In light of the climate crisis, Tempe’s government is working to transform the city by zeroing in on sustainability. 

When Kendon Jung, chair of the Sustainability and Resilience Commission, was asked why he is passionate about sustainability, he said, “There is no Planet B. We must take care of the only one we got.”

“If a lot of people did a lot of little things, we could be in a much better scenario,” Jung said.

The Tempe government is committed to making sustainability a priority through the efforts of Sustainable Tempe, the Sustainability and Resilience Commission and the city's Climate Action Plan.

By focusing on sustainability, Tempe has been able to lower greenhouse gas emissions and better prepare for extreme heat.

“Now more than ever, we need to work together to ensure all Tempe residents have quality housing, quality parks, a great transportation system and good jobs. Our first climate action plan, our sustainability and community programs and our investments in transportation show that Tempe is committed to making sure our city, our region and our state thrive in the coming decades,” Mayor Corey Woods said.

According to the Sustainability and Resilience Commission page of the Tempe Government website, the commission “researches, advises, and recommends to the city council policies and programs that advance sustainability in Tempe.”

Specific focuses include energy management, the Climate Action Plan, land use and development, building and purchasing practices, economic development, water and wastewater management, transportation, air quality, recycling and more.

So far, Tempe's efforts seem to be helping. According to its website, the amount of carbon dioxide emissions from the community dropped from 3.28 million metric tons in 2015 to 2.75 million metric tons in 2020, a 16% drop.

The city's internal efforts have been a little less, falling from 40,670 metric tons in 2015 to 39,657 metric tons in 2020, a 2.5% decrease, according to the city.

The page notes the commission promotes partnerships and collaborations to create sustainability solutions for Tempe.

According to the 2021 Boards and Commissions Annual Report, the commission will continue to work to reduce carbon emissions and become more resilient to extreme heat.

Jung said “the commission has successfully advocated for many initiatives over the years,” contributing to the success of Tempe’s sustainability efforts.

“We were instrumental in getting the city to sign on to the Global Covenant of Mayors and installing the first sustainability manager (now director),” Jung said.

Jung said the commission has been involved in water policy and transportation, as well as Tempe's Climate Action Plan.”

Established in 2019, Tempe’s Climate Action plan aims to cut back on greenhouse gas emissions and prepare for the effects of climate change

The city hopes to achieve community carbon neutrality and achieve the city council’s goal of carbon neutrality in municipal operations by 2050. Municipal and community greenhouse gas emissions are tracked to see progress. During the past five years, emissions in both have reduced.

Brianne Fisher, the climate action manager for Tempe and second full-time employee in the Office of Sustainability and Resilience, works on the research, development, evaluation and implementation of policy and programs that are set forth by the Climate Action Plan.

“Sustainable Tempe is working with residents and businesses to improve opportunities to save money on energy, improve transportation, improve food access, invest in our environment and make the city more shaded to handle extreme heat,” said Fisher.

Fisher said the main sustainability challenges Tempe faces are from extreme heat, which could be combated by local, regional, and statewide coordination to invest in shading and cooling infrastructure.

“I hope that we continue to invest in the policies, programs and personnel that can help make impactful change in the areas of transportation, building codes, food access, energy, and urban forestry,” Fisher said. “I’m hopeful that we continue this work with the residents and businesses at the core, having their agency drive our initiatives.”

“I’m very hopeful that we invest in energy programs and resilience initiatives that benefit those who are being hit the hardest by extreme heat and because of the focused investment in equity, the community as a whole is in a better, more sustainable path,” Fisher said.

Editor's note: Elizabeth Moore is a student at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism