Regional Planning Affiliate Staff Liaison FAQ

All ICLEI Regional Planning Affiliates designate a staff liaison from their organization to serve as the main point of contact for ICLEI staff, other ICLEI Regional Planning Affiliates, ICLEI Members, and for other personnel within their organization on matters pertaining to ICLEI or regional sustainability planning and performance generally.

How does an Affiliate select a staff liaison to ICLEI?
Ideally, staff liaisons to ICLEI are in a role within the organization where they work directly with local governments in support of energy or sustainability initiatives, but they may include anyone working on land use planning, transportation planning, environmental planning, or another programmatic role that touches on issues of sustainability. It is up to the organization to determine the most appropriate person for the role, but ICLEI is happy to advise on the selection.

What is the role of the staff liaison to ICLEI?

• Serve as lead ICLEI contact person for the organization
• Participate in ICLEI training workshops and peer-to-peer information-sharing/networking events
• Determine the most effective way to support local governments within the organization’s service territory in engaging in ICLEI’s Five Milestone programs, including conducting relevant outreach, organizing training, developing scopes of work or work plans for consulting services, etc.
• Engage the organization’s member local governments to build the support necessary to ensure the implementation of climate protection and sustainability measures and completion of ICLEI Milestones beyond the greenhouse gas emissions inventory and climate action or sustainability plan development
• Support member local governments in joining ICLEI directly (this may include sending them ICLEI membership materials and communications)
• Provide updates to ICLEI on activities within the region and best practices and successes from member local governments for inclusion in regional and national newsletters and other ICLEI materials and communications

What kind of support do staff liaisons receive from ICLEI?

• Access to ICLEI’s comprehensive library of resources on local climate action and local sustainability and resiliency, including everything you will need to help your member local governments get started on ICLEI’s Five Milestones for Climate Mitigation. This includes, but is not limited to: the CACP software and user guide, data collection forms for conducting the emissions inventory, and other publications to assist with emissions reduction planning.
• Ongoing technical assistance, including help utilizing ICLEI’s emissions quantification software, and support as the region progresses in its work
• Registration discounts for ICLEI regional, national and international workshops and events
• Opportunities to network with other Regional Planning Affiliate and ICLEI Member liaisons
• Support in publicizing your region’s sustainability and climate protection successes such as talking points and customizable press releases
• Regular notices of new publications and tools, grant opportunities, and progress being made by other Regional Planning Affiliate organizations and Member jurisdictions
• Resource recommendations outside of ICLEI

For more information, please contact membership-usa@iclei.org.