A forum held this past week at the library by the volunteer-run Sustainable Wellesley organization gave Select Board and School Committee candidates a platform for sharing their views on all things green.
Wellesley Media recorded the Conversation with the Candidates event, which lasted about an hour, and that took place the night before the League of Women Voters of Wellesley’s Candidate Night, also at the library.
Select Board candidate Marc Charney, currently the Planning Board chair, cited efforts during his time on the latter board focused on long-term planning that includes environmental and fiscal responsibility. Incumbent Select Board member Beth Sullivan Woods, running for a fourth 3-year term, touted Wellesley’s willingness to be an innovator as well as to recognize changes that might be worth embracing. Incumbent Select Board member Tom Ulfelder, also seeking his fourth term, pointed to concrete actions he’s taking during his time in town government, including negotiating the electrification of the Nines apartments and supporting the electrification of town hall. The candidates also fielded questions about the state’s effort to get housing built on “surplus property” at MassBay Community College and how their votes as public officials have moved the needle on emissions reductions in Wellesley.
Sustainable Wellesley also includes information on its website about where the candidates stand on sustainability topics.
School Committee candidates—Bob Sullivan, Costas Panagopoulos, Ayla Lari, and Michael Robert Cave—also shared their level of commitment to sustainability, and commented on composting during a Q&A session. Sustainable Wellesley also posted answers from candidates to a couple of questions on its website.
During the forum, Cave said there’s an opportunity to influence generations to come on sustainability practices and issues. Lari said her family was into “reduce, reuse and recycle before it was cool,” citing the washing of Ziploc bags for reuse. Panagopoulos highlighted opportunities for the School Committee to be a partner in the town’s efforts to ensure climate justice and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Sullivan said the School Committee needs to be smart about how it prioritizes and spends on its environmental initiatives, and that schools need to “model sustainable behavior for students.”
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