About us
We’re a group of elected officials in Centre County working with local scientists, engineers, & urban planners on pragmatic, fiscally responsible environmental stewardship.
Council of Governments (COG)
In Centre County, elected officials from the municipalities of Patton, College, Harris, Ferguson, Halfmoon, & the State College Borough collaborate through the Centre Region Council of Governments.
Centre Sustains
Centre Sustains is an effort inside the Council of Governments (COG) to facilitate community conversations about sustainability & climate planning.
COG is developing a plan in 2021 that will include strategies to reduce emissions and make our community more resilient.
Pam Adams, the COG Sustainability Planner, is coordinating the effort. She is supported by the Technical Advisory Group (TAG), which provides technical expertise to the General Forum, the policy body of elected officials.
Climate Action & Sustainability Committee
Betsy Whitman is the Patton Township Supervisor.
Carla Stilson is the College Township Council Member.
Danelle Del Corso is the Halfmoon Township Supervisor.
Jesse Barlow is the State College Borough Council Member.
Prasenjit Mitra is the Ferguson Township Supervisor.
Bud Graham is the Harris Township Supervisor.
Gretchen Brandt is the SCASD school board representative.
Rob Cooper is the Penn State University representative.
Technical Advisory Group (TAG)
Brandi Robinson serves as Chair of TAG and Chair of Ferguson Township’s Climate Action Committee. She works at Penn State’s College of Earth and Mineral Sciences as an Assistant Teaching Professor.
Dr. Peter Buck serves as Chair of the regional intergovernmental Solar Power Purchase Agreement Working Group and as Vice Chair of TAG. He works at Penn State’s Sustainability Institute.
Pam Adams is the Sustainability Planner at the COG’s Centre Regional Planning Agency. From 2008–2019 she worked as COG’s Refuse and Recycling Administrator. She holds an Industrial Engineering degree from Penn State.
Alan Sam has worked for State College Borough since 1989, currently serving as the Arborist and Sustainability Coordinator. He chairs the Borough’s Sustainability Committee.
Dr. Franklin Egan is the Education Director at Pasa Sustainable Agriculture. He works with farmers across Pennsylvania and the mid-Atlantic region for peer-to-peer learning and on-farm research. Franklin holds a PhD in Ecology from Penn State University.
Jason Wert, P.E., is an Energy and Environmental Project Engineer at RETTEW and National Energy Market Leader. He has been the engineer involved with the University Area Joint Authority’s solar installation in College Township which when completed will provide 65-70% of their total energy consumption and save them $7 million over a 30-year span.