This article was originally published on July 9, 2026, and updated on July 30, 2026.
In 2025, the Great Plains Institute conducted a nationwide survey of local planners and sustainability staff to understand their needs for advancing climate work. Respondents said the most useful addition to their toolkits would be real-world examples of efforts to advance climate goals.
To figure out where those examples were most needed, we compared the survey results with a scan of existing resources and found that data centers, autonomous vehicles, and energy affordability stood out as the topics with the greatest gaps.
Based on those findings, we convened a cohort of communities from across the country and created two playbooks for local governments. Below, learn more about the resources and find webinar recordings, where we share key takeaways from each resource.
Webinar | Zoning as a tool for climate and affordability
GPI facilitated a cohort of 27 communities from across the country that focused on zoning as a low-cost, high-impact tool for local governments with ambitious climate and affordability goals. The cohort explored best practices for zoning ordinance language related to electric vehicle charging, distributed solar installations, battery energy storage, and geothermal power.
In a webinar, GPI staff shared key takeaways from that work and how they can be translated to other emerging technologies.
Watch the webinar recording.
Webinar | Aligning Autonomous Vehicles with Local Goals: Resources for Local Governments
GPI developed a playbook for communities considering how autonomous vehicle (AV) deployment relates to sustainability goals. It recommends prioritizing an approach known as CASE, which means that the vehicles are connected, automated, shared, and electric. The playbook also identifies the following four levers local governments can use to encourage that approach and provides examples from across the country:
- Include AVs in community plans and planning activities
- Update zoning and regulations to prepare for AVs
- Explore service agreements with AV service providers
- Lead AV testing and pilot programs
In a webinar, GPI staff walked through each lever and other important considerations for local governments. We also shared an overview of the pilot project checklist provided in the playbook.
Watch the webinar recording and explore the Aligning Autonomous Vehicles with Sustainability Goals: Local Government Playbook.
Webinar | Aligning Data Centers with Local Goals: Resources for Local Governments
GPI also compiled a playbook for communities considering data center development, offering practical guidance on evaluating project alignment with community priorities and sustainability goals. It identifies four key levers for local government action:
- Zoning ordinances, comprehensive plans, and other plans
- Development agreements, community benefits agreements, and other agreements
- Impact studies
- External coordination
In a webinar, GPI staff walked through each lever and other important considerations for local governments. We also shared an overview of the development review checklist provided in the playbook.
Watch the webinar recording and explore the Aligning Data Centers with Sustainability Goals: Local Government Playbook.
Work with us to support your community
GPI will also continue to offer technical support to communities addressing these topics as part of their climate work. Please reach out to us at [email protected] if you have any questions or are interested in working with us.
