Pathway to a Resilient Future: Regional Strategies for East Central Iowa
The East Central Iowa Council of Governments (ECICOG) is pleased to share Pathway to a Resilient Future: Regional Strategies for East Central Iowa (Pathway Plan), a Comprehensive Climate Action Plan developed for our six-county region that includes Benton, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington counties.
The Pathway Plan centers on building a resilient future by empowering cross-jurisdictional partnerships that help East Central Iowa anticipate, withstand, and recover from the impacts of a changing climate. Resilience includes two complementary approaches: adaptation, which helps communities adjust to changing conditions, and mitigation, which reduces or prevents climate pollution at its source. While both are vital, this plan focuses solely on mitigation measures to meet the requirements of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG).
East Central Iowa has already experienced flooding, derechos, extreme heat, and other severe weather events that threaten land, livelihoods, and health. These experiences underscore the need for a proactive approach that extends beyond jurisdictional boundaries.
The Pathway Plan identifies opportunities to align with existing initiatives, deliver environmental, community, and economic co-benefits, and ensure strategies can be scaled and implemented across the region. Developed through engagement with community members, local leaders, technical experts, and regional partners, the plan reflects both the unique character of each county and the shared priorities that connect us.
The success of the Pathway Plan depends on collective effort. As the grant recipient and project lead, ECICOG will continue to support this regional effort, working with implementation partners across the region. Ultimately, lasting progress will rely on the active participation of every county, community, business, and resident. Together, we can build an East Central Iowa that not only endures the challenges ahead but thrives through the strength of our collective action.
Project Funding
This project has been funded wholly by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under assistance agreements 96704201 and 96704701 to ECICOG. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the EPA, nor does the EPA endorse trade names or recommend the use of commercial products mentioned in this document, as well as any images, video, text, or other content created by generative artificial intelligence tools, nor does any such content necessarily reflect the views and policies of the EPA.
Title VI and AccommodationsFor information on ECIOCG’ s Title VI program, go to https://www.ecicog.org/title-vi. If you need disability-related accommodations, please contact Alicia Presto, Director of Environmental Services at ECICOG, at alicia.presto@ecicog.org. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet your access needs.
Pathway to a Resilient Future: Regional Strategies for East Central Iowa
The East Central Iowa Council of Governments (ECICOG) is pleased to share Pathway to a Resilient Future: Regional Strategies for East Central Iowa (Pathway Plan), a Comprehensive Climate Action Plan developed for our six-county region that includes Benton, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington counties.
The Pathway Plan centers on building a resilient future by empowering cross-jurisdictional partnerships that help East Central Iowa anticipate, withstand, and recover from the impacts of a changing climate. Resilience includes two complementary approaches: adaptation, which helps communities adjust to changing conditions, and mitigation, which reduces or prevents climate pollution at its source. While both are vital, this plan focuses solely on mitigation measures to meet the requirements of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG).
East Central Iowa has already experienced flooding, derechos, extreme heat, and other severe weather events that threaten land, livelihoods, and health. These experiences underscore the need for a proactive approach that extends beyond jurisdictional boundaries.
The Pathway Plan identifies opportunities to align with existing initiatives, deliver environmental, community, and economic co-benefits, and ensure strategies can be scaled and implemented across the region. Developed through engagement with community members, local leaders, technical experts, and regional partners, the plan reflects both the unique character of each county and the shared priorities that connect us.
The success of the Pathway Plan depends on collective effort. As the grant recipient and project lead, ECICOG will continue to support this regional effort, working with implementation partners across the region. Ultimately, lasting progress will rely on the active participation of every county, community, business, and resident. Together, we can build an East Central Iowa that not only endures the challenges ahead but thrives through the strength of our collective action.
Project Funding
This project has been funded wholly by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under assistance agreements 96704201 and 96704701 to ECICOG. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the EPA, nor does the EPA endorse trade names or recommend the use of commercial products mentioned in this document, as well as any images, video, text, or other content created by generative artificial intelligence tools, nor does any such content necessarily reflect the views and policies of the EPA.
Title VI and AccommodationsFor information on ECIOCG’ s Title VI program, go to https://www.ecicog.org/title-vi. If you need disability-related accommodations, please contact Alicia Presto, Director of Environmental Services at ECICOG, at alicia.presto@ecicog.org. Early requests are strongly encouraged to allow sufficient time to meet your access needs.
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