Sustainability Resources
Learn About Sustainability
We’ve compiled a number of resources around sustainability. Be sure to click any of the resources for more info.
Categories:
Solar
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Waste Reduction and Management
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Learn about the “Zero Waste Cities” approach here.
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Food Waste Reduction (Click for full video)
Jennifer Nelson (Seven Generations Ahead), founder of the Illinois Food Scraps Coalition, gives an introductory presentation on food waste reduction. Target audiences: healthcare systems, institutional food service managers, schools and restaurants. View the PDF of the presentation
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Master Recycle Flyer (PDF)
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Rockford Recycling Guidelines (PDF)
Environment
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Rockford, Illinois Climate Action Plan
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South Bend, Indiana Climate Action Plan
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Madison, Wisconsin Sustainability Plan
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Dubuque, Iowa Sustainability Plan
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Elgin, Illinois Sustainability Plan
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The Climate Report: National Climate Assessment-Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in USA
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Discover current CO2 levels by clicking here.
Basic Principles of Sustainability
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The Natural Step
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There Is No Planet B: A Handbook for the Make or Break Years – Updated Edition
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The Climate Report: National Climate Assessment-Impacts, Risks, and Adaptation in USA
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Developmental Health and the Wealth of Nations, Hertzman & Keating
Sustainable Lifestyle
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Investing in What Works for America’s Communities:
Essays on People, Place, & Purpose, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and Low Income Investment Fund
What Others are Doing
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Webinar Recording: Community Sustainability Planning And Implementation
Watch the recording of a webinar discussing community sustainability planning and implementation
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Rockford Public Schools - Student Survey
A survey of over 100 Rockford Public School students on their attitudes about climate change
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R1 Climate Action Plan
A Climate Action Plan for the Rockford Region
Data Centers
Click on a Resource To Learn More
- “Data Drain: The Land and Water Impacts of the AI Boom” — Lincoln Institute
- “Data Center Playbook: Understand the impact of data center development in your community, protect water”— Alliance for the Great Lakes
- Scientists have found an alarming environmental impact of vast data centers — CNN, 3/30/2026
- MAP – “Cambrian-Ordovician Aquifer System of Illinois (Provisional)”, Illinois State Water Survey
- “Analysis of Risk to Sandstone Water Supply in the Southwest Suburbs of Chicago”, Abrams, Daniel B.; Cullen, Cecilia; IDEALS – the University of Illinois Library,
- “Changing Groundwater Levels in the Sandstone Aquifers”, Daniel R. Hadley, Daniel B. Abrams, and Devin H. Mannix, June 8, 2023
- Community Guide to Challenging Data Centers in Illinois
- “A Regional Playbook for Managing Data Center Impacts in the Great Lakes”- Alliance for the Great Lakes
- Register for “Data Center Playbook Webinar”: 3/24/2026 – 12:00 pm, CDT – Alliance for the Great Lakes
- “Questions to Ask at Public Meetings” – Alliance for the Great Lakes
- Short Promotional Video – Monarch Energy, Data Center Developer
- “How a landfill waste-to-energy project gave way to a Rockford data center” Rock River Current – 3/2/2026
- “What happens next on the Rockford data center?” – Rock River Current, 3/6/2026
- “Residents sound off on data center as panel reviews proposed south Rockford TIF district” — Rock River Current, 3/31/2026
- Residents sound off on data center as panel reviews proposed south Rockford TIF district