Some Cool Green Power Partner Initiatives
Posted by Melia Dicker on Thu, Feb 04, 2010
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) aims to help businesses decrease their carbon footprint in many ways. One specialized route that the EPA takes when promoting green businesses is offering Partner Initiatives through the Green Power Partnership.
Partner Initiatives focus on boosting collective green power purchases in specific sectors. The targeted programs offer information on how specific business sectors can decrease their carbon footprints by buying Renewable Energy Credits. Businesses that participate in the Partner Initiatives programs often receive special recognition from the EPA.
Throughout the 2009-2010 school year, the EPA is running the College and University Green Power Challenge. This Partner Initiative divides participating schools into groups by athletic conferences and tracks the schools' green power purchases. The group that buys the most green power within the school year is awarded the title of ‘Champion Green Power Conference.' The initiative also recognizes the top single purchasers within each athletic conference, which gives schools even more reason to participate.
The ABA/EPA Law Firm Climate Challenge is designed to help law offices increase their carbon offset. The Partner Initiative, which is a joint effort of the EPA and the American Bar Association, encourages the offices to participate in the Green Power Partnership by racking up enough green power purchases to meet or exceed the EPA's requirements. The initiative also encourages the participants to adopt green business practices such as reducing paper use, increasing recycling efforts and instituting energy-management plans to reduce total use of electricity.
Partner Initiatives programs are a great way to get targeted advice about building and maintaining a greener business. Some programs, such as the College and University Green Power Challenge, are ongoing. New initiatives are also introduced periodically, so keep an eye on the EPA's Partner Initiatives Web site to learn about fresh opportunities.