Mission Statement 

Sustainable Claremont engages people in education and action to create a more sustainable community – environmentally, socially, and economically – in Claremont and beyond.

Structure

All individuals or organizations who pay the membership dues are considered members of Sustainable Claremont. Members may simply support the organization or they may work with Action Groups or Working Groups as they wish.

Sustainable Claremont has two levels of organization.

The Action Groups are the heart and soul of the organization. These are formed by members with interests in a particular area of sustainability. Within each of these Action Groups, members decide on projects to undertake. These may involve education, advocacy, or action. Each Action Group determines its own organizational structure. Members who are active within a particular group may participate in choosing the group's representative on the Board of Directors. Members of Action Groups sometimes join to form Working Groups on topics of mutual interest.

The Board of Directors consists of one representative from each of the Action Groups as well as one from each of the Operating Committees (Outreach, Finance, and Special Events).

The Board:
• provides governance for the larger organization
• promotes coalition-building/maintains connections with other groups both in and beyond Claremont
• helps coordinate and facilitate activities chosen by the Action Groups
• sets policy for Sustainable Claremont
• approves Sustainable Claremont positions on issues
• disseminates information
• speaks for community sustainability efforts
• produces an annual report

History

Claremont's General Plan calls for the City to address issues of environmental, social, and economic sustainability. In response to this a task force was organized to begin the process of determining what should be done. This group, the Mayor's Task Force on Sustainable Development, produced a Green Paper with suggestions for forming a more comprehensive plan. One of these suggestions was the formation of a larger, citizen group to work on a more far-reaching sustainability plan for the City to pursue. The Sustainability Task Force set to work and in a relatively short time a plan was devised and presented to the City. One of the recommendations in the plan was for the formation of a citizen group which would work independent of the City government but generally in cooperation with it. The City Sustainability Plan was adopted on October 28, 2008. In December, work began on the formation of Sustainable Claremont.

All those interested in helping with the formation were invited to do so. Some of this initial group volunteered to act as the interim Board of Directors, and they and others formed working groups tasked with developing an organizational structure, designing the Earth Day Celebration launch event, creating publicity materials, and exploring outreach opportunities. Sustainable Claremont now has an appointed Board of Directors and is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization.

We invite you to join us!
Lend your skills to an Action Group or an Operating Committee, or just cheer us on.
All levels of involvement move us towards our goal of a more sustainable world.