Oberlin College
EN-9: Community Partnerships

The George Jones Farm: http://www.cityfresh.org/george-jones-farm

The Oberlin community—college and city— joined the Climate Positive Development Program, a joint initiative of the Clinton Climate Initiative, a program of the William J. Clinton Foundation, and the U.S. Green Building Council. This new partnership will prove instrumental in the implementation of the Oberlin Project, a planned green redesign of the Oberlin community. The project is a collaborative effort between the college and the city. The vision of the project joins the many strands of sustainability—urban revitalization, green development, advanced energy technology, sustainable agriculture, green jobs, and education—into an integrated response to the burgeoning crisis of climate destabilization, environmental deterioration, and economic turmoil. The aim of this partnership is to create a net-positive climate community by 2050.

The Oberlin Project is a joint effort of the City of Oberlin, Oberlin College, and private and institutional partners to improve the resilience, prosperity, and sustainability of our community. The Oberlin Project's aim is to revitalize the local economy, eliminate carbon emissions, restore local agriculture, food supply and forestry, and create a new, sustainable base for economic and community development. Our current goals include: Creating one of the first climate positive cities in America by shifting the City and College to renewable energy sources, radically improving efficiency, sharply reducing our carbon emissions, and improving our economy in the process. Creating new and supporting existing business ventures in energy efficiency and solar deployment, food and agriculture, and the sustainable use of local resources. Conserving 20,000 acres of green space and developing a robust local foods economy to meet 70% of our consumption. Creating an educational alliance between the College, the Oberlin schools, the Joint Vocational School, and Lorain County Community College focused on integrating sustainability into education at all levels. Developing a 13-acre Green Arts District at the US Green Building Council Platinum level. Serving as a model that can be replicated in other communities. The City and College have signed on to become one of 18 Clinton Foundation Climate Positive Development Program cities (one of only three in the United States), thereby committing to reducing Oberlin’s greenhouse gas emissions below zero. The City of Oberlin is on target to reduce its emissions by 50% of 2007 levels by 2015, with 90% of its electricity coming from renewable sources. The Climate Action Committee, a community-based group created by City Council, developed this 2013 Climate Action Plan as a roadmap for transitioning to a climate positive community. Work by the City and the College through the use of the recommended strategies and community outreach will create not only a climate positive community but also a community in which its residents live, learn, and lead. The Oberlin Project will disintegrate in a few years time, but the work of the Oberlin Project will continue.