SUMMIT OF SUSTAINABILITY ALLIANCE (SoSA)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

 

Summit of Sustainability Alliance Vision and Purpose

 

SoSA’s vision is a Summit County region that is a successful model of a sustainable community. Partners work together across sectors to create and enhance a thriving community surrounded by a healthy natural environment.

 

SoSA supports this vision by creating a sustainability forum in the Summit County region to unite nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, governmental entities, and for-profit businesses as they work together to inform policy, improve practices, and support innovation.

 

SoSA uses the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to guide collective impact, and leverage connections among members to tap creativity and create synergies. SoSA fosters alignment of goals and resources among the business, nonprofit, educational, and government sectors to move Akron’s ranking in the 2019 US Cities Sustainable Development Report (Sustainable Development Solutions Network, a global initiative for the United Nations) higher over the next 5 years. In addition, SoSA collectively identifies and addresses specific obstacles and opportunities to advance the conditions that foster innovation and progress toward sustainability goals.

 

One-Year Goals

 

By the end of 2021, SoSA will take specific steps to create a vibrant and effective alliance of business, nonprofit, educational, and governmental entities. SoSA acknowledges the importance of this first year as a time to establish a strong foundation for the future. 

 

In the first full year of activities, SoSA will:

 

Aim to deepen collective engagement of institutions and groups in the region, by:

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• Establishing how the network will function

• Creating a core leadership group

• Tapping roughly 12 active entities as a Core Team who provide resources and tools, lead network activities, and support the core work of the network

• Engaging roughly 30 entities as SoSA Membership to sign on to support the vision and directions and engage in activities

 

Choose 3-5 SDGs to act as core sustainability focuses that meet needs or tap the energy and capabilities of the entities involved in the network, reviewed annually and adjusted if necessary

 

Based on interests and focuses, choose first “pilot activities” or “experiments,” such as educational efforts, cross-learning, and skills/practices diffusion that support progress on the SDGs as prioritized

 

Define longer-term focus, metrics, and network activities to support the vision

 

Form and Structure for SoSA

(refer to Leadership Structure and MOU Documents for detail)

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Core Team 

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• Guide and support activities of the SoSA network and teams

• Manage any contracts, fiscal officer and grants

• Administrative functions

• Communications

• Facilitate membership

 

SoSA Teams 

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• Work in support of the SDG Goals

• Work on specific action item(s) under the specific SDG Goal

• Develop and begin implementation of at least one action item under the specific SDG Goal

 

SoSA Members

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• SoSA creates a sustainability forum in the Summit County region to unite the various sectors as they work together to inform policy, improve practices, and support innovation

• SoSA uses the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to guide collective impact, and leverage connections among members to tap creativity and create synergies

• SoSA collectively identifies and addresses specific obstacles and opportunities to advance the conditions that foster innovation and progress toward sustainability goals