What We Do

IEMA provides municipalities, local governments and communities varying types of assistance in their journeys to become eco-municipalities.  We provide education and training in how to become an eco-municipality, process leadership, municipal staff training in sustainability and how to change to sustainable practices, and more.  The design of our trainings, education, and leadership skills are based upon hundreds of successful trainings, education initiatives, local planning processes, and process leadership in local governments and their larger communities. Our services include:

Workshops and presentations on:

• The eco-municipality systems approach to sustainable community change
• The Natural Step framework, a science-based systems approach to sustainable development and an important component of the ecomunicipality approach
• A “bottom-up”, participatory approach to sustainable community and municipal change

Municipal training that includes:

• A science-based understanding of sustainability and its practical, everyday application
• How to translate sustainability principles into concrete, systematic change in municipal practices
• How to integrate and institutionalize change toward sustainable practices in department and agency operations, policy, and regulations
• ‘Train-the-trainer” sessions

Community education, planning, and strategy development that includes:

• Bringing about broad-based community participation
• Involving businesses and institutions
• Sustainability education using clear principles to design action

Ecomunicipality process leadership, including:

Advice and assistance to local governments and community organizations interested in a systematic approach to sustainable community change; including:

• How to design and carry out a multi-year systematic change process
• Process leadership and guidance during a multi-year change process
• Educational and training events

While we primarily work with local governments and community organizations, we also can provide assistance and training to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and non-profit organizations.

See a videotaped presentation by Sarah James and Torbjorn Lahti to City of Madison, WI department heads: View video

See videotaped keynote speechs by Sarah James and Torbjorn Lahti at the 2007 International Northern Shelter Forum in Anchorage, Alaska:  View keynotes