STAR Green Community Rating System Launching This Year

The STAR Community Index, a livability and sustainability rating system for communities, is launching this year with ten participating “beta communities.” Developed by ICLEI–Local Governments for Sustainability in partnership with the U.S. Green Building Council and the Center for American Progress, the STAR rating system is inspired by the LEED rating system but goes beyond measures of buildings and even neighborhoods to look at healthcare access, affordable housing, and green jobs, among other measures. STAR defines 81 sustainability goals and employs a variety of sustainability metrics considering policy, practices, and performance benchmarks in the categories of environment, economy, and society. The ten beta communities, chosen for their commitment to sustainability and their already-developed resources for tracking performance and progress, will help launch the program by providing feedback and by helping design online tools for use across the U.S. Other towns, cities, and counties will be able to participate in the STAR rating program beginning in 2012.

– Paula Melton