In 2019, Michael Bloomberg personally awarded St. Peterburg $2.5 million for its role in combating climate change; when former Mayor Rick Kriseman took office in 2014, city administration fought just to institute universal curbside recycling.
For eight years, Kriseman pushed for green initiatives he thought would increase St. Petersburg’s sustainability and decrease its carbon footprint – and with good reason. According to climatecentral.org, St. Pete ranks as the sixth-most vulnerable American city for coastal flooding, with sea-level rise putting 91,000 residents directly at risk.
