Mayors and cities around the Southeast are going all in on renewable energy, which can help lower electricity costs, reduce pollution, and create jobs. The Sierra Club is compiling a list of all the municipalities, counties and mayors who have proclaimed support for a 100% renewable energy future, listing 186 mayors nationally, and more than a quarter of them are in the Southeast region!
Some mayors and local governments have taken their commitment to the next level and adopted formal goals through their entire city or county commission. Solar and wind power are now the cheapest forms of new electricity since costs have declined so steeply in recent years, so these local leaders are positioned to potentially save their communities lots of money. Meanwhile, scientific confidence is extremely high that we must transition to a clean energy economy to avoid the worst impacts of global warming. The fact of the matter is there’s a lot that cities can do on their own to promote renewable energy, reduce energy needs, cut pollution, and boost quality of life, and the mayors and communities listed below are taking important steps to realize that potential.
Check out the list below (bolded communities have adopted formal goals) and if your mayor has already stepped up, please thank them. If your mayor hasn’t joined yet, please ask them to join! Keep reading below for measures your city or county can take to help transition to the clean energy economy.
North Carolina
- Asheville Mayor Esther Manheimer
- Buncombe County Board of County Commisioners (formal goal adopted)
- Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts
- Carrboro Mayor Lydia E Lavelle
- Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger
- Durham Mayor William V “Bill” Bell
- Morrisville Mayor TJ Cawley
- Raleigh Mayor Nancy McFarlane
- Orange County Board of County Commissioners (formal goal adopted)
South Carolina
- Columbia Mayor Steve Benjamin and City Council (formal goal adopted)
Georgia
- Clarkston Mayor Ted Terry
- Atlanta City Council (formal goal adopted)
Florida
- Marineland Mayor Leslie Babonis
- Beverly Beach Mayor Stephen Emmett
- Palm Coast Mayor Milissa Holland
- Flagler Beach Mayor Linda Provencher
- Holly Hill Mayor John Penny
- Daytona Beach Mayor Derrick Henry
- South Daytona Mayor William C. Hall
- Ponce Inlet Mayor Gary L. Smith
- New Smyrna Beach Mayor Jim Hathaway
- Edgewater Mayor Michael Ignasiak
- Oak Hill Mayor Douglas A. Gibson
- Deland Mayor Robert F. Apgar
- Lake Helen Mayor Buddy Snowden
- Orange City Mayor Gary A. Blair
- Deltona Mayor John C. Masiarczyk Sr.
- DeBary Mayor Bob Garcia
- Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and City Commission (formal goal adopted)
- Dunedin Mayor Julie Ward Bujalski
- Safety Harbor Mayor Joe Ayoub
- St. Petersburg Mayor Rick Kriseman and City Council (formal goal adopted)
- Sarasota Mayor Shelli Freeland Eddie and City Commission (formal goal adopted)
- West Palm Beach Mayor Jeri Muoio
- Lake Worth Mayor Pam Triolo
- Boynton Beach Mayor Steven B. Grant
- Delray Beach Mayor Cary Glickstein
- Pompano Beach Mayor Lamar Fisher
- Tamarac Mayor Harry Dressler
- Oakland Park Mayor John Adornato
- Wilton Manners Mayor Gary Resnick
- Lauderhill Mayor Richard J. Kaplan
- Sunrise Mayor Michael J. Ryan
- Weston Mayor Daniel J. Stermer
- Davie Mayor Judy Paul
- Dania Beach Mayor Tamara James
- Pembroke Pines Mayor Frank C. Ortis
- Surfside Mayor Daniel Dietch
- Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine
- South Miami Mayor Philip K. Stoddard
- Palmetto Bay Mayor Eugene Flinn
What Can Your Community Do?
Check out these guides to see what your local government can do to help advance the clean energy economy:
- Institute for Local Self-Reliance, “How States and Cities Can Unlock Local Clean Energy” sample ordinances and laws
- International Renewable Energy Agency, “Renewable Energy in Cities” report
- US Environmental Protection Agency, “Local Government Climate and Energy Strategy Series”