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Introduction
We are a group of 15 students in Sustainable Cities Studio (CP 4052) from Georgia Institute of Technology. We are working with community partners in Cobb County to identify key factors of vulnerability and methods of improvement for the future. Read more about Cobb County, us, and our community partners below!
Cobb County
Cobb County is a county within the northwestern metropolitan area of Atlanta. It is Georgia’s third largest county by population, with its largest city being Marietta. In 2020, there were over 750,000 people living in Cobb County. Cobb County earned a platinum certification under Green Communities, a program established by the Atlanta Regional Commission in 2009 “to recognize local governments that invest in programs and policies that lead to a more sustainable region.”
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While Cobb County has implemented many programs focused on sustainability, there are key areas that can be improved. Our team analyzed data from Cobb County through a social, economic, and environmental lens in order to identify these key points and create suggestions to most effectively improve upon sustainability within Cobb. Data was also analyzed by our GIS team in order to visually emphasize patterns regarding health issues, social inequities, environmental concerns, and other vulnerability factors. Check out the map on our GIS tab to learn more!
Professor
Dr. Jairo Garcia is an expert in urban sustainability and climate change. Dr. Garcia is the former Director of Climate Policy with the City of Atlanta and lead author of Atlanta's Climate Action Plan. He received the National Individual Climate Leadership Award by the EPA in 2017 and the Climate Reality Ring Award in 2021. Dr. Garcia is the CEO of Urban Climate Nexus and teaches classes in urban sustainability and climate change at the Georgia Institute of Technology.
Dr. Jairo Garcia
Our group consists of five main teams: social, economic, environmental, GIS and communications. The social, economic, and environmental team have evaluated their respective aspects of sustainability in Cobb County, the GIS team has gathered data in the form of maps to determine patterns within the county, and the communications team has developed the website.
Teams
GIS
Environmental
Social
Economic
Communications
GIS Team
Makaela Edmonds
4th Year Civil Engineering Major
Jose Miranda
4th Year Architecture Major
Abby Smith
4th Year Industrial Engineering Major
Environmental Team
Scott O’Brien
4th Year Environmental Engineering Major
Lauren Garrett
5th Year Civil Engineering Major
Lonnie Kriener
4th Year Industrial Engineering Major
Social Team
Annabelle Finck
4th Year Civil Engineering Major
Molly McLeod
4th Year Building Construction Major
Lily Luong
4th Year Environmental Engineering Major
Economic Team
Reed Walker
4th Year International Affairs and Modern Languages Major
Xiomara Aliago
3rd Year Building Construction Major
Owen Pendley
4th Year Business Administration Major
Communications Team
Anna Zhao
2nd Year Industrial Engineering Major
Lainey Render
2nd Year Civil Engineering Major
Kailey Williams
3rd Year Architecture Major