PEA surveyed all candidates in state and local elections on a range of environmental issues.
Thank you to PEA interns Sam Helman and Colin Chapman and PEA staff Jessica Rowe for their work on this survey.
NC Superintendent of Public Instruction
Q: How will you help combat rising food insecurity in North Carolina and provide access to healthy, sustainable foods?
A: For so many children, schools are the most consistent sources of food: 1 in 6 children face hunger in our state. I will strive to prioritize the most healthy and sustainable foods for students in school buildings across North Carolina. I will also strive to help local districts and schools partner with organizations that provide weekend and summer meals in order to connect families to community resources for access to healthy meals. Food insecurity affects marginalized communities at disproportionate rates, and it is essential to approach this with a lens of equity. Community collaborations are critical to addressing rising food insecurity.
Q: As superintendent, how will you ensure we are teaching about vital environmental issues like climate change?
A: As North Carolina Superintendent of Public Instruction, I plan to work with the State Board of Education, the North Carolina General Assembly, educators and other stakeholders to increase education opportunities for students to learn more about environmental/environmental justice issues and how they can make positive changes with the same.
Q: As superintendent, how will you promote renewable energy and energy efficiency within North Carolina schools?
A: I will research and help school districts and schools implement the best practices for energy efficiency, including being willing to spearhead innovative grant programs within the Department of Public Instruction to incentivize schools to promote renewable energy.
Q: When elected, will you support allocating funds to update school buses to electric models?
A: Based on my review of the details provided, I am generally inclined to be supportive of this investment for updated electric school buses; however, I would like additional details on the timeline and implementation.
Q: As superintendent, what will you do to increase school wide recycling and composting?
A: I will encourage recycling and composting programs in the Department of Public Instruction and with school districts and schools across North Carolina. A grant program could also be an avenue to consider for promoting recycling and composting. It is critical we teach our students how to be good stewards of our environment.
Q: How will you help combat rising food insecurity in North Carolina and provide access to healthy, sustainable foods?
A: As Superintendent, I will work with the NC Dept of Agriculture and NC Farmers to provide nutritious, daily meals for our students. As a nurse who has spent years studying nutrition and promoting children’s health, I understand the importance of whole food sustenance to help our students physically, emotionally and intellectually.
Q: As superintendent, how will you ensure we are teaching about vital environmental issues like climate change?
A: It is important for our young people to appreciate our communities and be responsible citizens. Given the current math and English literacy crisis, mental health issues and increase in drugs and violence in our schools, my top priority will be academics and improving our math and science prowess so that our young people will have the critical thinking skills to solve the problems we face in the future.
Q: As superintendent, how will you promote renewable energy and energy efficiency within North Carolina schools?
A: As Superintendent, I will prioritize safe and healthy school environments. Moving forward with new builds, we should consider the most cost effective ways to conserve energy and keep costs low, but replacing current systems that are functioning sufficiently is not a wise use of education dollars at this point in NC.
Q: When elected, will you support allocating funds to update school buses to electric models?
A: No. I am focused on offering safe and reliable transportation to and from school for every student, but do not believe that the priority should be focused on electric buses.
Q: As superintendent, what will you do to increase school wide recycling and composting?
A: As Superintendent, I would be excited to teach our youngest students about horticulture, reuse and composting.
NC State Senate
Dana Caudill Jones (District 31) - No Response
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: I would like to see renovation of the vacant homes/apartments in the communities, bringing these properties up to code and making energy efficiency a priority. Where properties do not already exist, build them. Priority funding needs to be directed to the communities that have the most need. I will collaborate with community stakeholders to find the most effective way to move forward.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I support conducting assessments to determine the areas and individuals most impacted by climate change. We must put interventions and strategies in place to address their needs. We must find ways to make it beneficial and convenient for people to recycle - some states have a bottle return practice for soda and water bottles. This may need to be explored for NC. I support more gardening and planting of trees and flowers. These help with the quality of the air we breathe.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: I would like to see NC explore carbon-free resources to use in place of the resources causing damage to our environment. I would like to continue to find ways to reduce, reuse, and recycle resources. I would encourage residents to use rebates for individuals who switch to more energy efficient appliances.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I see reduce, reuse, recycle, and composting as ways to protect natural resources. I would encourage use of energy efficient appliances and other energy efficient products that can help reduce our carbon footprint. I would help find ways to build more efficient commercial buildings and personal residences.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: I would like to see more recycling containers in public places and parks. People are more willing to recycle when it is easy to do so. We need more education on composting and ways to make it convenient to do so. Both concepts should be promoted in our schools across the state.
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: This is almost entirely about policy and money. If you were building a home, especially one that you would not be living in, it’s easy to see how these would be the highest priorities. You may say, “a weatherized, energy-efficient home powered by all-electric appliances would save money in the long run!” And you would be right! But with little to no incentive to prioritize use of these components, most developers are not inclined to do so. They’re selling houses that aren’t even built to people that are utterly desperate to enjoy the benefits of home ownership that they’ve been pitched their entire lives. They don’t have enough labor to meet the demand, so they need to move quickly. The sink just needs to work, it doesn’t have to be low-flow. They just need a hookup for a stove that works with a utility provider that serves their home; they often don’t care if it’s electric or gas, but I know that’s a…hotter…debate. Much of the land development community follows minimum design criteria, the state’s guidelines for what you can use in your design and easily make it through permitting. It’s simple: if the standards were raised for a house that could be sold in our state, the housing in our state would be better. And the incentives are much greater for individual homes than for creative multi-family solutions, as proven everyday by the continued building. We could leverage our community college system to prepare more workers for the field and break up the logjam that perpetuates our issue with quality and creates more stakeholders that actually live in our state and care about our environment.
A: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
Q: Even if we can’t all agree that humans have caused the climate change we’re experiencing, it’s impossible to deny that we’re experiencing it at this point. I hope that most can agree that we will need man-made solutions to endure whatever we have coming. Largely this will mean policies that promote use of resources more efficiently. For example, take transportation. We have far too many vehicles on the road with only the driver in the vehicle, increasing emissions and demand for cooling. More people on a bus, or a much-needed rail system, means less emissions and more efficient use of resources.
It is more critical than ever to limit the pollutants discharged to our water supply, since higher temperatures will increase evapo-transpiration, reducing the amount of water supply and increasing the concentration of pollutants.
Our food systems will need attention as the heat changes what crops and strains can be grown in NC, necessitating research and extension efforts. People will need to get used to eating more “ugly produce” as we strive for increased efficiency, meaning that many groceries may need assistance in shifting their operations away from charging more for pretty potatoes, etc.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: The investment that really needs to be made to build North Carolina’s green economy is one in the people. Currently, the incentives are simply not in the right place. Why would I consider public transportation when there aren’t any sidewalks that reach my house? Why would I consider living in higher density housing when it is often less affordable or lower quality? Why would I choose to frequent a more environmentally responsible business when I’m poor, short on time, and the irresponsible businesses are able to keep their costs low by cutting corners without consequence?
Increased electric vehicle production isn’t a bad idea, but it’s not the wisest use of our limited resources. The shareholders and business owners that live outside of our state are the ones that benefit from these investments, not the people. They need policies to help turn the good choice into the economical choice, and those are the solutions that I would focus on.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: Our General Assembly’s waffling on PFAS is shameful. Let’s be clear: North Carolina is one of, if not the best, states to do business in the United States. We don’t have to be a total doormat to keep it that way, and there’s no sense in protecting an economy that will kill its own people over time. Things need to change. The PFAS polluters need to be responsible for the billions of dollars of new equipment that has been and needs to be purchased by downstream utilities that will otherwise have to pass the cost along to regular people that did not contribute to PFAS pollution or benefit from the profits of the polluters. PFAS must have strict discharge limits that are actually upheld and enforceable. PFAS polluters must be accountable to, at least, the downstream communities they impact, even if it means they have to close down or move. There must be consequences for bad businesses, and big polluters are bad businesses.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: Recycling and composting are critical components of a healthy system to limit waste to landfills. The average North Carolinian would be astonished at the amount of fecal coliform present in stormwater runoff from our landfills, and it’s essentially just allowed to happen. My graduate work researching value-added products that could be derived from swine manure taught me many things, but if there’s one that is pertinent here, it’s that most waste streams do not get easier to process and treat as you add in different types of waste. It makes more sense to handle the mountain of dirty diapers and a dumpster full of bottles separately, for example, because they decompose differently and present different risks to the environment. Composting and recycling are great because they separate out the components that can be processed together to create other products and limit actual “waste.”
I will promote these and other systems that result in us getting more use out of all of our limited resources while limiting pollution to our air, water, and soil. This means more research from our excellent universities, more outreach from extension, more grants for farmers, and extensive efforts to educate the public. It’s not enough to say we should recycle; it needs to be easily understood and easy to do for businesses and regular people. Use of materials that will not end up in the landfill should be promoted or even incentivized for our industries.
I hope the "5" on all of these doesn't come off as disingenuous, but they're all so connected, and the GA spends so much time on nonsense, that they gotta be a 5.
Paul Lowe (District 32) - No Response
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: I would pass legislation that ensures that sustainable housing is available in NC for everyone.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I would pass legislation that ensures that the processing of waste and garbage is done cleaner.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: I would propose and vote to pass legislation that directs resources towards programs that will guarantee a cleaner environment for North Carolina residents.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I will push to mandate that the laws we have in place are strictly enforced and that violations are punished to the maximum
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: I will work to implement cleaner waste and garbage processing by initiating new technologies that use natural gas powered incineration technologies that have been proven successful in other countries.
NC House of Respresentatives
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: The affordable housing crisis we're seeing is largely impacted by supply issues - we simply don't have enough homes available, driving prices up for ones that do. On the sustainability side, it's mainly around incentivizing developers to adhere to sustainability guidelines in new construction as well as renovation projects. I'm focused on working with local stakeholders, like municipal governments, to help facilitate both new housing as well as new infrastructure, and by extension with developers to find the best incentives for sustainable construction.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I will continue to develop our renewable energy sector which makes both environmental and economic sense. Ensuring renewable energy sources grow in North Carolina helps us do our part with climate change and bring new jobs and investment into our state. For our communities on the coast and major waterways, I will make sure that we look at investing in flood-mitigation. Infrastructure is a way for us to prepare for climate stressors and save us economic heartache in the long-term.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: We have to stop the legislature's war on renewable energy - where industries like solar and wind have become victims to the culture war. North Carolina must strive to lead our country in the renewable sector in the late 2020s and 2030s. That's done through taking bold steps to encourage both our existing companies to grow and to attract new ones. The renewable sector has incredible potential to bring well-needed jobs to communities that are hurting for them.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I'm proud to have voted against legislation that has threatened our natural resources and environment, and will continue to push for laws that further environmental protections. PFAS remains a major threat to the long-term health of North Carolinians, and we must be proactive in how we legislate to protect their right to clean air and water.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: I think that's largely based around education programs and ensuring that county/municipal governments have recycling programs available to their citizens. Even small local educational programs can produce great uptake of composting and recycling.
Amber Baker (District 72) - No Response
Amy Taylor North (District 74)
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: Recently the National Low Income Housing Coalition determined there are 326,751, extremely low-income households in NC, but only 130,930 affordable rental homes. By 2030, new home construction led by luxury developers like my opponent Jeff Zenger who continues to place profits over people, will fall well short of the need for 900,000 houses needed to keep up with population growth. I will fight to increase the supply of low income housing by:
1. Fully support the new NC Housing Finance Agency (NCHFA) and their new $750M in revenue bonds to continue its efforts.
2. Listen and build community consensus among stakeholders; while fully supporting existing federal programs to address increasing homeownership like: HUD’s Home Investment Partnership Programs, the Self-Help homeownership Opportunity Program, and the Housing Choice Voucher program, all of which provide rental assistance to low income households in NC.
3. Allow more housing density in highly-attractive areas.
4. Speed up permit approvals.
5. Raise the energy efficiency requirements for new homes.
6. Remove minimum lot requirements & minimum square footage requirements so tiny houses can be built for $60-$70K. While we need federal funding, local leadership has to make this a priority at the state/local level.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I will:
1. Protect and restore NC ecosystems.
2. Support local farmers, small farm operations, agriculture education providers, and farmers markets.
3. Support Green Energy legislation and diversify energy sources like solar and wind.
4. Actively fight against known Co2 (methane, ozone) producers, like factories/plants.
5. Support adaptation--change where we live now rather than kicking the can down the road; stop pollutants, financially incentivize programs that reduce emissions, bike rather than drive;
6. Continue to pursue/develop state-wide plans to go carbon neutral ASAP; at least by 2050.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: I will:
1. Support funding for electric vehicle infrastructure.
2. Offer tax incentives for tags/licenses for electric vehicles.
3. Convert non-electric public transportation, diesel to electric when we can.
4. Open to reforming the weight limits on the gas vehicles.
5. Support bond exemptions for small, biofuel suppliers.
6. Explore idea of solar panels on schools (would need to explore public/private partnerships/resources)
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I support:
1. Reduce toxic emissions from plants/factories that enter waterways and drinking water. Require additional purification filters for communities and enforcing fines for pollutant discharge & financial responsibilities for clean-up/recovery efforts.
2. Support legislation like the Safe Drinking Water Act that bans forever chemicals in bedding, rugs, furniture--CA, NY, VT, CO and Maine have already fully banned forever chemicals; additional swift action to protect NC from cookware, paint, etc. which contain forever chemicals.
3. While there are federal laws, NC must raise current standards on waterways, and fight to protect NC waterways from forever chemicals.
4. We should review and implement air quality standards in all areas of our community, and learn response/recovery efforts from situations like the recent, local fire at a fertilizer factory so close to homes in already challenged communities.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: I will:
1. Fight for deposit-return systems on bottles, glass, cans and plastic.
2. Expand current recycling programs to include MORE than bottles, glass, cans and plastic.
3. Incentivize NC companies and State agencies to boost their efforts internally, and within the community.
4. Coordinate Ag/Environ Extension (NC Coop Extension) programs/partnerships with public schools, childcare centers, senior living facilities, colleges, and summer camps to reduce lunch waste and teach kids the importance of composting.
5. Partnering with HOA's might also be valuable to boost community gardening/composting.
6. Place more recycling bins in public areas.
7. Host community recycling/awareness events and create "recycling clubs". (Lewisville, NC
does a great job with its tech/electric/tv/computer recycling program/partnership with Waste Management. It grows every year.)
8. Clothing is a huge environmental issue---expanding local partnerships throughout NC like W-S Fashion Week (which partners with local designers, Goodwill--and potentially schools– would raise awareness and promote GREEN Fashion across generational and geographic lines. Programs to collect coats and school clothes would also make an impact.
Jeff Zenger (District 74) - No Response
Donny Lambeth (District 75) - Declined
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: We need to crack down on people buying up properties to use as Air BNBs. We need to educate the public on the importance of constructing affordable housing, including multi-unit housing in all parts of town, even if they are accustomed to not having a lot of neighbors around. We need to abolish single-family zoning so that developers have places they can build multi-unit housing and are incentivized to do so, rather than just building luxury housing downtown. We need a moratorium on tearing down existing affordable housing units since research has shown that very rarely are residents relocated to comparable housing, and this is also a significant factor in homelessness.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: We must address the fact that Duke Energy has been the primary obstacle in the transition to rooftop solar and the transition from coal and gas to solar, wind, and other renewables. They spend millions of dollars on disinformation campaigns such as "clean coal", and greenwashing themselves, and they lobby the General Assembly to pass legislation that favors them. This has to stop, and it will stop when people stop accepting it. We need a statewide cash for clunkers program like the federal government did in 2009, and California, Vermont and Colorado have currently. We need more investment in our bus system. We need to make roadways more friendly for walking and biking. We need to fully fund our school bus system, and increase ridership on school buses so that car pick up lines and the exhaust from idling decreases.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: We must make sure our students are able to be trained/educated for green jobs. That means fully funding public education, and our public colleges and universities and making sure students can attend them for free so that they can access these green jobs, which they consistently indicate they want. I will propose a bill that provides incentives for graduates working in green jobs/green industries to stay here in North Carolina to work.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I would hold polluters accountable and make them pay for the damage they cause. I would establish a statewide air quality index and use it to protect outdoor workers from days they are not safe to work outside.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: I would work to allocate funding for recycling and composting programs for schools and businesses, as well as households. I would also work to outlaw styrofoam, as 10 states and 1 city have, as well as repeal House Bill 56 from 2018 which prevented cities from instituting their own bans on plastic bags.
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the NC communities that need it most?
A: I will help ensure the money coming into NC through the BIL and IRA are needs based versus handed out to cronies via metrics from established agencies.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our state can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: There are climate models such as En-ROADS (2024) Global Climate Simulator that are used to show the most efficient policy solutions as #1 carbon pricing and #2 methane gas captured from fracking and other sources. These solutions are promising to mitigate the temperature increase to stay below the 1.5C increase by 2100 which the 1.5C increase is the tipping point to avoid. Put a price on carbon. We must regulate methane leakage.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in North Carolina and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: Putting a price on carbon is one of the best ways to mitigate the climate crisis but in 2023, lawmakers added a provision preventing North Carolina from joining a cap-and-trade program — such as the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative — to limit power plant emissions. And in North Carolina, $19.7 billion has been poured into the state, creating 22 clean energy projects and more than 10,000 jobs in solar, recycling, electric vehicle and battery manufacturing. The investments include a $13.9 billion Toyota Motor North America EV/hybrid battery plant slated to open next year. Putting a price on carbon would be my focus.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: Unfortunately, court litigation and legislative action are required. Courts must get involved to assist especially BIPOC communities with this issue. I support court actions such as the Southern Environmental Law Center Agreement reached between EJCAN and GFL: largest landfill in North Carolina to cease pollution and address environmental injustice. The risk of court involvement perhaps will bring polluters to mitigate court litigation in exchange for reasonable legislation.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in North Carolina?
A: Methane capture is required for existing landfills now. The cost would incentivize reduction and recycling at landfills. But also it would be an energy source to pay for the cost to cover the landfill. Innovation and investment is key.
Kyle Hall (District 91) - No Response
County Commission
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented in the Forsyth County communities that need it most?
A: I would support zoning regulations that increase the supply of high density housing in Forsyth County.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our county can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: Energy demand will only increase despite the risks of climate change. The challenge of climate change is that systemic impacts can only be mitigated at the system level -- because the natural world doesn't recognize borders. Despite that, there are policies that local governments can implement to set the example for acting in sustainable ways: like purchasing EVs, recycling, water and land use policy. My personal belief is that the climate crisis is most likely solved through innovation and commercialization of non-carbon generation (most likely cold fusion).
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Forsyth County and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: I support an EV first policy for county vehicles. Energetically position Forsyth County for federal and state grants and funding to promote green energy jobs and infrastructure.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I am open to all legally available enforcement mechanisms available to the County to ensure that our citizens have clean water to drink and clean air to breathe.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Forsyth County?
A: I will work with our industry partners to understand and implement best practices. The waste management vendors have a national footprint and are best positioned to present solutions that are best practices to reduce the environmental footprint and incentivize recycling. I would solicit their expertise in these areas and publicize the options for comments from citizen groups such as PEA.
Richard Linville - No Response
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented in the Forsyth County communities that need it most?
A: Affordable housing is a complex issue that needs to be addressed by Forsyth County Commissioners in collaboration with the Winston-Salem City Council, the State and Federal Governments, businesses, developers, and nonprofits. I would work with these groups to develop solutions and approaches that will work for the county. There is no simple solution to the affordable housing crisis, so it will require working collectively to develop a strategic plan. That strategic plan should identify the locations and types of housing that are needed and develop an approach to address these gaps. The plan should include a timeline with specific, measurable goals and consideration of housing costs to both individuals and the environment. We need to ensure that we are taking full advantage of all available government funds. The County has the opportunity to participate with Winston-Salem as they create their affordable housing plans.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our county can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: Forsyth County must adopt a strategic plan to address climate change and ensure resiliency. The plan needs to include specific, measurable actions which should be tracked over time. Easy actions such as solar installations, LED light replacement and a shift to electric vehicles need to be pursued at a countywide level. We need to look at successful programs in other communities to see what additional actions can be taken to address this critical issue.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Forsyth County and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: Forsyth County can focus on recruiting industries that are part of the green economy to bring jobs here that will benefit the community and meet the broader needs of the country in becoming more sustainable. Our county needs to review current practices to ensure that we are using efficient technologies and reducing our carbon footprint whenever possible.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: Protection of our natural resources is important in maintaining our air and water in Forsyth County. We need to ensure we are protecting open space and the quality of our air and water. As our community grows, these impacts need to be considered and any adverse effects must be mitigated. This is an important consideration in the Forward 2045 plan for Forsyth County that will guide us into the future.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Forsyth County?
A: Recycling and composting can be promoted in the county with planned community outreach on the benefits and ways that residents can participate. The approach would need to be tailored to the community since there are different systems in place in cities and towns as compared to the unincorporated areas of the county.
Gloria Whisenhunt - No Response
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented in the Forsyth County communities that need it most?
A: The NCACC has identified numerous opportunities for housing in this state, with guidelines for determining what housing can be afforded based on 50% of gross income, but the solution lies in providing jobs that offer an income that makes suitable housing affordable in the long term.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our county can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I would support legislation coupled with education to mitigate pollution and toxic gasses that further the greenhouse effect.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Forsyth County and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: I support citizen education, county ordinances and investment of county funds to regulate industry and minimize residential pollution of the atmosphere.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: I support state and county funding for NRCS projects to recover streams and support enforcement of laws and ordinances to reduce vehicular and industrial air pollution.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Forsyth County?
A: I will continue to support waste management programs throughout the county, with emphasis on recycling of green products (RPCs, etc.)
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented in the Forsyth County communities that need it most?
A: The County has a housing rehabilitation program that should continue. The County should also work closely with municipalities to put a plan forward that will include more affordable housing.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our county can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I support investing in reducing the County's carbon emissions. I would help get a design plan and find funding to retrofit infrastructure so it can withstand extreme weather events. I would promote efficient water use and reduce wastage.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Forsyth County and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: The County should have a Green development plan and put money towards it.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: Use zoning regulations to control development in environmentally sensitive areas, such as wetlands, floodplains, and wildlife habitats.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Forsyth County?
A: I would like to see composting implemented at a County level.
City Council
Annette Scippio (East Ward) - No Response
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the WS communities that need it most?
A: I've advocated for policies that encourage the development of affordable housing units, promote responsible urban planning, and collaborate with local stakeholders to create sustainable solutions. I recognize the significance of affordable housing in fostering inclusive communities and understand that a lack of affordable options can lead to economic disparities. My work on this issue reflects a dedication to creating equitable and thriving neighborhoods for all residents.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our city can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: I will continue to advocate for more transportation funds to purchase more hybrid and electric buses; install more electric vehicle charging stations; look for ways to promote and incentivize sustainable and green community/economic development; create more green spaces and parks; provide more bee habitats throughout the City; pass resolutions that ask citizens to carpool at designated times of year, track air quality data to see the impact; have the Sustainability Committee post an annual report to the community as the “State of Our City” on two to five environmental issues that people can immediately identify with.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Winston-Salem and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: It's the City’s responsibility to constantly look for ways to improve infrastructure and public use resources that benefit all citizens and communities, not just some. I will continue to use my voice as an elected official at the local, state and national level to lobby for resources.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: It’s essential for the City to protect our water and air quality. The City can only operate within the federal and General Assembly guidelines. That means that we continue to create and enact policies that will not be preempted by the state. It will take collaborative relationships with organizations like [PEA] to educate and engage the community to use their vote as their voice to save our planet.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Winston-Salem?
A: The City will have to look to its Sustainability Committee and like-minded groups to help raise awareness among citizens. I would be looking to these groups for best practices and advocate for implementation to come from a grassroots approach. If we can reduce plastic bag and bottle usage, reduce purchase of products with excessive packaging, and train and educate on backyard composting we could make some real headway.
Barbara Burke (Northeast Ward) - No Response
Regina Ford Hall (Northwest Ward)
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the WS communities that need it most?
A: As a Council Member, I will ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented in the W-S communities that need it most by working with organizations such as PEA to educate fellow Council Members, City staff, and citizens of the improved health outcomes, and affordability that are associated with building energy efficient homes and buildings. I will also work with the City Manager to encourage staff in the City's Sustainability Dept. to create and keep Council abreast of new strategies that the City can implement to not only reduce its carbon footprint in Winston but to make sure that we consider when giving incentives to developers who are interested in affordable and energy efficient housing. Having these strategies in place and being aware of dollars that can be made available to local government by way of federal legislation is critical to making the best decisions of making sure that affordable and sustainable housing is developed in the W-S communities that need it most.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our city can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: A lot has to do with measures that the federal government will take to help local governments be resilient in the face of current climate stressors. However, knowing that climate change negatively affects natural environments, increases chances of natural disasters, and warms the planet leading to health risk and food insecurity, I think it will be important for the City to invest in renewable energy and improve building efficiency when/where possible. As a Council Member I will advocate for the City to lead by example with investment in renewable energy. The City has done a good job in making strides to do that with placing solar panels on the roof of City Hall. As a Council Member, I will advocate for staff to include and incorporate similar types of alternative energy sources into building designs for both new construction of City buildings and architectural designs for adaptive reuse projects on older city buildings including recreation centers. I think it will also be important to study what our sister cities are doing to mitigate the impact of climate change and determine if there is anything that we can do to collaborate on such measures to increase the overall impact in the Triad area. I think we (Triad city leaders) should all keep open lines of communication with state and federal officials to gain insights on policies and strategies that state and federal legislators are incorporating to mitigate the impacts of climate change, and see how we can work together to take advantage of funding to enact strategies that will have a greater impact of mitigating climate change across the Triad. In this sense, we truly are better if we are working together to examine new strategies/approaches to mitigate this issue.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Winston-Salem and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: As a Council Member I will take steps to build a green economy in Winston-Salem and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade by advocating for more electric vehicles in our City's fleet. This will not be an overnight process but is definitely something that can happen over the next decade with adding more and more each year.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: As a Council Member, I will advocate for the City Manager to encourage staff in the Utilities Dept. to work with staff in the Sustainability Dept. to ensure that are natural resources are protected.
I will also advocate for the creation/development of more green spaces and pocket parks throughout the City such as the pocket park on Second Street.
Knowing that trees can improve air quality, as a Council Member, I will advocate for our city pocket parks and green spaces to include tree and plants that are native species to our region to help promote better air quality in our city.
I will also work with the City Manager to encourage City Departments and divisions such as the Office of Sustainability and Keep Winston-Salem Beautiful create community awareness campaigns and host events around ways not only City staff can be more proactive in planting these trees and native plants in city parks and green spaces, but also how citizens can become active participants in this citywide effort, and plant these trees and plants in their respective communities.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Winston-Salem?
A: As a Council Member, I will promote recycling and composting in Winston-Salem by advocating for more digital awareness campaigns around the benefits of recycling and composting. This can be a multi-department effort between staff in our Utilities, Waste Management, and Sustainability Departments, along with staff in our Marketing and Communications Department. I will also speak with the City Manager about ways that the City's Urban Food Policy Council can contribute to this citywide awareness campaign and advise the Manager's office and Council Members of strategies for both staff and citizens to incorporate More recycling and composting measures throughout our city. I see this as also being a way to include some of the Urban Farmers in our city to showcase how they use compost measures in growing their own food -another benefit to the environment. There are great examples including Speas Elementary (in the Northwest Ward) that started an amazing composting program and taught both students, teachers, staff, and parents about composting and its overall benefits to the community.
James (Jimmy) Hodson (Northwest Ward) - No Response
Vivian Joiner (South Ward) - No Response
James Taylor (Southeast Ward) - No Response
Scott Andree-Bowen (Southwest Ward)
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the WS communities that need it most?
A: As we build new homes, we need to add sustainable energy as part of our UDO. As we move towards sustainable energy, we hope that utility costs will be less of a cost on a monthly basis.
I would also like to use my platform to educate the public on federal rebate programs for replacing outdated appliances with sustainable energy appliances.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our city can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: First, we are already seeing impacts of climate change and we need to address those impacts as well as ways to curb any further problems.
We need to look at our aging infrastructure and update it to better handle our changing climate and population.
We need to work towards better 100% EV within the city fleet, including the WSPD.
We need to encourage and develop EV charging stations to make charging as accessable as gas stations.
We need to look at our building codes to make sure they meeting sustainable energy standards that help reverse climate change.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Winston-Salem and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: Winston-Salem is called The City of Arts and Innovation. We need to add sustainable energy as part of our innovation.
Within the Piedmont Triad area several sustainable energy manufacturing jobs have begun to move in. I would like to find ways to encourage local entrepreneurs to grow, and look at ways to bring sustainable energy manufacturing closer to Winston-Salem.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: As I mentioned earlier, updating our aging infrastructure, including waste management.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Winston-Salem?
A: I would like to compost pickup to our waste management. Find a safe and easy way to store food waste. Develop a partnership with a local compost company for citywide pickup.
Robert Clark (West Ward) - No Response
Q: How will you ensure that affordable and sustainable housing is implemented into the WS communities that need it most?
A: Housing is a passion project for me. I ultimately believe we must lessen our reliance on for-profit interests and move toward a model where the city takes a direct role in developing, owning, and managing affordable housing. This means championing initiatives like the establishment of city-owned housing developments that are permanently affordable, reducing our reliance on HUD with its restrictions and hurdles, expanding community land trusts to keep housing under local control, and creating a public housing fund to finance these projects. By doing so, we can ensure that housing remains accessible and affordable for all residents, regardless of market fluctuations. However, recognizing this is a long-term goal, I also support immediate actions like implementing inclusionary zoning, which will require a percentage of new developments to be affordable and ensure they are all located in one area; offering tax incentives and reducing over-regulation where possible to encourage developers to build affordable and sustainable units; and forming city partnerships to create mixed-income communities that address current needs. Critical in all of this is increased communication with the community. By blending long-term vision with short-term solutions, we can build a more equitable and sustainable future for Winston-Salem.
Q: What action and policies do you support to mitigate the impacts of climate change and ensure our city can be resilient in the face of current climate stressors?
A: Winston-Salem needs to be proactive when dealing with the climate challenges facing our city. We’re seeing more frequent days with unhealthy air quality and increased extreme weather in our area. As such, I fully support and endorse the electrification of the city’s fleet but I would love to see the city further embrace and foster electrification of our city. In 2024, Winston-Salem was ranked as the 8th least EV-friendly city in the nation. We were also identified as having some of the worst air quality in the state. Embracing electrification modernizes our infrastructure, makes us more appealing and competitive for job growth, and offers a direct way to improve our air quality. I’d also push for expanding green spaces to reduce the heat effect that makes parts of our city much hotter than others. I’d particularly love to see this embraced among our children’s recreational spaces, as our current approach seems to be to clear the land and stick a metal playground in the sun. Additionally, I hope to champion bringing our city’s stormwater management and sewer infrastructure up to date. In many parts of our city, cast iron pipes that were rated for 50 years, have been pushed decades past their expected lifespan. Increased heavy rains in our area put a further strain on these systems and when they fail, it increases flood risks, can bring widespread damage to surrounding areas, and introduces potential health hazards. Being reactive comes with higher cleanup costs and increased expenses for repairs. Let’s be proactive to meet the demands of increased heavy rainfall.
Q: What steps will you take to build a green economy in Winston-Salem and ensure we benefit from green economy investments in the next decade?
A: In addition to the ideas I’ve already laid out, I would love to see Winston-Salem focus on attracting clean energy and EV investments through tax incentives, streamlined permitting, workforce development programs, and green job training initiatives that ensure our citizens are prepared for high-paying jobs in the sector. Additionally, I support sustainable development practices, such as green building standards and renewable energy integration in city projects. By simply prioritizing policies that reduce environmental impact and promote sustainability, we can move Winston from the 8th least EV-friendly city in the nation to a green economy leader in our state.
Q: What measures will you take to ensure that natural resources are protected?
A: Our key water sources, like Salem Lake and the Yadkin River, are vital for both drinking water and recreation, and incidents like the Weaver Fertilization Plant fire have shown just how vulnerable our environment can be. The chemical burnoff and runoff from that fire posed a serious risk to our airways and waterways. Combine that with new EPA regulations requiring PFAS reporting in our water quality assessments, and it underscores the need to prioritize stronger regulations and local oversight to prevent such disasters from happening again. Stronger oversight involves regular monitoring, report transparency, and accountability for polluters and violators. Additionally, as mentioned earlier, I support initiatives to increase green spaces within the city, which help improve air quality and mitigate pollution. I aim to work with state and federal agencies to ensure that our city has the resources needed to make many of these initiatives happen.
Q: How will you promote recycling and composting in Winston-Salem?
A: Winston-Salem’s landfill is approaching capacity, raising serious concerns about our long-term waste management. Continuing to rely heavily on landfills is unsustainable, both environmentally and financially. As such, we need to move towards more comprehensive recycling and composting programs to reduce waste at the source and extend the life of our landfill. We’ve made strides in recycling, but we still have a long way to go. Currently, our city’s recycling program processes over 26,000 tons of recyclable material per year, yet recycling participation rates could be much higher. To promote broader adoption, I believe we need more accessible, educational outreach on how to recycle effectively, especially in communities where rates are lower. I also would like to see the city prioritize composting. Currently, Winston-Salem doesn’t have a citywide composting initiative, but we can draw inspiration from nearby cities like Asheville, which has established community composting drop-off locations. A similar program here could help divert thousands of pounds of organic waste from landfills, reducing methane emissions and turning waste into valuable soil. With stronger public education campaigns, more convenient recycling options, and pilot composting programs in partnership with local organizations, we could dramatically extend the life of our landfill and transition to a greener Winston-Salem.