Earth2Green’s New Orleans staff completed the final tour of the Holy Cross Project’s LEED Platinum model home in 2017, bringing the total visitors to over 35,000 since its opening in 2008. Model home tours allowed visitors to experience green building techniques for efficiency, storm readiness and comfort in a hot and humid climate.
Earth2Green has made great progress toward the completion of the Holy Cross Project’s Phase II: The Climate Action Center. Interior finish-out construction began in 2017 with a completion scheduled for 2018. In preparation for interior construction to begin, Earth2Green New Orleans hosted a virtual reality tour of the Climate Action Center in collaboration with DIRTT Environmental Solutions. The event served as an opportunity for community members, elected officials and students to learn more about the Climate Action Center and provide recommendations for resource center exhibits.
The resource center will contain multimedia, interactive, and informational displays specific to the region that demonstrate climate action at different scales. For example, displays could highlight small-scale solutions to mitigate flooding and urban heat island effect; programs and resources offered by other organizations in New Orleans and the Gulf South that are working on related issues caused by extreme weather events; key features of the unique drainage system in New Orleans; and opportunities for visitors to engage with and comment on current city and statewide resiliency plans. In developing these displays, an emphasis will be placed on providing visitors with example actions they can take to address issues described in the resource center. The Center’s focus on providing actionable resources and workshops for visitors will enable citizen engagement in collective climate action to create a thriving green sector and resilient communities.
As stated in the City of New Orleans’ Resilient New Orleans strategy “While we now may recognize the risks that a hurricane presents [to the City], we still lack a widespread public awareness of how climate change increases the future risks to our city.” Earth2Green works to address the dual issues of climate change impacts and lack of public awareness by providing New Orleans residents with the information and tools required to improve the resilience of their homes, neighborhoods, and city. Earth2Green’s Climate Action Center will enable us to reach more individuals with these resources in a centralized location, empower local residents and youth to be environmental stewards, and engage them in climate action. As a model for community engagement for all residents, the Center is integral to our ability to advance our mission to create a more sustainable future for all.
