Denver wants your say on its climate future

Denver's next climate plan will guide how the city cuts pollution, strengthens neighborhoods and spends public climate dollars through 2031 — and the people who live, work and spend time here can help set those priorities now.

The story: The city's Office of Climate Action, Sustainability and Resiliency is updating the Denver Climate Plan, its five-year roadmap for clean energy, climate resilience and equitable investment — and is surveying residents to get their feedback before they do.

Why it's important: People in Denver already experience climate change through extreme heat and poor air quality, but those risks do not affect every neighborhood equally.

• The updated plan will help determine where Denver directs funding, which programs it expands and how the city will work to scale its response to the impacts of climate change.

The background: Denver voters approved the Climate Protection Fund in 2020, creating a dedicated source of funding for climate programs.

• The city's 2021 five-year plan then established its first roadmap for putting those dollars to work, helping Denver to launch and expand programs focused on cleaner buildings, renewable energy, lower-emission transportation and neighborhood resilience.

The impact: Since 2021, Denver has invested millions of dollars in community climate projects.

• Thousands of households, including residents of affordable housing, have received energy-efficiency improvements or upgrades that replace fossil-fuel appliances with electric equipment.
• Community solar programs have widened access to renewable energy and reduced electricity costs for participating Denverites.
• E-bike rebates and other mobility incentives have helped more than 10,000 residents choose less expensive, lower-pollution ways to travel.
• The city has also planted thousands of trees, expanded cooling strategies and invested in green infrastructure designed to manage heat and stormwater.
• Workforce programs have trained thousands of contractors and other workers to install electric heating, cooling and cooking equipment in homes and businesses.

Looking ahead: The next plan must decide how to strengthen this work by responding to climate risks that continue to escalate.

The goal: Denver wants to make neighborhoods more energy-efficient, power more homes and businesses with clean electricity and protect people from threats such as extreme heat and unhealthy air.

The city also plans to continue prioritizing communities that carry the greatest climate burdens.

• To do that, Denver must understand how climate risks vary between neighborhoods and how residents experience city programs in practice.

How it's done: Resident feedback can expose those gaps before the city commits to its next five-year strategy.

The city's climate survey asks people who live, work and play in Denver to share their experiences and ideas.

• Community members can explain which climate threats affect them most, whether current programs meet their needs and what prevents them from using available resources.
• They can also identify the investments that would improve daily life in their communities, from cleaner transportation and lower energy costs to shade, cooling and stronger protection from extreme weather.

The takeaway: Denver's next climate plan will influence public investments and neighborhood programs through 2031.

• Denverites now have a direct opportunity to tell the city which climate problems demand attention, where current efforts fall short and what would make Denver healthier, more affordable and more resilient.

Take the survey and help shape Denver's next five years of climate action.