HomeMy WebLinkAboutPCD 2026-07-13 COMPLETE AGENDA PACKETCITY OF TUKWILA
City Council Committee Meeting
Planning & Community Development
Monday, July 13, 2026 at 5:30 p.m.
Location: City Hall, Council Conference Room,
6200 Southcenter Boulevard, Tukwila, WA 98188
Join remotely: 1-253-292-9750, Access Code:
866559860# or click here to join the meeting
AGENDA
RECOMMENDED ACTION
Discussion Only Pg. 2
1.BUSINESS AGENDA
a.Youth Engagement on Climate Sustainability
Peter Donaldson, Director of Learning at
Sustainability Ambassadors
2.MISCELLANEOUS
City of Tukwila
Thomas McLeod, Mayor
Marty Wine, City Administrator
ITEM NO.
AGENDA BILL
Agenda Item Youth Engagement on Climate Sustainability
Sponsor Laurel Humphrey, Legislative Analyst
Legislative History July 13, 2026 Planning & Community Development Committee
Recommended Motion ☒Discussion Only ☐Action Requested
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The Planning and Community Development Committee has been discussing climate resiliency and
sustainability strategies over the course of several meetings this year. The Committee invited Peter
Donaldson, Director of Learning, Sustainability Ambassadors, to join them in conversation about
effective strategies for engagement on climate.
BACKGROUND
From sustainabilityambassadors.org:
Sustainability Ambassadors is a professional development program for student leaders, teacher
leaders, and community leaders committed to rapidly advancing a sustainable future by aligning
classroom rigor with community relevance for real world impact.
We support a year-round training program for over 50 highly motivated youth from 10 different cities, a
paid Intern Program, a Green Jobs Youth Pathways Portal, and a Teacher Fellows Program working
with secondary teacher leaders to design new models of problem-based, place-based learning. We
curate resources and coach teachers across the curriculum on local relevance, student agency,
systems thinking, and community impact.
We focus on middle school and high school youth, the teachers and school districts that guide their
learning, and the community stakeholders, local government, and business leaders who are relying on
the next generation to be engaged voters, informed taxpayers, conscious consumers, and employees
who can create and lead sustainability initiatives.
Our work integrates three communities of learning:
ONE: Youth Leadership Development training, application, and impact storytelling
•Leadership strategies for team-building and facilitation
•Project management skills using the IP3 Strategy
•Community and school stakeholder engagement strategies
•Public speaking with confidence, style, and purpose
•Video production, graphic design, and social media management
•Asset-based community mapping
TWO: Teacher Support for PBL Curriculum Design
•Integrating problem-based, place-based learning pathways: PBL Practices
•Curating locally relevant content to meet academic standards: Lesson Collections
•Nurturing student agency through measurable community impact: IP3 Strategy
•Integrating career-connected learning through Green Jobs Youth Pathways
2
1.A.
https://tukwilawa-my.sharepoint.com/personal/laurel_humphrey_tukwilawa_gov/Documents/Agenda Bill_Sustainability.docx
THREE: Collective Impact to advance shared plans and performance measures
• Climate Justice, Climate Action Plans (Transportation, Energy, Zero Waste)
• Water Conservation, Stormwater Management, Wastewater Treatment Plans
• Salmon Recovery and Watershed Resource Integration Plans
• Workforce Development Plans with government and industry partners
Peter Donaldson is a strategic storyteller with over 35 years of experience in performance art, public
speaking, curriculum design, and community facilitation. Peter founded Sustainability Ambassadors in
2012 and serves as the Director of Learning, coaching student leaders, teacher leaders, and
community leaders on how to advance collective impact strategies, design problem-based learning
curriculum, and support sustainable systems thinking at the intersection between classroom learning
and community impact.
With a BFA in Painting and a Teaching Certificate from the University of Washington, Peter started out
as a middle school art teacher tinkering with new models for teaching as storytelling. He frequently
found himself impersonating famous artists. From 1986-1996 Peter was the Artistic Director for Youth
Theater Northwest, authoring 17 plays for young actors and audiences. In 1994 he was recognized as
National Youth Theater Director of the Year by the American Alliance for Theater and Education. Peter
wrote and acted in two of his own one-man, touring shows, The Life and Times of Leonardo da Vinci
and Salmonpeople, with follow up seminars at high schools and colleges across the northwest, the
nation, and Canada. In 2009, he was appointed Distinguished Scholar to the Dan Evans Chair for the
Liberal Arts at The Evergreen State College where he facilitated seminars on sustainable systems
thinking. In 2010, Peter was recognized by E3 Washington as the Outstanding Environmental Educator
of the Year.
Peter’s focus on strategic storytelling is informed by his passion for coaching youth at the cusp of
adulthood. To rest his mind at night, Peter writes a lot of poetry. Poetry and his early passion for
painting are both method and metaphor for leading a learning organization.
3