Photo (from left to right):  Susanne Torriente, Director, Miami-Dade County Office of Sustainability; Amy Knowles, Project Manager for GreenPrint, Miami-Dade County Department of Environmental Resources Management; Miami-Dade County Commissioner Katy Sorenson, District 8; Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez; George Burgess, Miami-Dade County Manager.(Photo by Ricardo Manuel Garcia)

Miami-Dade County Mayor Carlos Alvarez and Commissioner Katy Sorenson, Chair of the Mayor's Advisory Board for the development of Miami-Dade County's sustainability plan, "GreenPrint - Our Design for a Sustainable Future," hosted the Board's first kick-off meeting on September 30, 2009.

The County's sustainability plan, "GreenPrint," is being developed in order to make County government operations greener, and to improve the overall sustainability of the community.   The Mayor's Advisory Board, comprised of leaders from academia, tourism, real estate, environment, community, business, and local governments is charged with providing valuable feedback from a community perspective. 

"County departments and community leaders will be responsible for defining initiatives that will make us more sustainable, in terms of the environment, the economy, and social equity," said Mayor Alvarez.  "We are all moving in the direction of a greener tomorrow, and with the help of the Mayor's Advisory Board, we will all be making sure that we do our part to better our community."

Miami-Dade County's Office of Sustainability is pursuing initiatives and programs for a more ecologically, economically, and sensitive approach to local government and the local and global environment.  While Miami-Dade County has been a leader in environmental initiatives for many years, new issues that impact the community's quality of life, such as global climate change, more efficient energy use, green buildings and use of environmentally preferred products, continue to emerge.