ELLICOTT CITY, MD – Howard County Executive Calvin Ball recently joined The Howard County Conservancy to host representatives from local municipalities and regional entities from across Maryland and Washington, D.C., Maryland government officials and staff, private industry, as well as academia, nonprofits, and regional think tanks for the very first ‘Maryland Climate Forward Forum.’
Held at The Meeting Housing Oakland Mills, this region-wide gathering focused on advancing state and local climate action through collaboration and innovation within the public and private sectors. Building on the momentum of Howard County Government’s bold, transformational “HOWARD COUNTY CLIMATE FORWARD: Climate Action and Resiliency Plan,” which was published in June 2023 and outlines Howard County Government’s climate action goals and strategies. Photos from the event can be found on the County’s Flickr webpage.
The truth is clear – global commitments only succeed when local communities deliver. When we share knowledge, align strategies, and shine together, we move Maryland, our nation, and our world forward. Now, more than ever, we need to find ways of working with, learning from, and supporting each other at the local and state level to advance both energy independence and economic goals.
During the Forum, Maryland Secretary of Commerce Harry Coker, Jr., Maryland Energy Administration Director Paul Pinsky, and Maryland Department of the Environment Deputy Secretary Adam Ortiz examined how public-private partnerships can expand climate investment and innovation for economic success.
Maryland is a major – and growing – player in fields like quantum, artificial intelligence, computational health and the life sciences, among other industries. But this growth, innovation and advancement will only be possible with commensurate growth in accessible, affordable, and reliable clean energy. It is essential that Maryland get this right — and we will work with our public and private sector partners to do so.
“In a time when our once-bedrock federal partners have foolishly backed away from the conversation on climate change, I applaud Howard County for having the courage to keep working toward progress. To do otherwise is to poorly serve the future generations who will bear the brunt of our neglect,” said Pinsky. “We must not fail to hear the pulse of the planet amid the daily political static. Climate change is real, happening now, and can begin to be corrected by coupling cleaner energy technologies with political and decisive action.”
“Maryland is already moving — solving problems, proving concepts, and scaling solutions,” added Ortiz. “We’re coming together across sectors, and our job now is simple: keep the momentum going.”
The Forum also feature breakout sessions featuring local and state government representatives, climate resiliency experts, and private industry and nonprofit partners and discussions centered on best practices and scalable strategies for clean energy development, building resilient communities, strengthening community engagement, and mobilizing climate finance.
Maryland’s Chief Sustainability Officer Meghan Conklin closed the program discussing several of the advancements Governor Wes Moore’s administration is implementing at the State level on climate and sustainability and encouraged local governments and agencies to do the same.
“During these trying times at the Federal level, I am proud to highlight the record of accomplishments on climate, clean energy, and the environment of the Moore-Miller Administration, such as Governor Moore's historic agreement to provide $340 million to improve water quality at the Conowingo Dam,” said Conklin.
“Today’s gathering showed that leaders across multiple sectors in Maryland increasingly recognize that clean energy is cheap energy,” said Tim Lattimer, Administrator, Office of Community Sustainability. “By bringing the public and private sectors to forge closer partnerships, we can boost economic prosperity, secure reliable and affordable energy, and safeguard our environment for ourselves, our kids, and generations to come.”
Since taking office in December 2018, Ball’s administration quickly stepped up Howard County’s climate leadership by signing the “We Are Still In” declaration in support of the Paris Agreement and joining the U.S. Climate Alliance in early 2019. In 2020, the County executed Maryland’s largest solar power purchase agreement (PPA). Projected to save the County about $30 million in energy costs over 25 years, through this innovative deal, a solar provider has installed and maintained solar panels across various County properties at its own expense and then sells the electricity generated at an affordable rate. With these PPA projects now nearly 97 percent complete, the County today generates enough clean solar power to meet the electricity needs of more than half of all County Government buildings.
In 2022, the County became the first county to be certified as ‘LEED Platinum for Cities and Communities’ by the U.S. Green Building Council.
In July 2025, Ball signed memorandum of understanding (MOU) to enhance collaboration on climate and sustainability priorities with the Columbia Association (CA). This MOU leverages the strengths of local county partners to elevate the County’s ‘Howard County Climate Forward’ from a “whole-of-government” effort to a “whole-of-community” approach.
Additionally, this past August, Ball signed a climate and energy independence MOU with Howard Community College (HCC) and Howard County Public School System (HCPSS) to enhance collaboration between the County, HCPSS, and HCC and strengthen local action on energy production and independence. The MOU provides a framework for Howard County, HCPSS, and HCC to collaborate on energy generation, transportation, waste management, stormwater, nature-based climate solutions, ecosystem services, emergency management, infrastructure and heat resiliency, education, and community engagement campaigns and programs. The County and these two education partners are currently working toward developing a second solar PPA.
In addition, the County has:
- Expanded solar deployment countywide by 23 percent this past year alone, reaching 150 megawatts installed, which is already one-third of the County’s Howard County Climate Forward 2030 target;
- Implemented new building codes that ensure every new home or business constructed in Howard County will be solar-ready, EV-ready, and electric HVAC-ready, embedding tomorrow’s progress into every blueprint;
- Established a Solar Implementation Task Force, a cross-departmental team of experts across the County working to bring more clean energy online faster. The Task Force aims to streamline processes to help accelerate clean energy deployment in pursuit of the County’s goal of reaching 437 megawatts of solar by 2030;
- Planted more than 150,000 trees since 2018;
- Expanded our “Feed the Green Bin” curbside food waste collection program to 58,000 households; and
- Reached one million public transit rides five years ahead of schedule.
To learn more about the County’s Howard County Climate Forward plan to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 60 percent by 2030 and how you can be a part of the solution, visit https://climateforward.howardcountymd.gov.