Mayor Patricia Lock Dawson is increasing her advocacy efforts on behalf of the City of Riverside by taking new and larger roles in the areas of public-private partnerships and climate. She also set aside some time to document how much Riversiders love their pets.
Lock Dawson believes public-private partnerships must be aggressively pursued with private businesses if cities are to realize their economic development goals.
“Cities can play a vital role in working with private business to accomplish more than either could do separately,” Lock Dawson said. “This model holds great promise for elevating our economic development efforts.”
In recognition of her efforts and subject matter competency, Lock Dawson has been appointed to serve as Vice-Chair for Innovative City Development of the Public-Private Partnerships Task Force at the U.S. Conference of Mayors. The appointment will involve working closely with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, who chairs the overall task force.
The public-private partnership task force identifies best practices and opportunities for investment utilizing the “P3 model” around the country. It also seeks to influence federal policy to ensure the P3 process is as impactful as possible at the local level.
Earlier this year, Lock Dawson led a panel discussion on such P3 agreements at the 92nd Annual United States Conference of Mayors in Kansas City. The event drew more than 200 mayors from across the country among more than 1,000 attendees.
Lock Dawson also recently joined Climate Mayors, a bipartisan network of nearly 350 U.S. mayors who are demonstrating leadership on the climate issue. By joining Climate Mayors, she affirmed Riverside’s commitment to clean air, reducing energy costs, creating long-term green jobs, and reducing pollution.
Climate Mayors is a bipartisan network that has mobilized more than 750 U.S. mayors since 2014, demonstrating climate leadership through meaningful actions. Representing 46 states and more than 70 million Americans, the Climate Mayors coalition reflects U.S. cities’ commitment to climate progress. More information can be found at their website and by following Climate Mayors on X and LinkedIn.
“I’m proud to join the Climate Mayors community exchanging tangible ideas and best practices with some of the country’s leading cities tackling the climate crisis,” Lock Dawson said. “Together, we can build more resilient communities here in Riverside and throughout the country.”
Finally, thanks to the Mayor, Riverside is now a certified pet-friendly city with Better Cities for Pets, a program of Mars Petcare, makers of pet food, human food and a variety of other products. The organization recognizes cities for actions they take that make lives better for people and their pets.
Mars Petcare recognized Riverside for working with partners to reduce pet homelessness and get more pets in loving homes; for having pet-friendly green spaces for people and pets to get healthy exercise; for working with partners to educate the public citizens about responsible pet ownership; and more.
“As a Riverside native, I know firsthand how much Riversiders love their pets,” Lock Dawson said. “They share our lives, pick us up when we’re feeling blue and become part of the family. I’m proud to say Riverside has been recognized as a pet-friendly city.”