SAS Talk with Kim

Being a working mom in the climate space just hits different. Sure, there are the same pressures that all women who juggle raising kids and a job face and that have been well documented. But it’s next-level when your job entails fighting for solutions to the climate crisis and pushing for choices to ensure your kids actually have healthy communities and a livable planet. It’s this dual mission of raising kids while working to secure their future that our SAS Talk host Kim Lundgren has embraced for 15 years. For Mother’s Day, Kim invited a few fellow working climate moms and KLA clients and partners to join her in a discussion about how they are navigating careers, motherhood and the climate crisis.

If you’re in local government, you’re going to be facilitating meetings, from smaller stakeholder sessions to big community events. This week, Kim sits down with Dallase Scott — expert in facilitation, organizational design, and change management — to discuss why facilitation is such an undervalued skillset and how to run more effective and inclusive meetings.

Listen to more SAS Talk episodes here: https://soundcloud.com/sastalk/

Check out Dallase's new Growing Trust Series for digital workshops that enhance your facilitation toolkit here: https://trustforchange.teachable.com/

An icon and pioneer in local government climate action planning, Cambridge MA's John Bolduc is winding down at the City and reflecting with Kim on his decades on the cutting edge of climate solutions.

We talk with Imhotep Adisa of The Kheprw Institute in Indianapolis about the critical work that community-based organizations like his do -- and the importance of their partnership for truly equitable community engagement in climate action and sustainability plans. Kheprw was a key partner for KLA as we helped develop the Thrive Indianapolis sustainability and resilience plan, and his insight is especially spot-on in the context of today's struggles related to the Black Lives Matter movement, racial justice and the COVID pandemic

If your community has (or needs) waste reduction or Zero Waste goals, listen up as we talk with the head of the Devens Eco-Efficiency Center in MA. They bring the adage “one person’s trash is another person’s treasure" to life with The Great Exchange, which keeps about 50 tons of material out of the landfill every year while supporting local businesses, nonprofits and schools.

Could the age old art of storytelling be the key to effective, equitable community engagement? Denver's Chief Storyteller Rowena Alegria talks with Kim about their approach to capturing and sharing stories and how it can open up meaningful two-way conversations between the local government and community members.

Equity is a nut many cities are trying to crack, often creating new staff positions to get to the root of the problem. That includes Charlottesville, Virginia’s Youth Opportunity Coordinator, charged with outreach primarily to young African American men, who joined us for a recent episode of our Sustainability Action Series podcast.

The cities of Portland and South Portland, ME, are breaking the mold with a joint climate action and adaptation plan. Kim talks with Troy Moon, Porltand's Sustainability Coordinator, and Julie Rosenbach, South Portland's Sustainability Director, about how the One Climate Future initiative came to be, the mechanics of the partnership and where they are headed together.

"You can't manage what you don't measure." We've all heard that before. Kim dives into that with ICLEI-USA's Program Manager for Tools & Innovation. We talk greenhouse gas emissions inventories, how our measurement and analysis tools have evolved, and opportunities now and in the future for them to be a springboard for meaningful climate action.

"Resilience Hubs" have emerged as an effective way to strengthen resilience in an equitable manner and enhance community development. They serve as important neighborhood center before, during and after natural disasters. Kristin talks with us about the concept, value and logistics of resilience hubs.