Your initial discussion thread is due on Day 3 (Thursday). Your grade will reflect both the quality of your initial post and the depth of your responses. Refer to the Discussion Forum Grading Rubric under the Settings icon above for guidance on how your discussion will be evaluated.

  A Carbon-Neutral Community Plan for Ashfordton
Imagine that you are a resident of Ashfordton, a community whose characteristics are described below. You have come together with your neighbors for a special meeting to devise a plan for helping the community become carbon-neutral by 2050, meaning that by that time, no net carbon dioxide emissions will be produced by residents as a whole.

Fortunately, you have all showed up to the meeting with lots of knowledge you gained from last week’s class discussion. Now it is time to put your thinking cap on and get to work! Your plan should consist of the following elements:

Energy conservation measures (e.g., promoting carpooling by adding special lanes to local highways) and
Steps to move toward sustainable energy production (e.g., installing solar panels on town government buildings)
Reducing energy consumption will help, but some actions will have to involve switching to other power sources for buildings and vehicles as well.

This week’s discussion will take place in an online app called “Tricider.” There, you will be able to post your ideas for plan components, and also share pros and cons of different proposals during the week. Finally, you will be able to vote on what you think should be in the plan.

For directions on how to use the Tricider app, please review the linked Help Guide. In Tricider, you will be expected to do the following:

Post at least two separate and unique ideas. Include your full name for each one.
Post at least six different pros and cons for your classmates’ proposed ideas.
Vote on what you feel are the top three ideas in the list. (Do not vote before Friday.)
Please note: You are welcome to post questions and comments to this board for this instructor; however, this discussion board does not have any posting requirements of its own, and no additional credit will be given for posts made here.

Below, the Instructor will post both

The Ashfordton description you will be using for this activity and
The link you will be using to access Tricider for the activities below.
Ashfordton:

Population:                          32,000

Avg. High Temp (Dec):      34oF

Avg. High Temp (June):    62oF

Annual Precipitation:        62 in.

Urban Area:                      14 sq. mi.

Main Power Source:          natural gas

Overview:

The community of Ashfordton is located near sea level at the base of a snow-capped mountain, on a secluded ocean inlet, surrounded by rugged, forested land.  The only access to the city is by ferry or plane; no roads connect it to other communities in the region. Winters are wet, mild, and long. The city serves as the capital for the state of New Bridgepoint.  As such, government agencies are its leading employer, though tourism is also a major source of income, followed by commercial fishing.  The city is renowned for its scenic beauty; tall mountains capped by glaciers can be seen from the downtown.