Business Community Commitment to Clean Energy Gets a Boost from New York Community Trust

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

BUSINESS COMMUNITY COMMITMENT TO CLEAN ENERGY GETS A BOOST FROM NEW YORK COMMUNITY TRUST

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CONTACT
Jeff Swenerton
CRS Communications Director
415-561-2119
jeff@resource-solutions.org

SAN FRANCISCO (January 19, 2010) — The New York Community Trust (NYCT) has awarded the Center for Resource Solutions a $75,000 grant to expand its programs for renewable energy use by the business community. This grant supports the Green-e Marketplace program, expanding its education and outreach services to further expedite commercial reliance on renewable energy during 2010.

The one-year grant from the Henry Phillip Kraft Family Memorial Fund, illustrates NYCT’s continuing support for innovative approaches to conservation and the environment, seeking to minimize climate change by reducing greenhouse gas emissions through tangible efforts by private business and institutions.

“The rising trend of commercial purchases of renewable energy is helping to drive growth in clean energy markets,” observed Green-e Marketplace Manager Orrin Cook. Thousands of businesses, large and small, are now buying renewable energy products to meet or match a large portion of their electric power use, he noted. “But even more would buy green power or renewable energy certificates (RECs), if they understand that they have choices and that there are substantive benefits for doing so,” Cook said. “This grant from NYCT will help fund our ability to present the case for renewable power through webinars, research reports, and consumer surveys aimed at providing insights into this fast-growing component of energy use.”

One example of how the NYCT funds will be put to use is the dissemination of a recent CRS report, Insights into the Renewable Energy Market now available for download at www.resource-solutions.org.

“The more that businesses understand the benefits of renewable energy, the more willing they are to incorporate clean power as part of their operations and efforts to achieve sustainable energy practices, said Jennifer Giles, CRS’s director of sustainable initiatives. “This funding will enable us to build upon our existing program to offer services such as educational webinars, policy updates and research. The expanded educational and verification services we provide helps to inform organizations about how to incorporate renewable energy use into their business and manufacturing operations and options for communicating their renewable energy commitments to stakeholders,” Giles said.

Specific initiatives that will be funded through the NYCT grant include:

Presenting information about business use of renewable energy at select conferences and events

Conducting research to identify key data on renewable energy use in business that will help decision makers at commercial entities justify their investments in clean power

Incorporating renewable energy as a component of broader, multi-attribute environmental certification programs.

This year’s grant continues NYCT’s support for the Green-e Marketplace program from a series of substantive grants that began in 2008. CRS is proud to partner with NYCT to inspire forward-thinking organizations to take responsibility for the environmental costs of doing business through Green-e Marketplace.

About Green-e Marketplace
Green-e Marketplace is a program of Center for Resource Solutions, and works with over 60 diverse businesses that show their commitment to clean energy by purchasing up to 100 percent of their energy needs from sellers of Green-e Energy Certified renewable energy. This high degree of commitment is illustrated by the use of the Green-e logo on products, packaging, and promotional materials. At the start of 2010, more than 330 consumer products displayed the Green-e logo as a sign of this commitment. For more information about Green-e Marketplace, visit www.green-e.org/marketplace.

About Center for Resource Solutions
Center for Resource Solutions (CRS) is a national nonprofit with global impact. CRS brings forth expert responses to climate change issues with the speed and effectiveness necessary to provide real-time solutions. Its leadership through collaboration and environmental innovation builds policies and consumer-protection mechanisms in renewable energy, greenhouse gas reductions, and energy efficiency that foster healthy and sustained growth in national and international markets. For more information about its programs, including Green-e, visit www.resource-solutions.org and www.green-e.org.

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