Workgroup and Community Activities

Goals and Metrics Symposium

Members of both the Technical Advisory Groups and Regional Transect Groups met on April 13, 2012, to continue discussing goals and metrics for what sustainability could look like in the 13-County region.

Presentation

Workgroups: Goals & Metrics Symposium Presentation by Jeff Taebel, H-GAC Community and Environmental Planning Director, PDF (776K)

Meeting Materials

Agenda PDF (152K)

Terminology Worksheet PDF (122K)

People, Places and Prosperity Worksheet PDF (125K)

Goal Assignment Guide PDF (374K)

Draft Goals PDF (132K)

Public Engagement Summary PDF (360K)

Current Work Status PDF (108K)

FAQ PDF (254K)

Goal Progression PDF (134K)

Metrics Fundamentals

Members of both the Technical Advisory Groups and Regional Transect Groups met on November 17, 2011, to begin drafting goals and metrics for what sustainability could look like in the 13-County region.

Prior to the workgroups meeting to discuss potential goals and metrics, both groups participated in a metrics fundamentals learning session on October 26, 2011.

More information about both of those meetings is available here.

Developing Draft Goals

The Technical Advisory Group and the Regional Transect Group (TAG/RTG) meetings were held in November 2011 to gain input on regional goals and potential metrics relating to sustainability in housing, transportation, healthy communities, the economy, and the environment.  The goals broadly present a regional framework for the plan. The TAG/RTG meetings resulted in around 25 draft goals and hundreds of potential metrics. Click here to see the original goals. In an effort to condense the large list of goals, a team of H-GAC staff and Coordinating Committee representatives identified overlaps between goals to create a broader list of goals that still capture the essence of the work done in the workgroups. The goals were merged into a framework of “People, Places and Prosperity.”Below is a graphic that depicts this idea and this framework. Click here to see how the goals were merged into the "People, Places and Prosperity" framework and how those goals were condensed into the 12 draft goals. These broad goals have been approved by the Coordinating Committee, and are being presented at the public meetings and discussed on MindMixer. Click here to see the draft goals.

Workgroup Kickoff Meeting

More than 200 people turned out for the Regional Plan for Sustainable Development Workgroup Kick Off meeting on August 5, 2011. More information about that meeting is available here.

This joint kick-off event brought together all of the technical and transect workgroups and provided an important overview of the Sustainable Communities Grant, the current state of sustainability in the region, and what to expect as we move forward in the planning process. 

The kick-off was also a valuable opportunity for the workgroups to begin to define what sustainability means for our region and to highlight key sustainability opportunities and challenges. 

Listening Session

On May 7, 2010, the Houston-Galveston Area Council hosted a listening session on the sustainability planning grant federal partnership. The listening session was attended by approximately 50 local stakeholders. During the listening session the stakeholders discussed the mechanics of how a grant application from the Houston-Galveston region would be structured and what should be included. In general, the group expressed support for an application that was focused onimplementation, with broad public involvement and incorporation of significant stakeholder input. Below you will find links to documents, video and a transcript from this meeting.

Fact Sheet (PDF) 93.K
Agenda (PDF) 10K
Presentation (PDF) 332K
Listening Session Video (WMV) 500M
Listening Session Transcript (PDF) 118K

Pre-Grant Information Session

More than 100 people came together on July 29, 2010, to learn about promoting sustainability throughout the region and share ideas and success stories with other regional stakeholders

Presentations from the event are available online  and more events may be planned in the future. Click here to view a copy of the agenda from the event .

Sustainability Peer Information Exchange

H-GAC, along with a consortium of community, government and nonprofit agencies hosted a Peer Information Exchange on March 28, 2011 to begin collaborating with organizations throughout the Houston region to combine our resources to reach the greatest number of people. Groups learned more about sustainability projects in the region and shared their ideas and concerns about developing a plan to help the region grow in a sustainable way.

Agenda

Presentations

Sustainability Peer Information Exchange (PDF) 379K
Jeff Taebel, Director Community & Environmental Planning, Houston-Galveston Area Council

Galveston's Resilient Housing Codes (PDF) 993K
Lori Schwarz, Assistant Director of Planning of the City of Galveston

Childhood Obesity Initiative (PDF) 563K
Rocaille Roberts, M.P.H, Director of the Office of Policy and Planning for Harris County Public Health and Environmental Services, and Linda Forys, Director of Health Education and Promotion for HCPHES

Constructing Homes with Recycled and Salvaged Materials (PDF) 3.7M
Dan Phillips, Founder of Phoenix Commotion

Public Meetings

Public meetings have been scheduled across the region. To find a meeting near you, click here. To learn more about these meetings, visit the public outreach section of this web site.