Empowered Communities
are Sustainable Communities

Empowered Communities
are

Sustainable Communities

Local Action Makes a Difference

SSMC empowers local government and community-based efforts with data, solutions and training to create a sustainable, equitable and climate-resilient San Mateo County now and for future generations.

Who We Serve

Local Government Decision Makers

Compare your city and get proven solutions to make your best decisions.

Sustainability Dashboard | Ideas Bank | Indicators Report

Community Changemakers

Turn concern into impact with data and proven solutions.

Sustainability Dashboard | Ideas Bank | Advocacy Tools | Awards

Youth Taking Action

Get the skills and support to make your city and school more sustainable.

 Internship | Advocacy Tools
Youth Awards | Youth Advisory Council

Core Programs

Trusted data to guide the best policy decisions

Over 90 Metrics | Compare Cities | Yearly Trends

Sustainability Dashboard

Use for presentations, grant applications and staff reports

Go to the Dashboard

Proven solutions to sustainability issues

Over 90 Solutions | Keys to Success | Professional Contacts

Sustainability Ideas Bank

Use to activate your climate action plan and pilot new solutions

Go to Ideas Bank

Extensive reports on critical local issues

Food Emissions | EV Charging | Childrens' Health

Annual Indicators Report

Use to set goals, measure progress and allocate resources

Go to Indicators Report

Inspire and collaborate to drive progress

Awards | Targeted Outreach | Webinars | Advocacy Kits

Annual Awards & Events

Recognize local heroes, inspire civic action and foster collaboration

Go to Awards

Decision makers & leaders count on SSMC

Councilmembers, city staff, nonprofit leaders and community advocates rely on SSMC’s data, solutions and collaboration to advance their sustainability goals.

IMPACT

Donna Colson photo
“The team at Sustainable San Mateo County is the gold standard in supporting local environmental work. They provide elected officials with critical data and ideas to help us meet our climate action goals and have been a wonderful partner in our work to ‘green’ San Mateo County.

Please join me in supporting this organization so we can continue our journey of holistic environmental research and action.”

Donna Colson, Council Member and Former Mayor, Burlingame

“SMMC’s Annual Indicators Report is a valuable resource that benefits not only the County of San Mateo and our cities but all stakeholders through its detailed analysis and insightful recommendations that help guide our decision-making. In doing so, the report helps all of us enhance the quality of life for residents in a thoughtful and measurable way.”

Mike Callagy, County Executive Officer for San Mateo County

“I love your dashboard and refer to it all the time. The fact that it’s regularly updated makes it all the more valuable to users. I’ve always been in awe of the comprehensive work you do for our county.”

Coleen Mackin, Mayor Pro-Tem, Brisbane City Council
“I just saw your dashboard, and it’s amazing! San Mateo is lucky to have this resource. I could easily see this being a blueprint for similar tracking in other counties.”
Alexis Fineman, Former Council Member, City of San Anselmo
“What I most like about Sustainable San Mateo County is how they gather the best examples of environmental projects and present them in a way that I can take back to my city to implement. Most elected officials are part time and some of us represent small cities with small staffs, so having a group like SSMC really helps reduce our research time so we can spend more time implementing projects to help our environment.”
Ann Schneider, Former Vice Mayor, City of Millbrae
“We’ve worked with SSMC the past five years (since we started up) and have a tremendous amount
of respect and appreciation for the organization. We look forward to attending the awards ceremony
every year; it is a joyous celebration of the amazing sustainability work done locally and a great way to learn about different projects and efforts in the region. SSMC was a founding member of the Campaign for Fossil Free Buildings in Silicon Valley, and their participation is a big reason for the success of the campaign.”
Diane Bailey, Former Executive Director, Menlo Spark and Founder, FFBSV

“The Dashboard is really impressive. It’s very helpful to see where we stand, compared to the rest of the county.”

Antonio López, Former Mayor, East Palo Alto and Current San Mateo County Poet Laureate

“I really am pleased that you have updated the Ideas Bank and made it easier to use. These solutions for cities are so inspiring that I’d like to see you share them on a regular basis.”

Vanessa Brannon, Senior Management Analyst, Foster City

“The new Ideas Bank is a great resource for exploring tried and tested sustainability policies and programs. It’s my go-to place for learning about proven solutions that can help my city become more sustainable.”

Vicki Sherman, Environmental Initiatives Coordinator, Redwood City
“The Ideas Bank is a treasure trove of ideas. Members of the Fossil Free Building group are using it to find high potential solutions. And because these have been successfully implemented elsewhere, it’s going to make our work getting buy-in and moving to execution faster and easier.”
Debbie Mytels, Chairman of the Board, Peninsula Interfaith Climate Action (PICA) and Chair, Fossil Free Buildings for Silicon Valley

“We all will need to work together to create a sustainable future. SSMC connects local sustainability leaders, organizations and businesses to start and sustain the work ahead!”

Adam Lorraine, Deputy Mayor, City of San Mateo

“Sustainable San Mateo County’s 2023 Indicators Report on children, youth, and families was a powerful affirmation for those of us working in early childhood. Having the report elevate the need for child care support was both validating and catalytic. It helped build momentum for the 2024 Fund the Future report by the Commission on the Status of Women and contributed to the Board of Supervisors’ unanimous vote to pursue a new county-level office focused on children and families. The work of Sustainable San Mateo County helped move key ideas into action—and reminded us that when children thrive, the whole community benefits.”

Dayna Chung & Sarah Kinahan, Nonprofit Leader & Commissioner (Dayna Chung) & School Board Member + Early Childhood Consultant (Sarah Kinahan)
“I received great mentorship during my SSMC internship. They helped me get in contact with important people working on real world issues and I got to have some valuable conversations with people in local governmenta and advocacy. This was really beneficial for me. The internship helped me understand the process of local government and change making, and helped me realize I have a strong interest in bringing about change. I’m looking to take carry on the skills I learned and use it in my furutre work in city planning.”
Sam Schulz, 2024 Student Intern at SSMC

MAKE A DIFFERENCE

DONATE

Every dollar supports our local efforts to make our community more sustainable.

VOLUNTEER

Join us in making a difference in your community. Join a committee, do research or outreach, and much more!

EVENTS

We host events to learn from experts & network with others working to make our county more sustainable.

WHAT’S THE LATEST

The Expanded Sustainability Dashboard

Sustainable San Mateo County Launches Expanded Sustainability Dashboard to Drive Targeted Equity & Climate ActionNew city-level reports for each of the 20 cities and unincorporated [...]

Meet the 2026 SSMC Students!

At Sustainable San Mateo County, we have a long history of empowering youth to build a sustainable future. Since 2019, SSMC has trained 102 interns. [...]

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