On Wednesday, May 17th, 2023, the City Commission voted to renew its commitment to support strategic climate adaptation and mitigation efforts by adopting the Southeast Florida Climate Action Pledge from the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact.
Started in 2010, the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact established Southeast Florida as one of the nation’s earliest leaders to conceive of and formalize a collaborative regional approach to address climate change. The Compact region consists of Broward, Palm Beach, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties.
In 2012, the Compact codified its vision in its first Regional Climate Action Plan (RCAP). More than a decade later, in its most recent update, the RCAP 3.0 continues to serve as a comprehensive, ambitious, and timely playbook. The RCAP supports collective efforts to address the effects of climate change through recommended actions and interdependent strategies. It is a voluntary framework designed to align, guide and support the acceleration of local and regional climate action in Southeast Florida toward a shared vision of a more resilient region.
The City of Oakland Park adopted the initial pledge in 2012 and has subsequently renewed its support as the RCAP is updated. In 2022, the Compact undertook the third iteration of the RCAP through the guidance and expertise of more than 150 subject matter experts.
Key highlights of the 2023 Climate Action Pledge are:
- Southeast Florida is considered one of the most vulnerable areas in the country to experience the consequences of global climate change, with impacts including sea level rise, elevated groundwater levels, rainfall intensification, extreme heat, and ocean acidification, creating a risk to Southeast Florida’s communities, economy, and natural systems.
- The Compact has been an international model for regional collaboration on climate action, with the development of key tools, resources, and a Regional Climate Action Plan to expedite and harmonize efforts in support of 111 local and tribal governments across the four-county region.
- The RCAP 3.0 is not a mandate but a voluntary guidance document designed to align, guide, and support the acceleration of local and regional climate action in Southeast Florida toward a shared vision of a low-carbon, healthy, prosperous, more equitable, and more resilient region.
- The power in the collective action of counties, municipalities, and tribal governments in jointly developing, advancing, and advocating for mutually beneficial regional, state, and national climate and energy strategies, policies, regulations, and agreements, is consequential to Southeast Florida’s shared resilience and prosperity.
Oakland Park is committed to sustainability. The City adopted a regional Climate Action Plan in partnership with Wilton Manors and joined the Southeast Florida Regional Climate Change Compact to build climate resilience in partnership with communities throughout Southeast Florida. Key performance areas of the City’s strategic plan include environmental stewardship and sustainability, infrastructure needs, smart growth and development, all of which align with the Southeast Florida Climate Action Pledge. To learn more about the City’s sustainability efforts, please click here.