More than half of the world’s population currently lives in cities, and as this urban population continues to grow, so does the footprint it leaves on our environment. To find the places with minimal environmental footprints, consumer advocacy site NerdWallet determined the greenest cities in America. Greensboro is the fifth greenest city in the nation.

This study was based on the following criteria:
• Median Air Quality Index
• Parks per 10,000 residents
• Gallons of excess fuel consumed per commuter
• Percentage of people who work from home, or walk, bike, carpool or take public transit to work

*The 95 largest cities in the U.S. were considered in their analysis

Greensboro actively takes action to live up to the “green” in its name. The local government has instated land use policies to protect open spaces and installed a variety of energy-efficient equipment and appliances. It also promotes sustainable building practices and uses hybrid vehicles in the city’s fleet of cars. Greensboro also has a Community Sustainability Council that serves as an advisory group to the city council in an effort to reduce energy usage and carbon dioxide emissions, among other things.