy usage.
Lighting-New technologies, such as compact flouresent and induction lighting, can reduce consumption by over 40%. LED lights can replace traffic signals and literally last a lifetime.
Legislation-We have the ability to legislate some changes that can really impact energy efficency. Our citizens are looking for leadership and we need to provide sound examples that can make a difference.

We will be looking at these and other ways to improve our energy efficency. Stay tuned!!!

Consultant, Speaker,

Trainer

Jim Hunt, the founder of Amazing Cities, works with cities and organizations who want to achieve excellence and obtain Amazing results. If you would like to discuss having Jim work with your city or organization, e-mail jim at:

jimhunt@amazingcities.org

ENERGY BULBS Things have really changed since Thomas Edison invented the light bulb. Check out this video for an example of some great information on lighting.

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