It’s no surprise that Colorado Springs—nestled at the base of Pikes Peak on the edge of the southern Rocky Mountains—was declared Number One in Money Magazine’s “Best Places to Live” survey in 2006, in the big city category. We here at SustainLane are sure we’d love to take in the mountain scenery, but Colorado Springs needs to address a few key sustainability concerns. It can start by working to get its near 80-percent of drive-alone work-commuters out of their cars and onto public transit, and by increasing the availability of local, nutritious food for its residents. This isn’t to say the city hasn’t made some good strides: while it doesn’t have an overall plan for sustainability, city council did include promoting "sustainable policies and practices" in its 2008 strategic plan. It also completed a greenhouse gas inventory, and now has the opportunity to create a plan to reduce its carbon footprint. Colorado Springs Utilities intends to meet the state’s renewable portfolio standards; near-80 percent of the city’s electricity is currently generated by coal. By 2020, at least ten percent of the city’s power will be renewable.
(Photo by Mac9)
Submitted by Eileen A. Brodie
Colorado Springs' founder, General William Jackson Palmer, had a lot of big ideas, starting with bringing the railroad here and planning a well-designed city. His influence lives on in the many acres of parkland he created. His foresight for planting trees throughout the city made it easy for Colorado Springs to become a "Tree City USA." Today, I appreciate the green lifestyle we can have here.more »
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Mitchell D.
A 2-day community event held at the Double Tree Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado the event featured vendors, national and local speakers, workshops and break-out sessions as well as live entertainment and receptions. more »
Scott H.
The best bike store in town ! These folks are great. They offer really good advice to riders and have a super service department. They live and breath bikes. One employee has dozens of vintage bikes in his... more »
Mitchell Dillman
An event sponsored by The Catamount Institute and The Pikes Peak Sustainable Business Network featuring National Speakers, Vendors, workshops, community awards,live entertainment, and evening reception with over 1000 attendees and participants expected. more »
How does age of a city affect how it performs? Take a look at how pre- and post-war cities measure up to each other.
The key probem facing humanity in the coming century is how to bring a better quality of life -- for 8 billion or more people -- without wrecking the environment entirely in the attempt. —Edward O. Wilson
US City Rankings, next edition!
