Seattle Office of Sustainability & Environment

OSE is hiring a Building Emissions Reduction Technical Advisor to join our Buildings Emissions Performance Standards (BEPS) team🏗️

The ideal candidate has a passion for combatting the climate crisis using their expertise in building electrification and decarbonization, knowledge of Seattle’s building market, and collaborative customer service skills.

Apply by August 6 ‼️

Apply and learn more about the position here:
https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/seattle/jobs/4577240/building-emissions-reduction-technical-advisor

Mayor Bruce Harrell joined Dow Constantine, King County Executive yesterday to announce that King County was selected for a nearly $50 million grant from U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to advance environmental justice and reduce building emissions across the Puget Sound region 🗺️

Alongside Puget Sound Clean Air Agency, City of Bellevue, Washington - Government, U.S. EPA, Region 10, and host Horizon House — Mayor Harrell said City of Seattle Government and OSE are looking forward to coordinating with King County, Washington - Government to access a portion of this groundbreaking investment to decarbonize multifamily, commercial, and community buildings 🏙️

Read our latest blog post to learn more how this funding will help create a more sustainable and resilient Seattle at https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/king-county-awarded-50-million-epa-climate-pollution-reduction-grant-seattle-to-benefit-from-subawards-to-reduce-building-emissions/

The City of Seattle is honored to have been awarded nearly $100k from U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm to School grant!

The grant will go toward growing fresh, local, equitably sourced foods for school meals, increasing student access to food justice and education in Seattle Public Schools (SPS) 🍎 🌱 🏫

Click the link in bio to learn more about the project

The project will provide funding to:
- Nurturing Roots to increase student access to food justice and farm-to-table education
- SPS’ Native American Education program to provide teacher trainings on food sovereignty and native plants
- SPS’s Culinary Service to expand staff capacity to use more fresh and local foods in school meals
- Tilth Alliance's coordination with the Seattle School Learning Garden Network to create more resources for school garden practitioners

https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/new-investments-coming-for-growing-local-equitable-foods-and-education-in-seattle-schools-project/

“Environmental justice isn't always something that people associate with q***r folks, but it matters to our community and does affect us a lot.”

OSE spoke with co-managers Jing Jing Wang and Andrew McGinnis of Seattle's LGBTQ Center a 2023 Environmental Justice (EJ) Fund grantee. Wang and McGinnis talked about how q***r youth empowerment, environmental resilience, and art go hand in hand 🏳️‍🌈✊🏼🌿

https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/environmental-justice-fund-grantee-spotlight-seattles-lgbtq-center/

Seattle Office of Sustainability and Environment (OSE) joined thousands of attendees from Seattle and around the U.S. to discuss climate solutions from July 10th to 13th. Mayor Bruce HarrellHarrell and OSE Director Jessyn Farrell spoke at the festival about green jobs, growing your career in climate, and more.

Pictured are other panelists and participants, including Governor Jay Inslee, Duwamish River Community Coalition’s Paulina Lopez, Seattle City Light director of electrification and strategic technology, David Logsdon. 🎡 🍃

Check out our recap of the weekend on our blog here:
https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/seattle-hosts-first-bloomberg-green-festival-leaders-discuss-climate-solutions/

Join a webinar July 22nd with The Seattle School Meals Working Group participants and supporters to hear more about current work and recommendations that will ignite school meals for better food access and support food /garden education at Seattle schools!

Providing high-quality meals for students and increasing staff capacity at schools was a main priority for The Seattle School Meals & Food Education Working Group. Register for the community report back webinar July 22nd to learn how the group worked to transform healthy food access last school year.

https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/join-seattle-school-meals-food-education-working-group-2022-2023-report-webinar/

This morning OSE'S Jessyn Farrell talked with other climate leaders Bloomberg Live's Green Festival on how companies and communities can decrease their emissions and lessen environmental impact by adapting physical infrastructure.

Watch here: https://x.com/BloombergLive/status/1811415769483501782

In collaboration with Indigenous planning group, sləp̓iləbəxʷ (Rising Tides), OSE’s Food Policy team has released a new report summarizing a Native and Indigenous Foods Listening Session, hosted in 2022 with 19 participants from urban Native communities in and around Seattle.

The Native and Indigenous Foods Listening Session Report will/informed the City of Seattle’s updated Food Action Plan, coming this summer. Stay tuned!

Learn more about the history of Native food systems, the trauma inflicted upon them, and the group’s proposals for starting to restore them here: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/seattle-urban-native-indigenous-peoples-share-their-values-and-priorities-for-the-local-food-system-in-new-report/

Providing high-quality meals for students and increasing staff capacity at schools was a main priority for The Seattle School Meals & Food Education Working Group. Register for the community report back webinar July 22nd to learn how the group worked to transform healthy food access last school year.

https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/join-seattle-school-meals-food-education-working-group-2022-2023-report-webinar/

Last month, the Sweetened Beverage Tax Community Advisory Board (SBT) met with community organizers for an inspirational round table to discuss food security and prenatal-to-three services supported by SBT’s Fund.

Hear from organizations like Young Women Empowered (Y-WE)ed (Y-WE) and more on collective healing through communal relationships on The Seattle Channel

https://seattlechannel.org/videos?videoid=x157491

Resilience Hubs are trusted community-serving facilities that support residents in everyday life and before, during, and after an emergency. We chatted with OSE’s Resilience Hub Advisor Bin Jung about resilience hubs and their role in Seattle’s future.

Learn more here:
https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/07/an-interview-with-resilience-hubs-advisor-bin-jung/

The Office of Sustainability is grateful to fight for a future that is both sustainable and equitable for the amazing people who call our city home. Enjoy time with your loved ones, enjoy the sun, and see you at Seattle Pride!

The Office of Sustainability & Environment is looking for a Tree Equity Initiative Manager! Lead a body of work to address tree canopy disparities in Seattle with a focus on community partnerships. This position closes July 2nd.

Apply now or share with your network today! https://www.governmentjobs.com/careers/seattle/jobs/4542011-0/initiative-manager-tree-equity

The Duwamish Valley Action Plan’s goals for transportation and economic opportunities include combating flooding and supporting small businesses. Dig into more of our 2023 updates here: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/05/duwamish-valley-program-celebrates-five-years-of-improving-the-quality-of-life-for-georgetown-and-south-park-residents/

Attend the Bloomberg Green Festival from July 10th to 13th at Seattle Center to learn from experts, share ideas, and collaborate on practical solutions to Earth’s most urgent problems.

Learn more about the Bloomberg Green Festival from our blog and get 30% your tickets today by using the promo code OSE30 at check out!
https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/06/join-ose-and-the-city-of-seattle-at-the-bloomberg-green-festival-at-seattle-center-from-june-9th-13th-with-discounted-tickets/

Seattle’s Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Program (FFVP) provided students at participating schools with over 600,000 pounds of nutritious fruits and veggies. From mangos to persimmons or bok choy to winter squash, the program introduced foods across cultures, fueling both minds and tummies. Read more about the program and improvements on our blog:

https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/06/seattles-fresh-fruit-vegetable-program-connects-students-to-wholesome-foods-and-positive-outcomes/

Check out the latest impact report highlighting the Fresh Bucks program. Fresh Bucks served 12,000 Seattle households with $4.8 million in fruit and vegetable benefits in 2023. We couldn't do this work without our partners, including 41 retail partners and 19 local community-based partners.

Read more on our blog: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/06/city-of-seattles-fresh-bucks-program-reached-12000-seattle-households-with-fruit-vegetable-benefits-in-2023/

Exciting News!

The City of Seattle is investing over $2.24 million to recruit, train, and place workers from economically distressed communities into competitive, well-paying construction and clean energy jobs.

We're partnering with some amazing organizations to make this happen:

Emerald Cities Collaborative – Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning

Pacific Northwest Ironworkers Local 86

Emerald Cities Collaborative – Electrical Pathways

Apprenticeship and Non-Traditional Employment for Women (ANEW)

YouthCare’s YouthBuild

Seattle Central College’s Pre-Apprenticeship Construction Training (PACT)

These organizations will focus on placing Priority Hire individuals into construction apprenticeship programs and/or clean energy jobs. Let's build a greener and more inclusive future together!

Learn more about the programs and organizations
https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/06/city-awards-2-24-million-toward-equitable-access-to-clean-energy-training-and-career-pathways/

The Duwamish Valley Action Plan’s goals for parks and community included investments in resilience hubs, maintaining spaces for connection, and more. Dig into more of our 2023 updates here: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/05/duwamish-valley-program-celebrates-five-years-of-improving-the-quality-of-life-for-georgetown-and-south-park-residents/

The Duwamish Valley Action Plan’s goals for a healthy environment include increased tree canopy cover, green infrastructure maintenance, improved air quality, decreased incidence of asthma, and increased access to affordable healthy foods for its community. Read the efforts that supported these plans in our 2023 updates here: https://www.seattle.gov/environment/climate-change/climate-justice/duwamish-valley-program/duwamish-valley-action-plan/healthy-environment

Our Duwamish Valley Program is hosting a multi-lingual open-house on Saturday June 15th from 10:30am - 2:00pm at the Duwamish River Community Hub. We invite you to share the ideas, values, and priorities that will shape strategies for the future.

Happy World Environment Day!

Thank you, Emerson Elementary School, for having us be a part of the Outdoor Learning Student Showcase. We got to enjoy student-led walking tours of outdoor projects as well as brief highlights of our Fresh Fruit & Vegetable Program. We love participating in the collective celebration of Seattle Green Schoolyards' vision of equitable access to outdoor learning programs.

Seattle is getting $3.2 million from the WA State Home Electrification Appliance Rebates (HEAR) grant program, to help transition residents off of oil and gas heating! Increased funding will help households and businesses make the switch to sustainable heating.

Check out our blog to learn more about HEAR!
https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/06/city-of-seattle-awarded-nearly-3-2-million-to-support-residential-and-small-businesses-transition-from-fossil-fuels-to-clean-energy-efficient-appliances/

Across the US, race is the most significant predictor of a person living near contaminated air, water, or soil.

For this reason, Seattle’s Environmental Justice Fund was created to support organizations that center those most affected by environmental inequities.

Read how EJ Fund grantee Braided Seeds expands outdoor access to BIPOC communities on our Greenspace blog: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/05/environmental-justice-fund-grantee-spotlight-braided-seeds/

Pancakes, flowers, and electric power. What a beautiful trio. Get a taste of the first community-focused at the Miller Community Center next week. Who knew climate-resiliency could be tasty too?

Did you know that heat pumps could provide air-conditioning too? By making the switch to electric you can say bye-bye to your box fan with the help of a $2,000 instant rebate. Details here: https://incentives.switchison.org/rebate-profile/clean-heat-program-seattle-city-light?view=residents&origin=directory&state=WA

As demands for electrical vehicles continue to rise, the EV charging accessibility gap must close. Read how 31 new charging locations, 1,800 resident requests, 19 projects, and 154 properties helped us meet our electrical infrastructure goals in 2023: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/04/transportation-electrification-blueprint-brought-electric-regional-busing-ev-charging-stations-greener-streets-and-more-to-seattle-in-2023/

The Duwamish Valley Program is celebrating the fifth anniversary of the Duwamish Valley Action Plan! Learn how the DVAP has been improving the quality of life for Seattle’s South Park and Georgetown communities over the past five years on our Greenspace blog: https://greenspace.seattle.gov/2024/05/duwamish-valley-program-celebrates-five-years-of-improving-the-quality-of-life-for-georgetown-and-south-park-residents/

OSE’s Ximena Fonseca Morales joined the Duwamish River Community Coalition and Mini Mart City Park last month to install an air quality monitor as part of the Duwamish Air Improvement Study for Youth. Air quality and health improvements will come from the study's findings. https://www.drcc.org/daisy