Sustainable Walkersville “Green Team”
The Burgess and Commissioners of Walkersville invite residents to submit letters of interest from individuals desiring to become members of the Town of Walkersville newly forming “Green Team”.
The Green Team’s goal is to develop policies and plans, implement programs, and assist with educational opportunities that support the creation of a sustainable community. The initial task of the Green Team is to file for certification as a sustained community from “Sustainable Maryland” the continuing role, to lead and coordinate the sustainability activities of the community.
Since 2011, Sustainable Maryland has empowered the state’s 157 municipalities through training, financial incentives and support to develop sustainability programs that will build a better tomorrow, one community at a time. Sustainable Maryland is a certification program for municipalities in Maryland that want to go green, save money and take steps to sustain their quality of life over the long term. Sustainable Maryland (SM) is the result of a collaborative venture between the University of Maryland’s Environmental Finance Center, the Maryland Municipal League, and the University of Maryland’s National Center for Smart Growth, along with 87 other organizations from public and private sectors, nonprofits and academia.
SM is modeled after Sustainable New Jersey, a successful program that pairs technical assistance and research with municipalities in New Jersey’s 21 counties. In 2009, Gerrit Knaap, Director of the National Center for Smart Growth, brought the Sustainable New Jersey concept to EFC director Joanne Throwe, recognizing the potential for leveraging the EFC’s experience with applied technical assistance to enhance sustainability initiatives in Maryland communities. This connection set the broad and general foundation for the program that is now SM. Over the next two years, Throwe and her team at the EFC developed a comprehensive certification plan, using best practices from New Jersey and other states, and began collaborating with Maryland municipalities to realize more sustainable, cost-effective and livable communities. Today, SM has certified 30 municipalities with over 60 more working towards certification.
The mission of Sustainable Maryland is to enhance livability for all Marylanders by helping municipalities choose a direction for their sustainability efforts, improve access to resources needed to implement action, measure their progress, and gain recognition for their accomplishments.
Sustainable Maryland helps municipalities:
• Gain access to training, tools, and expert guidance;
• Realize cost savings and improve the bottom line;
• Conserve resources while promoting community viability.
Sustainable Maryland features:
• Menu of options lets communities choose actions that fit their needs;
• Holistic vision helps communities plan across community priorities;
• Free and voluntary makes participation easy.
Residents interested in joining Walkersville’s “Green Team” should send letters of interest to:
Town of Walkersville
PO Box 249
Walkersville, MD 21701
townofwalkersville@comcast.net
Fax: 301-845-2406
