I, like many other Government officials from the around the globe and the United States (US) have visited the City of Dubuque on the
Mississippi River to find out the secrets of their success in the area of sustainability. So what is so special about Dubuque? How has a City of 60,000 in Iowa, the mid-west of the US, managed to achieve so much? How does Dubuque address issues of climate change in a country where climate change is such a topical issue?

Dubuque is special, it is a unique example of a City which continues to punch well above its weight. The sustainability projects underway are many and include:

· Smarter Sustainable Dubuque – A pilot program with IBM Smarter Planet to track and improve water, energy and transport using the latest computer technology.

· Historic Millwork District Revitalisation – A sustainable retrofit of warehousing for inner city living.

· Dubuque 2.0 – A program which allows people to track and report on water, waste, energy and transport use.

· Petal Project- A sustainability program for small to medium sized enterprises.

· Envision 10 – A community led engagement process which identified 10 priority projects.

· Green and Healthy Homes Initiative – The retrofitting of unhealthy homes incorporating sustainability principles.

· Green Vision School – Built on the boy scoutmodel, school students undertake resource reduction initiatives and get recognised for their achievement with a patch.

· Green Dubuque – A community initiative whichsets a target of 40% greenhouse reduction .

The list above is only a small snapshot of sustainability projects and programs underway in Dubuque, it is fair to say sustainability is
entrenched in almost every initiative, every decision made in the City.

Dubuque’s success in sustainability is driven by the collective of the City Council, the business community, educational institutions, not for profit organisations and most importantly the community. My surmise of how this is achieved is:

· Trust – Dubuque has been through some tough times and built trust amongst its community which is unparallel to any other
City of its size. Through the success of other projects, trust is continually building which allows it to push the envelope in the world of sustainability.

· Partnerships- The ability of its citizens to draw upon the resources of others is unsurpassed. Businesses, Council, community collaborate in a way which is a true example of cooperation.

· Commitment – Everyone is committed to making Dubuque a sustainable City, personal ambitions take second place to the needs
of the community. This has been achieved through good engagement.

· Ownership – The community have developed many of the ideas for projects which brings a sense of ownership to all projects,
programs and initiatives underway.

· Communicate – The people of Dubuque talk, listen and connect to each other through many, many networks .

It is fair to say much of Dubuque does not confront issues of climate change head on. And why would they when they are having so
much success with embedding sustainability into so many projects and initiatives. By embracing sustainability Dubuque will address issues of climate change indirectly.

So how can this sustainability model work in your community? From what I have seen there is no one person, one system or one
project that will result in embracing sustainability in your City. A sustainable community must build trust, partnerships, ownership, communication and commitment to enable the journey towards sustainability to begin.